Marketing is not advertising

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Unfortunately, marketing is synonymous with advertising. Well, at least to most people. It’s not a misguided connection to make, after all advertising is part of marketing. It is just detrimental to think that marketing is only about advertising.

Why you ask:

Because this definition limits possibilities. Marketing is so much more than advertising. It’s possible to effectively market your business without ever using traditional advertising. Really, it is.

Often when people think that marketing is advertising the next thought is, “that is really expensive”, or “it doesn’t work.” Then the next thought is usually, ‘I don’t need it.”

A business can’t survive, it won’t survive, without marketing. Trust me. It is impossible.

A real quick summary of marketing

Let me know what you think with either a comment or an email.

steve@vicegripmarketing.com

Two zipcodes for $300

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If you are in the professional home services industry, I am sure you are aware of the companies that sell leads. Maybe you even use them. If you are not familiar with these companies, they bring together customers and contractors, usually through a website. The customer goes to the site, says what they need, and they are matched with the appropriate contractor. It’s like a dating site, but in the business world.

In and of itself this is not a bad idea. However, in my experience, leads that are purchased from a third party often don’t result in a sale. Or if they do the profit margin is slim to none.

That gets me thinking why.

The answer is that  your business hasn’t had a chance to build a relationship, or create value with these customers. These people have probably never been exposed to your marketing, so when you show up at their door, you might as well be Joe Average.

There are ways to get around that and use these services to your advantage, but that is for a detailed marketing plan. For now, check out the list below.

Some questions to ask before deciding to do business with a company that sells leads:

  1. Does their positioning and branding flow with yours? If you ask their salesman this question, and they don’t know what you are talking about, hang up the phone. They are just their to push you into buying something.
  2. What motivates their customers to come to their site to look for contractors? Is it the same thing that motivates your customers to use your services? If not you will be at a disadvantage from the start.
  3. How many other contractors get to bid on the job?
  4. Ask how many unique visitors they get per day looking for your industry’s services? Once again, if they don’t know the answer, hang up the phone.
  5. How many leads can you reasonably expect per day or per week?
  6. When did the lead come in? Is there a possibility that the lead is already closed? Make sure to check.
  7. Ask the salesman what his company is doing to drive traffic to his site?  Then ask him to prove it to you.
  8. Is there a contract involved? There shouldn’t be a contract upfront. A contract should only signed, if at all, once it is established the service works.

These are just some of the questions to ask. If you need any help with this, send your questions my way.

Let me know what you think with either a comment or an email.

steve@vicegripmarketing.com

A website and 1000 words

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Your website is the face of your business. Look at it in the same way you would your storefront. You want it to be clean, user-friendly, and project an image of professionalism. You don’t necessarily have to invest a ton of money either. There are plenty of ways to put together a professional and functional website that are pretty cost-effective. Mind you I said cost-effective, not cheap.

Often the investment is time. My site is a WordPress template, so the basic design was already done. I have however spent a tremendous amount of time and energy writing my site and making small design modifications. As I get further along with my design knowledge, my site will change. Focus on content first, and flashy design later.

A poorly done website can do way more damage than good. A cheesy and cheap website makes people think your business is cheesy and cheap.

While I believe it to be true that every business needs a website, don’t put one up just to do it. Customers are smart and they will see through it. If you’re not gonna do it right, don’t do it at all. If you can’t write web copy that is compelling, don’t write it. Find someone to do it who can.

For many customers, a website is their first impression of a business. It’s not easy to get a customer’s attention in today’s marketplace. Make sure you take advantage of their wanting to learn more about your business by presenting them with the best, and most accurate, first impression possible.

Your website should be an extension of your brand. It should have the same attitude and look as your business. Your website is doing the talking for you. Make sure your site talks to your customers like you would.

A website is worth at least 1000 words.

Let me know what you think with either a comment or an email.

steve@vicegripmarketing.com

I hate the New York Yankees

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Man the New York Yankees make me mad. What, are they up to 27 rings? With their huge payroll maybe they can buy another one this year? Maybe they can sign Albert Pujols for $40 million a year to come off the bench just so any other team can’t have him? Doesn’t it seem like every game on ESPN is the Yankees. I think they have a 200 game season, and they are all on tv.

Maybe I don’t like the Yankees because I am a jealous Chicago Cubs fan that has been saying, “Wait till next year”, since I was eight, and I am a little tired of it? And I don’t want to talk about that anymore.

That’s what I love about baseball. It can make you feel. It creates rivalries and loyalties. Simply seeing a teams logo inspires passion, one way or the other. Your team makes you feel connected and dedicated. You are driven to support them. You follow them. What are they doing today? You will hang with them through good times as well as bad. Baseball provokes both arguments and philosophical debates. Your team becomes part of your life.

That is also what I love about marketing.

It can do the same things.

Think about it.

Let me know what you think with either a comment or an email.

steve@vicegripmarketing.com

Why your business needs social media marketing

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Some of the most popular social media platforms are Twitter, Myspace, Facebook, and You Tube.

Does your business need to use all of these? Probably not.

Do you need to use at least some of these? Maybe.

Should you use some form of social media marketing?

Abso-frickin-lutely!!

Why? Because social media is all about communication and interaction. I communicate with you. You interact with me. It’s the proverbial two-way street.

Moreover, you can interact with a whole lot of people at once. You can create an entire community of people who can then communicate and interact with each other. And those people use social media to talk to their friends and so on.

That’s a lot of communication and interaction. That is a lot of spreading the word. That is success.

It’s word of mouth marketing on steroids.

The equivalent of trying to “shout louder” than your competitors is no longer effective. That is what traditional advertising does.

To be successful in 2010, you have to engage people with information and experiences that they find valuable and relevant. Instead of pushing marketing on people, pull them toward you. Let them tell you they are open to your messages.

Social media platforms allow you to do this.

Please don’t think that social media marketing is just limited to Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, and You Tube. There is a lot more out there. You can either start a blog or add one to your existing site. Blogs encourage conversation. You can create a forum or participate in an existing one. This allows you to demonstrate your experience and expertise. You can offer downloadable podcasts. This allows you to stay in touch with your customers through sight and sound. Go to blogs that pertain to your business or industry and leave comments.

Without sitting down and talking to you, I am not sure how you should do it. I just know you should.

Let me know what you think with either a comment or an email.

steve@vicegripmarketing.com