Marketing and advertising and brand building are the very life line of any small business. Ignore any of them and you may not be around for all that long. The challenge can often be huge misconceptions with regard to marketing that, if you allow them to linger and take hold, just may end up costing your business dearly.
- The first major misconception isn’t necessarily one that is embraced by just small business owners. The big boys and girls often cling to it too. That is the misconception that you don’t have to market to your current customer base. Nothing could be further from the truth. Your current customers and clients are keeping you afloat. It is cost effective as it tends to cost about five times more to attract a new customer than it does to retain a current one.
- Next up is to slash your budget and stop or slow down marketing efforts. Do that and you will disappear. Do that and you will no longer be seen as an option in people’s minds when they are ready to buy what you have to sell. Like Henry Ford once remarked: “Stopping your advertising to save money is like stopping your watch to save time.”
- Don’t think you don’t have to bother advertising online and having a strong SEO strategy just because you don’t sell anything online. This is a misconception that is killing so many entrepreneurs and small businesses. Your audience and demographics are forever online. That is where they go when they are at the top of the sales funnel. If you are not out there then you simply don’t exist for them. Online marketing keeps you in the game and allows you to effectively compete with the big boys and girls.
- Sure, you are advertising but a sound and consistent marketing strategy allows you to build your brand recognition and legitimacy. If they have heard of you then you are legitimate. If you are considered legitimate then they might come to like you. If they like you, they will likely trust you. If they trust you, they will buy from you because people like doing business with people they like and trust.
-Written by Kevin Sawyer
