People do business with people they know, like and trust. So, how do you get in front of people so they can learn to know, like and trust you? And how do you keep their trust for the long-term? Providing the framework for these activities is the essence of marketing.
There are any number of definitions folks latch onto to describe marketing, and these definitions basically boil down to the actions taken by a business to promote and sell products and services.
Marketing pros, though, dig deeper. The four P’s of marketing, for example, involve identifying, selecting or developing a product (or service), assigning a price to said product, selecting a distribution channel (which represents the p in place) and developing and implementing a promotional strategy. The shorter version of that is: know what you’re selling, what you’re charging, how you’re delivering it and how you’re telling others about it.
The American Marketing Association has an impressively high-minded definition that says, “Marketing is the activity, set of institutions and processes for creating, communicating, delivering and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners and society at large.” And that’s their way of saying, “It’s complicated.”
But back to the essence, your marketing plan creates the framework you will use to bring down the universe of possibilities into a structure and strategy for promoting and selling your products and services.
So, if you’re a residential contractor selling air conditioning to homeowners, what do you need? Let’s say you start your long list to answer this question and it includes a building, a truck, equipment, phone, plus skills to do the work. Well, those are beneficial things indeed, but you’re getting off topic if that’s your list. Because if you’re selling air conditioning to homeowners, what you need is hot customers.
Strangely, being good at what you do is not the secret to success. It’s being good at marketing what you do; that’s what makes the difference. There are always administrative details to take care of when running a business, but don’t let those details distract you from the big picture: you need hot customers.
Next, make sure you’re selling products and services these hot customers want to buy. That comes from understanding your customers – including their pressures, concerns, fears or other problems. Adding value through maintenance agreements, healthy air through IAQ services and convenience through smart technology are examples of how to expand services beyond equipment installation and repair.
From there, let your customers know how to find you. Increase your brand awareness through an integrated strategy of traditional, online and social media marketing that incorporates a balance of direct response, branding, all-purpose and retention. Make sure you have a system for delivering your message as well as measuring results and correcting course as needed.
Marketing is a continuing process to define your target audience, generate leads from this audience, convert these leads into customers and secure their retention and their referrals. As you bring customers to your business who want and need what you’re selling, it’s just as important that you have a strategy to stay connected and top of mind.