To the uninitiated, marketing your product seems pretty simple and straightforward.
You, on the other hand, are the initiated – that’s why you follow a checklist like this and bring new team members onboard as soon as possible.
Here’s what the pros do:
- You plan ahead to allow ample time for creative people to think about the best concept. “I need it tomorrow.” No, you don’t.
- You have one main message. More than one concept in the same ad and you have no message, just a jumbled bunch of words no one will work to understand.
- You know repetition and redundancy are your friends. This means, about the time you are getting tired of the messaging, it may just be getting through to your audience.
- You provide a call to action. What are you asking your audience to do? Is it short and crystal clear? Is there a quick and easy way to respond?
- You employ a multi-channel approach. Employ a mix of online and offline channels (social media, email, SEO, content marketing, events) to reach a broader and more diverse audience. You have a mix of old media and new media that fits your target audience.
- Speaking of target audience – you identify and segment your audience based on demographics, psychographics, and behavior to tailor your marketing efforts effectively. Have you created personas for your multiple target audiences with the right message matched to each persona?
- Content Strategy: You develop valuable and relevant content that educates, entertains, or solves problems for your target audience, positioning your brand as an industry authority. You conduct a focus group with your core messaging to make sure you’re not using words or phrases that are too technical or terms only industry insiders would understand.
- You map the customer journey. The power of marketing is to be able to convert awareness and recognition to purchase. Understand your customers’ journey from awareness to purchase and beyond, optimizing touchpoints to enhance their experience.
- You monitor social media and reviews. Leverage positive customer reviews, testimonials, and user-generated content to build trust and credibility. You may even want to subscribe to a service that will notify you about the online reviews and comments you’re getting. Someone needs to be designated to respond, immediately.
- You rely upon data-driven insights. Utilize data analytics to gather insights about customer behavior, preferences, and trends, enabling informed decision-making. How many impressions are you getting out of your marketing and where are they coming from?
You’re not ready to think outside the box until you have finished thinking inside the box.
Take this checklist and get back in the box – just to make sure.
