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NetFaqs in This Article
• Your Market
• Your Customers
• Start Small |
STARTERS FOR START-UPS
FIVE ESSENTIAL STEPS FOR
MARKETING
YOUR NEW BUSINESS.
...get
started with TheWebsiteDistrict!
by Dr. Kevin Nunley
"I know this business inside
out," Laura told me the week she started her new business.
"I just don't have the foggiest idea of how to market
it!"
It's a problem that almost
everyone starting a new business faces. You can be the
best plumber, tax accountant, or doctor in the world,
but if you don't know how to get the word out--how to
market your product or service--there's no way you can
get the customers you need.
Here are five essential steps
to follow to get great marketing that doesn't cost a
fortune.
1. What is your market?
Decide who your main customers
are. As a group, how old are they? Where do they live?
How much money do they make? What kinds of jobs do they
have and what are their interests? The better you can
sketch a detailed profile of the kinds of people who
will be your main customers, the better you'll fare
in the next four steps.
2. What kinds of media do
your main customers use?
Each type of media has its
own target audience. Each radio station, newspaper,
magazine, or TV program tries to interest a specific
segment of the population. The trick is to match your
main customers with the kinds of media they use.
A Top 40 radio station tries
to reach teenagers and 18 to 34 year-old women. The
local newspaper may be geared to homeowners over the
age of 35. An industry trade magazine might be read
mostly by senior managers scattered all around the country.
If you aren't sure what group
a media outlet is targeting, ask their sales department.
Maybe you have a service business that will be of interest
to people living in a certain neighborhood. Flyers delivered
door-to-door could be the best way to let prospects
know about you.
Remember that media isn't
just TV and newspapers. Effective media can be anything
that conveys your message. Media choices range from
million dollar commercials in the Super Bowl to a few
free pens with your name on them.
3. Limit the media you use
to what you can afford to use consistently.
The key to effective marketing
is consistency. You have to hit the audience with your
message again, and again, and again.
Marketers use the Rule of
Seven. Prospects must see or hear your message seven
times before they consider buying.
Don't blow your entire marketing
budget on a one-shot media blitz. Choose a less expensive
type of media that you can afford to use week after
week. That's how you get marketing success. 4. Sell
the main benefit of your product or service. Make your
marketing client-centered.
4. How does your product
or service improve your customer's life?
Talk to your customer from
their own perspective. Does your product or service
save them time? Make them richer? Make them more attractive?
Your marketing should drive home this most important
benefit as clearly and directly as possible. Customers
buy benefits! When you advertise the features of your
product or service, connect those features to the benefits
they will bring the customer.
5. And finally, don't miss
out on FREE publicity.
Radio, TV, newspapers, newsletters,
and magazines are constantly on the lookout for good
stories. Prospective customers will be impressed if
a media outlet features a story on what you do.
Is there something about
you or your business that would interest other people?
Is there something about your business that is newsworthy?
Maybe you have useful information to share with others.
Consider sending a press release to your local newspaper.
Better yet, make a phone
call to the news desk. Radio DJs can often be persuaded
to talk about your business, especially if you take
them a free sample. Consider your cable TV company's
community bulletin board and an article for the trade
publication that covers your industry. (Drop me a note
and ask for my free report on media publicity.)
Last, but certainly not least,
remember to promote your business on-line. The net is
open to everyone. It's the only "big" media that allows
the small business person to get their message out at
very low cost. Bulletin boards and newsgroups may appreciate
helpful information that you provide, and most won't
mind if you sign your name along with four to six lines
about your business.
These are the five essential
steps to effective marketing. Keep them in mind as you
decide how to market your new business. They are the
single most important reasons why some marketing fails
while other marketing brings loads of new customers
and profits.
Kevin Nunley provides marketing
advice and copy writing for businesses and organizations.
He can be reached at www.DrNunley.com. Click
here to promote your business to thousands of Media!
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