Planning marketing beats binge marketing

By carefully planning marketing you can avoid the grand daddy of all bad business behaviours: binge marketing. All it takes is some regular time allocated to the task.

Binge maketing is a panic button reaction said in the vain belief that a few actions here and there will get things moving again. Oh, that business development was that easy!

Effective marketing is not an activity to be done in spurts, it should be constantly happening. If we think of marketing as an engine, it needs to be ticking over steadily at all times. A quiet spell now often signals a lack of marketing six or nine months ago.

And we needn’t be daunted or scared by marketing. It needn’t be that difficult; the secret is to find what works for you and keep on doing it.

Marketing takes time to work. One-off panic actions usually come across as that - a business in panic. Few like to give their custom to a business in crisis, you simply will not be an attractive proposition.

Let's look at a very basic marketing plan. Try developing something similar and trial it over a few months. Do more of the things that work- research, understand and amend the things that do not.

Daily actions

As any successful network marketing person will tell you, the secret is to 'sow a seed' each and every day. In practical terms this might translate to:

Telling at least one person per day what you do, who you do it for and the outcomes of your work

Add the name of at least one potential client to your prospect list

Add one more personal detail about an existing client to a personal profile database

Send one letter/one email/make one telephone call to a new contact

The main point is to have marketing be the focus for at least a brief period each and every day. Often the best way is to block an hour or so out every morning to undertake such actions. The key is to start the engine and keep it ticking over.

Weekly actions

Next, let's look at weekly marketing actions. These might include such things as:

Following up the new contacts and relationships you've made during the week

Setting aside time to make a block of phone calls to new prospects

Asking past customers to respond to some questions regarding your level of service and their general impressions of your business - its procedures, its staff and so on

Researching your competitors and seeing where your 'point of difference' lies. When was the last time you really looked into what those around you are up to?

Monthly actions

If you're effectively handling your daily and weekly actions, your monthly actions can be a time for summarising and looking at more far reaching strategies.

It’s a time to review areas of your business that you may not consider to be true marketing. For example, the effectiveness of all the 'contact points' of your business: your website; business stationery; email signature and so on.

All project an image, to your past, present and future customers. Each is an element of your overall marketing and is extremely important to the entire marketing picture. Could any be improved?

Very importantly, each and every month make voice contact (either in person or on the phone) with the people who really support and encourage your business. These people are your advocates - in effect, 'silent salespeople' for you. Think of them as your marketing team.

When you next contemplate a binge, try instead to translate your actions into a regular program of activity.

Robert Gerrish is Flying Solo’s managing director and founder and works as a business coach, professional speaker, business commentator and consultant. He’s the co-author of Flying Solo – How to go it alone in business.

4 comments | Add your own

Very true. I read on a fellow copywriter's website recently: "Marketing is a process, not an event." Peter Crocker from Sydney | Read my articles
All good stuff: I have a few things that I do to keep up contacts: One, I send all current clients birthday and Xmas cards. Two, I ALWAYS send a client a goodbye letter if/when they are finished working with us, inviting them back any time they want. Thirdly, I reckon the best place to get advocates is down the sandwich shop/deli - get the girls and boys behind the counter to know you and they'll sell your business every day! Ed Groenhart from Nottingham, UK
I'm guilty! I better get started on writing that plan now :) Ross from Thrive Web Marketing (thrivenow.com.au)
Thank you Robert. I recall a line from the song Sunscreen. 'Do one thing every day that scares you'. How about we change it to, 'Do one thing every day that promotes you'. One should not binge eat, drink.....or market! Here's to a healthy diet. Maria from (iconicwines.com.au)

4 comments | Add your own

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