Listen Now

With the proliferation of tools for both measuring and automating your marketing efforts, startups aren’t exactly wanting for real-time marketing data. But while spreadsheets and dashboards are nice, actually being able to prove your marketing works is far more useful. Interested in how other startups are measuring their marketing efforts, I asked a group of entrepreneurs from the Young Entrepreneur Council to share how they currently track their successes (and failures). Their best responses are below: 1. Tracking “Now that high-quality content has so many benefits in the marketing world, it’s important to track all its different uses. For example, when you share specific pieces of content, use Buffer to track it. Or, when you send someone an email that includes a specific type of content, use HubSpot or Infusionsoft to track the results. It can be as simple as tracking the clicks on your recent post that’s in your signature line.” John Hall 2. Acquisition Channels “We track every single acquisition channel through which our users register. This includes blog posts, press, organic search, paid ads, partnerships, etc. We do weekly meetings to review the data. It shows which channels convert the highest, generate the most loyal users and more. This data signals which channels to “double down” our efforts on and which to let die.” Danny Boice 3. Google Analytics “We place heavy focus on margins to optimize ROI on Adwords marketing campaigns. We want to constantly optimize our spending and make sure we get the most conversions possible on targeted customer acquisition cost. We use Google Analytics to do this mostly.” Pablo Palatnik 4. Iterative Testing And Strategizing “We end planning s

Is it more effective to touch 100 potential customers once or 25 potential customers 4 times? Reach and frequency are terms generally used when planning advertising campaigns. However, the concept of reach and frequency applies to any promotional activity you undertake: direct mail, direct selling, and even networking. Reach is the number of people you touch with your marketing message or the number of people that are exposed to your message. Frequency is the number of times you touch each person with your message. In a world of unlimited resources, you would obviously maximize both reach and frequency. However, since most of us live in the world of limited resources we must often make decisions to sacrifice reach for frequency or vice versa. For example, an air conditioning repair service who has decided to do a direct mail piece has to decide whether to mail the entire Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex once or to mail a quarter of the Metroplex four times. An attorney who receives many of her clients through networking may have to decide whether to attend one weekly networking meeting or four different monthly meetings. When faced with decisions of reach vs. frequency remember this rule of thumb: Reach Without Frequency = Wasted Money. Marketing is the process of building a business relationship with potential customers. Have you ever established a lifelong friendship with someone you had contact with only once? Probably not. Generally, friendships (and all relationships, for that matter) grow as a result of frequent contact over time. Even when the potential to form a great friendship is there at the first encounter, it is unlikely it will grow without nurturing. Seth Godin in his book Permission Marketing uses an analogy of seeds and water to demonstrate the importance of assuring adequate frequency in your promotional campaigns. If you were given 100 seeds with enough water to water each seed once would you pla

What Is A Target Market? Simply put, a target market is a specific group of people you have decided to target with your products or services. It could be a large market or a niche market. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, the concept of target markets can become much more complicated if you offer a product or service with wide appeal, or you have a diverse customer base. If you sell to “everybody,” then how are you supposed to define your target market? The Difference Between A Target Market And A Demographic Although target market and demographic are closely related terms, they are not interchangeable. Compared to demographics, target markets tend to be much broader. This is because, for many businesses, their products or services appeal to a wide range of individuals. Target markets can also be affected by considerations such as buying cycles, product shelf life and other elements that may not be driven by people who might be interested in buying what you’re selling. In addition, marketers often take the long-term profit potential of a target market into consideration when developing their models and marketing strategies, meaning that they have to focus on the bigger picture. Demographics, on the other hand, are subsets of a target market that share particular attributes. For example, many television advertisers purposefully target the coveted (and notoriously fickle) 18-35 age demographic. That does not necessarily mean that people who are older than 35 fall outside of the advertiser’s target market – it just means they are part of a different demographic. In other words, you can think of target markets as a collection of demographics that may be interested in your product or service. How To Identify A Target Market So, now we know a little

Knowing the media-consumption habits of a target audience can help a business owner create an effective marketing campaign. For example, if target consumers favor a particular media channel – such as a television station, radio station, magazine or newspaper – you can use that information to deliver your marketing messages directly to them. Consumption Your target customers may enjoy a particular aspect or offering of the media channel. For example, they might watch a specific television program, listen to a particular radio show or flip directly to the sports section of the newspaper. Understanding media consumption habits in this respect helps you place your advertisement effectively within the media channel. Context It also helps to know what consumers are doing while they are using a media channel. Suppose a car dealership decides to reach its audience by advertising on a radio station in the morning. Knowing that most people are driving to work at this time of the day, the dealership might design an advertisement that speaks directly to commuters by explaining how a comfortable car can ease the pain of sitting in traffic jams. Similarly, if the dealership knows target consumers tune in to the radio station while they are busy working or making dinner, its advertisement might use loud jingles and sound effects to catch the listener’s attention. Market Research Business owners can hire a market research firm to help determine strategies for reaching a particular segment of the population. Market researchers draw on a large variety of techniques to study consumer behavior to create behavioral profiles and help advertisers tailor marketing campaigns to the consumption habits of their target audience. Researchers might use surveys, focus groups and questionnaires to generate a database of media consumption habits. They then use statistical methods to identify consumption patterns, providing valuable insights that help advertisers identify the most cost-effective strategies for r

1. Keep explaining the “why” until they get it. Remember that people are far more likely to execute a strategy wholeheartedly — even if they disagree with it —if they understand the “why.” To paraphrase Nietzsche: “People can handle almost any What, if they understand the Why.” If you weren’t involved in the decision, i.e. mid-level manager, do your homework so you thoroughly understand the rationale. Get feedback on whether your explanation makes sense. Explain the reason for the initiative to someone not in your company and see if they understand it and can see its validity. Tweak your message until it makes sense to someone without your background knowledge of the situation. Also, don’t assume explaining it one time will suffice. Often when people are shocked by news, their brains lose their ability to process information. 2. Anticipate objections and generate valid answers. If you are part of the senior team that made the decision, this should be straightforward. If you weren’t and don’t have enough information to answer some of the potential objections and questions that might be raised, seek out the answers. Here’s an example of how you can frame your request: “I want to make sure I present a compelling message to the team, so part of what I’ve been doing is making a list of potential questions and objections. There were four that I couldn’t answer because I don’t have the information. Can I get your take on them?” 3. Present a compelling “future story.” Describe what this new approach will do for them, their customers, and the company. Describe what you envision things being like 6-12 months in the future. Think in terms of telling “future stories” such as: “So, for instance…with this new approach…when an existing client does X, instead of

What’s my target market? What should it be? How would I know? Here’s a list of five things that will help you figure it out. 1. Don’t try to please everybody. Strategy is focus. Say you’re running a restaurant; which of these three options is easier? Pleasing customers 40 to 75 years old, wealthy, much more concerned with healthy eating than cheap eating, appreciating seafood and poultry, liking a quiet atmosphere. Pleasing customers 15 to 30 years old, with limited budgets, who like a loud place with low prices and fast food. Pleasing everybody. I really hope you chose one of the first two, and not the third. Because this is the essence of target marketing—divide and conquer. U.S. census data divides into demographic segments. 2. Learn market segmentation. It’s about segments, like pie segments or orange segments, except that in this case it’s segments of a total market. In my “divide and conquer” thought above in the first point, those are segments. In the illustration above, U.S. census data divides into demographic segments. Demographics are the old standards like age, gender, and so on. 3. Use segmentation creatively. Don’t just settle for age, gender, and economic level

To build a solid foundation for your business, you must first identify your typical customer and tailor your marketing pitch accordingly. Given the current state of the economy, having a well-defined target market is more important than ever. No one can afford to target everyone. Small businesses can effectively compete with large companies by targeting a niche market. Many businesses say they target “anyone interested in my services.” Some say they target small-business owners, homeowners, or stay-at-home moms. All of these targets are too general. Targeting a specific market does not mean that you are excluding people who do not fit your criteria. Rather, target marketing allows you to focus your marketing dollars and brand message on a specific market that is more likely to buy from you than other markets. This is a much more affordable, efficient, and effective way to reach potential clients and generate business. For example, an interior design company could choose to market to homeowners between the ages of 35 and 65 with incomes of $150,000-plus in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. To define the market even further, the company could choose to target only those interested in kitchen and bath remodeling and traditional styles. This market could be broken down into two niches: parents on the go and retiring baby boomers. With a clearly defined target audience, it is much easier to determine where and how to market your company. Here are some tips to help you define your target market. Look at your current customer base. Who are your current customers, and why do they buy from you? Look for common characteristics and interests. Which ones bring in the most business? It is very likely that other people like them could also benefit from your product/service. Check out your competition. Who are your competitors targeting?

Marketing Objectives are defined as the group of goals set by a business when promoting its products or services to potential consumers that should be achieved within a given time frame. A company’s marketing objectives for a particular product might include increasing product awareness among targeted consumers and providing information about product features. Specifically, common marketing objectives include: Introducing new products or services Cross-selling more products or services to existing customers Expanding into a new geographic market Seeking out and securing new customers Improving customer services Increasing the average size of an order Once the Marketing Objectives have been defined, you can create a focused Marketing Strategy for each one. Marketing Strategies have many potential tactics that can be utilized. Below are examples of Strategies with their corresponding tactics: Market Share & Expansion Strategy: Develop aggressive sales & marketing tactics to expand your market. Examples of tactics include: Consumer and/or trade promotions (e.g. coupons, BOGO’s, contests, special offers, etc…) Direct mailing to include incentive Secure additional distributors and/or sales force Positioning Strategy: Designed to affect how people think and feel (perceive) about your product or service. Examples of tactics include: Advertising and public relations campaigns Attending, exhibiting or presenting at trade shows Enhancing and/or developing corporate communication and marketing materials (e.g. brochures, website, flyers, social media profiles, etc…) Reminder Strategy: Reminds customers to make a purchase. Tactics include: Postcards via direct mail with coupons Free premium items with company’s information Disseminate monthly newsletters Communicate newsworthy information via social media Determining which Marketing Strategies are necessary

A carefully crafted vision statement is at the heart of every successful business. This statement clearly and concisely communicates your business’s overall goals, and can serve as a tool for strategic decision-making across the company. A vision statement can be as simple as a single sentence or can span a short paragraph. Regardless of the individual details and nuances, all effective vision statements define the core ideals that give a business shape and direction. These statements also provide a powerful way to motivate and guide employees, said Addam Marcotte, vice president of operations and organization development with executive coaching and organizational change firm FMG Leading. Why does this matter? Research shows that employees who find their company’s vision meaningful have engagement levels of 68 percent, which is 19 points above average. More-engaged employees are often more productive, and can be more effective corporate ambassadors in the larger community. Given the impact that a vision statement can have on a company’s long-term success and even its bottom line, it’s worth taking the time to craft a statement that synthesizes your ambition and mobilizes your staff. Vision Statement Versus Mission Statement Before determining what your vision statement is going to be, you need to understand what it is not. It should not be confused with a mission statement. Those statements are present-based and designed to convey a sense of why the company exists, to both members of the company and the external community. Vision statements are future-based and are meant to inspire and give direction to the employees of the company, rather than to customers. A mission statement answers the question, “Why does my business exist?” while a vision statem

I’ve had a 30-year love-hate relationship with mission statements. I’ve read thousands. I love it when a mission statement defines a business so well that it feels like strategy—and that does happen—and I hate it when a mission statement is generic, stale, and completely useless. Your company’s mission statement is your opportunity to define the company’s goals, ethics, culture, and norms for decision-making. The best mission statements define a company’s goals in at least three dimensions: what the company does for its customers, what it does for its employees, and what it does for its owners. Some of the best mission statements also extend themselves to include fourth and fifth dimensions: what the company does for its community, and for the world. The vast majority of the mission statements are just meaningless hype that could be used to describe any business in the category. People write them because some checklist or expert said they had to. A well-developed mission statement is a great tool for understanding, developing, and communicating fundamental business objectives, and should be expressed in just a paragraph or two. If you read it out loud, it should take about 30 seconds. And it should answer questions people have about your business, like: •   Who is your company? •   What do you do? What do you stand for? And why do you do it? •   Do you want to make a profit, or is it enough to just make a living? •   What markets are you serving, and what benefits do you offer them?