5 Key Marketing Objectives for Small Businesses
Wow, it has been a long time since my last blog entry! We have had a busier than usual summer this year and are working hard to serve our clients. But keeping in contact with those who visit our site is also important so...I'm back!
Although I have not been blogging, I have been collecting a repertoire of tidbits that I think you might find useful. Back in the spring, I conducted a workshop for small business owners, each with between 1 and 5 employees, and the topic was: Effective Marketing Strategies for Small Business Owners. None of the workshop participants were in a position to divest their operating funds into a full blown marketing campaign. Let's face it, how many small businesses can do that these days?
So, my goal for the workshop was to show them that they didn't have to spend a great deal of money to enjoy the benefits of simple marketing efforts. Therefore, I showed them how just staying focused on some simple but specific marketing objectives could help them increase their customer base and hence increase their sales revenue. I thought I'd share that same information in today's blog post.
MARKETING STRATEGY: Is a process that can allow a business to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities to gain new clients and gain a competitive advantage among similar businesses in the same area.
MARKETING STRATEGIES vs. ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS
Many small business owners mistakenly confuse marketing strategies with ad campaigns.
- A marketing strategy is a plan or an approach for marketing your products and services.
- An ad campaign, on the other hand, is ONE means by which your marketing strategy is accomplished.
So for example, if you are a child care provider and are planning an open house to attract parents to your center for the purpose of signing them as new clients, one of the first things that you'd likely think to do is print up some flyers and distribute them. This is fine. But please know that this is NOT a marketing strategy, this is simply one step that you could use to implement your strategy. You are NOT done yet!
As I mentioned above, a marketing strategy is a PLAN or APPROACH. This means that the child care provider in the above scenario should not just focus on getting people to attend the open house; she should also be clear on exactly what needs to take place at this event. In other words, she should identify some key objectives to be achieved as a result of having this open house event.
Following is a description of key objectives that any business owner, small or large should focus on as they endeavor to implement a marketing strategy. I'll use the child care center open house event as the theme as I offer examples of each key objective.
5 KEY OBJECTIVES OF A GOOD MARKETING STRATEGY
It's important to understand what your strategy is trying to achieve. Following are key objectives to consider when developing your marketing strategy. You should attempt to address all of these:
Objective #1: Boost Consumer Confidence
Consumers are fickle and are frequently hesitant to patronize a business they know little about. So it is important to implement strategies that get the message out about the quality of your products or services. The resulting boost in consumer confidence will likely translate into more business for you.
Related Example: So how could the child care provider accomplish the objective of "Boosting Consumer Confidence" during her open house? Here are a few suggestions:
- Have the center's licensures and credentials posted prominently on the walls of the child care center.
- List the center's licensures and credentials in handouts and distribute them during the event.
- Ask an existing parent to connect with open house guests during the open house event and share the experiences that she has had as a customer.
Objective #2: Create Awareness
Another way to spark interest for your products or services is to conduct a campaign designed to promote your products or services in as many ways as possible. In other words, your marketing strategy could be to create buzz by blanketing the local airwaves (including internet radio), print space, social media and other advertising mediums with your name, logo, and product or service descriptions. Increased awareness will definitely bring more people to you.
Related Example: How could the child care provider accomplish the objective of "Creating Awareness" of the open house AND / OR of the existence of her center? Here are a few suggestions:
- Provide an incentive for existing parents to bring a potential new customer to the open house or simply to make a formal introduction of the potential new customer to the business owner.
- Have the center's logo and other branding images printed on T-Shirts for Staff, Parents and the kids.
- Partner with other child care centers that are not located in the same geographic area and set up a referral network to create awareness across service boundaries for each other.
Objective #3: Leverage Emotions
Large corporations spend millions of dollars playing on their customers' emotions and what works for them, can work for you, too. The key is to create a campaign that makes potential customers feel a sense of comfort, safety, pleasure, or confidence regarding your products or services. Of course the emotions you want them to feel depends on the product or service you are promoting. So for example a company selling deodorant will want potential customers to feel "confident" that they won't be embarrassed in intimate situations by sweating under their armpits. And need I say much about the Viagra and other similar product commercials that show couples sitting on the beach side-by-side in their very own bath tubs? They are very definitely attempting to tug at the emotions of couples who have had problems in the past with spontaneous intimacy.
These tactics are not just for the savvy corporate executives with deep pockets for large marketing budgets. You too can evoke the kinds of emotions you'd like to have a prospective client or customer feel and ultimately seal the deal.
In keeping with my child care center theme, we know that the decision to place one's child in the care of someone else is undoubtedly an emotional one. The key is to make parents feel a sense of comfort about such services and to put them at ease while making such an important decision.
Related Example: So how could the child care provider accomplish the objective of "Leveraging Emotions" during her open house? Here are a few suggestions:
- Ask an existing parent to connect with open house guests during the open house event and share the experiences that she has had as a customer.
- Display the art work of the children that are currently attending the center.
- Ask the permission of existing parents to allow their children to either speak or write regarding what they enjoy about the child care center
Since "guilt" is a huge emotion that parents who use child care centers experience, this is a great opportunity to put them at ease and convince them that their child will be in good hands.
Objective #4: Overcome Objections
When developing a marketing strategy, it is important to anticipate any objections that a prospective customer might have. A marketing strategy that emphasizes product safety, a good price or fee, your professional experience, your advantage over your competition, education and other positive reinforcement areas can not only make the decision easier for existing customers to stay with you, but also attract new customers. Therefore, it is important for you to anticipate all objections a prospective customer might have and develop an effective response to said objections.
Related Example: So how could the child care provider accomplish the objective of "Overcoming Objections" during her open house?
Here is a list of possible objections that might be made as to why a parent might not choose this child care provider and the responses that she should have prepared:
- Objection: My child needs a great deal of one-on-one staff time.
Possible response: Our center stringently adheres to the State's "staff-to-child ratio" and we know that this is a healthy ratio that not only allows for each child to get the suggested amount of one-on-one care, but also allows each child enough independent time to encourage healthy personal development.
- Objection: Your fees seem to be very high.
Possible response: Our fees are in line with all of the other child care centers in the area and are in line with the national average for child care centers located in similar geographical areas. Please keep in mind that it is quite likely that if you find a significantly lower fee, the quality of your child's care might be compromised.
- Objection: Your center hours are not convenient for my work schedule.
Possible response: We offer a before and after school latch key program. You can drop your child off on your way to work and we will provide breakfast and take him to school at the regularly schedule time. Also, we can pick him up from school and keep him here until you are able to leave work later in the day.
If you know your business well enough, anticipating such objections will become second nature to you. Also, keep in mind that you might not always have an opportunity to respond to objectives as part of a conversation with potential customers. The idea is to be sure that the language in your marketing materials effectively addresses all anticipated objections.
Objective #5: Set a Deadline / Create a Sense of Urgency
Why do so many ads emphasize the date the sale ends? Because people respond to deadlines. Marketing strategies designed around the idea of limited space, temporary fee reductions, or other mechanisms that create a sense of urgency can provide a quick influx of customers and can potentially jumpstart a business suffering from a diminished customer base. Setting a deadline is a critical objective to always consider during the development of your marketing strategy.
Related Example: So how could the child care provider accomplish the objective of "Setting a Deadline or Creating a Sense of Urgency" during her open house? Here are a few suggestions:
- Indicate that the first guest at the open house gets a free prize.
- Waive or discount the child care registration fee for all new parents that register before a certain date.
- Waive or discount the first week of child care services for any existing parent who brings a guest to the open house who becomes a customer.
HOMEWORK
Homework?! Yep, that's right, a blog with home work. How about that? Lol. Don't worry. I think you'll quite enjoy it. So that I am not just typing for my health, and so you can take this information and use it immediately, I'd like for you to do the following:
Write down each of the above five (5) objectives. Under each of them, write down how you might accomplish them based on your own product or service. In other words:
- How would you boost the confidence of a prospective customer in you, your product or service?
- How would you create awareness about you, your product and or service?
- How would you leverage the emotions of a prospective customer to make them compelled to purchase your product or service?
- What objections can you foresee a potential customer having about your product or service and how would you respond to each objection?
- What kinds of deadlines can you set or how can you create a sense of urgency to encourage potential customers to ACT NOW! and purchase your goods or services?
I believe that as small business owners with limited resources we have to be very creative. Simply focusing on these five simple but effective objectives as you work to grow your customer base can make a world of difference.
I certainly hope that you have found this blog entry useful as you go about the business of running your business.
Please check in on my blog periodically for helpful business related tidbits and other insightful information. In the meantime, be well and prosper!
Angeline
Client Portal