What Is Marketing

Marketing Your Business Successfully

Marketing is a process of finding and attracting people or businesses ( leads/prospects) who are most likely to want and need your products/services and can afford to pay for it.  Then developing long-term relationships with them to promote repeat sales and encourage referrals.

Selling  is the process of converting your leads/prospects into paying customers.

#1 Clearly Identify Your Target Market

If you try to sell to everyone you'll end up selling to very few

Develop a profile of your ideal customer

Select a market niche that interest you and that you can communicate with easily, often and for a low-cost.

Not defining your target market in detail results in wasted time, money and effort.

#2 Define Your Product/Service

What, want or need does your product satisfy?

What problem does your service solve? EX:

make money, save money, increase self-esteem, fun, popularity, possess beautiful things

Can you clearly describe your benefits in terms of fulfilling need/wants, solving problem?

Product/Service must be a solution, at a price people are willing to pay.

#3 Find A Way To Differentiate Your Business From Your Competitors

What is the unique benefit (s) that you offer that makes you different from your competitors?

I.e. Dominos Pizza - fresh hot, pizza in 30 minutes or less, ( huge reason for their success)

Also known as USP - unique selling position, core marketing message

Why should people do business with you instead of your competitors?

#4 Focus Your Marketing On Your Customers Instead Of You

The majority of your marketing communications should focus on how your target market will benefit from using your products and services.

Your customers want to know " What's in it for me".  How are they going to benefit from using your product or service?  You must answer this question clearly in all your marketing

Your education, technical skills, how long in business, awards; should not be your main marketing message

Talk about the problems and issues that your target market is having and how your product or service can help them solve them.

#5 Communicate Your Benefits Instead of Features

People don't buy what your products or services does, they buy the end results of what you offer

You must clearly and specifically tell people the results they will get from doing business with you. Convert your features to benefits.

Feature: highbred car, Benefit: It will save you money on gas and reduce air pollution

Effective communication of your BENEFITS is critical to attracting your potential customers

Educate your target market on how the BENEFITS of your products or services will make them happier, save them time, make them money, solve their problems and add value to their lives.

Wanda Rawlins - 12SC Team