The following is a guest post by oz 2 designs LLC Art Director Rick Brady and his snarky alter ego Surly E.
Me love your business long time. That’s what the carnival barkers… I mean the “get rich quick” advertising agencies will tell you about your business or product. Their goal is to sell you, be it logo, direct mail marketing, brochure, website (more than likely jamming your look and some unoptimized content into a bland template), or email marketing. Whatever ware they’re pushing, you can be sure it’s handled in a silo.
Now let us take a trip in Mr. Peabodys time machine tooooo TODAY!!! That’s right today. Today, the above mentioned marketing approach best serves the agency rather than you, your product, or your business. Companies cannot approach digital marketing and the internet like it’s 1997 or, for that matter, 2005. Wake up businesses and smell the digital marketing napalm.
I love the smell of digital marketing napalm in the morning!
So by now you should be asking how does all this gel? You need an advertising budget and a plan of ATTACK! A Special Ops Tactical Squad akin to a good digital marketing agency can help you with this and review your goals and then design an approach that will benefit your product and business. Your hired guns (your agency) must have intelligence about today’s dynamic internet marketing strategies.
“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” ~ Sun Tzu
One Size Does Not Fit All Soldier
Marketing starts from the top down and is developed holistically.
- Well defined identity branding < It’s not just for large companies.
- A website and blog that is not only well designed but also takes advantage of search engine optimization, analytics and offers up quality content.
- Target Marketing through eNewsletters, On-line Paid Promotional Tactics, Landing Page Development and Social Media connections
“I want to get the point across that branding isn’t just a marketing strategy that big companies can employ. Small businesses can and should surgically use branding campaigns to saturate target channels as part of an overall approach to win their market.” ~ Danny Wong the Brand Manager Blank Label Group
Are those… live rounds?
For this list to work in today’s internet marketing environment, branding campaigns must be employed. The analytics from all of these avenues must be reviewed and approaches refined until your business receives the ROI or Return On Investment that contributes to real sales and business growth. This means a commitment from your business and your digital marketing agency to work together to give you the best approach for your budget.
“Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” ~ Sun Tzu
Dollars to Death.
I cannot stress enough here that just having a website or the purchasing of SEO for your website or sending out thousands of direct mailers and walking away is advertising and marketing suicide. It’s an old school approach that’s still being peddled by those who don’t have the skills to help your business or product grow in the digital market place. This is why you (business owners) need to find a trusted team who can help your company as well as educate you and your staff through continued development and growth.
And then the Fallout
Remember, one size doesn’t fit all. The 1,2,3 approach outlined above is just the beginning of the war on bad marketing. The changing landscape of social media requires creativity and flexibility. Mobile or smartphone options and marketing approaches must part of your battle plan. If you need advertising guidance and you’re looking for a crack commando marketing team then contact us - maybe you can hire the Oz2-Team.
“The digital marketing battle field is not here to merely be conquered. It is an amorphous ever evolving space that needs to be nurtured, understood and harnessed to deliver victory.” ~SurlyE
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I love the “there’s no one size fits all” line. (I use it myself in my coaching solutions).
Ultimately, when it comes to hiring marketing help, I appreciate it when someone takes the time to understand my style… including my level of assertion / aggression, and my goals. There is nothing more annoying that the pundits who start with the “shoulds” and “musts”.
Keyuri Joshi recently posted..How one Mother’s Dying Wish Impacts our Parenting
I feel like I need to put on a helmet and camouflage gear after reading this but you’re right on all points. There’s a lot to be done to successfully market any business, big or small. Thanks for a fun post.
Sherryl Perry recently posted..Tips for Optimizing Photos and Graphics for Your Blog
Well said and this area is a trap for those who do not have the experience to judge agencies to know whether what they are proposing is right.
Business owners I think do need to have some experience or be able to learn as after you fork out the dollars and not get results it can be a tad late.
Susan Oakes recently posted..Customer Perceptions- Do You Love Them or Hate Them
Absolutely. The marketing shoe is not a one-size fits all kind of thing.
Dennis Salvatier recently posted..Winner of the Dribbble Invite Giveaway!