The Mixology of Marketing and Advertising for Small Businesses
Like a good drink, for a business to find success, it’s crucial to have the perfect mix when developing and executing a marketing and advertising plan. Too much alcohol may turn your clients or customers sour, not everyone likes their drink as strong as you might. On the other hand, too much mixer and you’ve watered down your campaign leaving your potential market in the dark.
This marketing mix, not to be confused with the good ol’ “four P’s of marketing”, has to do with a perfect balance of traditional and online techniques. A weak campaign will often lean heavily to one side or the other and ultimately miss out on a large part of the potential market. Often, your efforts should blend and complement each other.
A restaurant wanting to drive traffic will often offer coupons to customers to get them in the door. Instead of just hoping your newspaper ad will bring in business, spread your coupon via social networks. The word of mouth from social media outlets is nearly instant and relatively free. Announce the coupon for a “free entree” or “buy one get one free drinks” on your website as well as the newspaper ad. Then share the link with friends or followers on sites like Twitter or Facebook, and if your message has value, it will spread itself.
Find out where your customers are. What is your demographic? Then research their internet usage to determine your best mix. A social media savvy demographic will probably crave a strong drink, so add a little more online alcohol. However, a traditional demographic that depends on newspapers, magazines, or television for their information may prefer the weaker beverage, so plan accordingly.
Most importantly, make sure you know what’s in your cabinet. Without the proper ingredients, you’ll never get the results you want. So, if you’re unsure of your target market, then ask for help.
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