Marketing — as you might often have heard — is essential to the success of any business. It is simply the case that no company can expect to remain solvent or profitable unless they are capable of putting their goods or services in front of their prospective clients. Marketers must do this in ways that increase the odds of their services or goods being purchased.
The thing is, a lot of people are really confused about marketing. They are not necessarily sure what it entails, how it should play out in practical terms, or what it looks like when done well.
Add to that the fact that there are many different marketing techniques out there, ranging from promotional bags and items from Dynamic Gift, to Google’s PPC advertising system.
First and foremost, what does it take to have the mindset of a successful marketer? Here are some suggestions.
Understand that you are not trying to sell a product or even a service — you are trying to sell solutions that make your clients lives easier and better
Many people start off their marketing efforts by making a pretty fatal error. That is, they view the aim of their marketing as being selling a product or service to the client.
In reality, though, you may want to sell a product or service, but the client doesn’t want to buy a product or service. The client wants to buy a solution to some problem they are experiencing. The client wants to buy a better and easier life, along some dimension of analysis.
To be a successful marketer, you need to be able to put yourself in the client’s shoes. Assume they are not shopping for a product, but for a solution to a problem. How can you help them solve a problem?
Realise that honesty pays off in marketing — and forces you to provide quality services. Scammy behaviour will ruin you somewhere down the line
Many people are instantly put off the idea of marketing, because they associate it with scammy, stereotypical used-car-salesman types.
Unfortunately, there is a reason for this. A significant number of people really do engage in some fairly scammy and unwholesome behaviour while attempting to sell their goods.
Understand, that to be a success as a marketer — especially in the long term — you need to be honest. Not only will a reputation for honesty pay off in the long run, but a reputation for being shady will sink your operation.
Being truthful in your marketing also forces you to provide quality services, so that you can stand by your claims.
Realize that the quality of your services or goods is the best marketing tool you have.
You can have a great product or service, but if you do no real marketing, the whole world may live in ignorance of what you’ve got on offer, and will subsequently not pay for the benefits you can provide.
But it is important to consider, too, that no amount of great marketing will help a bad product. It may just shift some units in the short term, then cause your reputation to fall apart soon after.
Ultimately, your best marketing tool is providing quality goods or services. Yes, you do still need to get the word out there. But if you are selling things that are a cut above, even just a moderate amount of exposure is likely to result in your product “self-marketing”, as people recommend it to their friends, and leave positive reviews for it on their blogs.
