Effective Marketing Tools

Effective marketing tools is something of a quandary.  It can be as elusive as the white whale or as prominent as a mountain range.  An important step to using effective marketing tools, opposed to marketing tools in general, is knowing your clientele, brand and product.  When you have decided on your product there are a couple of things that you must first do to determine if it is a good idea to go to the next step with it.

 Market Research  

 

You wouldn't want to advertise for Jet Ski's in a desert area like Nevada, unless there was a lake or body of water nearby where it could be utilized.  It is important to do your market research first, before investing your time and money.  Things to consider with Market Research:

• Is there a need for your product?
• Who are your competitors?
• How do they advertise?
• What is their online presence?
• What is their pricing? 

In looking at these questions they should be relatively simple to answer, but extremely vital to the success of your Marketing plan and potentially your business.  When asking these questions you should not only be answering them, but also asking other questions to get a more precise idea of what exactly your trying to market and to whom your trying to market it to.  Also, your Market Research should be a tool that helps you in determining the following things:

• How will you advertise?
• Traditional Advertising:
• Flyers and Business Cards
• Word Of Mouth
• TV Ads
• Radio Ads
• Newspaper Ads
• Non-Traditional Advertising
• Social Media
• Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, etc.
• Blogs
• Website
• Online Advertisement
• Banner Ads, Non-Organic (Paid) Search Results\Listing
  
• How will you price your product?
• Competitor Prices comparison
• Are you going to charge more or less than your competitor?
• Fair Market Value of Product
• What is your product worth?  
• How do your prices compare to the products worth?
• Key Differentiators 
• Why you?  What makes you special?  
• What makes your product better?
  
• What type of engagement will you have for your clientele?
• Will you have instore/inoffice engagement?
• Will you offer any sort of phone support?
• Will you offer any kind of email support?
• Will you have any kind of live chat support?
• Will you utilize social media for support?
• Will you have any sort of blog?

These questions are ways to consider connecting and serving your clientele; before, during and after the sale.  When answered and put into some sort of applicable action to your particular case these questions can assist you in finding additional ways that you may not have considered in better servicing your clientele.  Some companies that have found ways to service their clientele through some of these methods include:

• Joann Fabrics
• A Nice blog that gives creative projects, as well as the products needed to perform these projects.  Also features News and Interviews with various creative individuals as well as contests.
• B & H Photo
• A blog that contains interviews with Photographers as well as information on upcoming products in the photographic world.  This also includes company announcements and tips, all related to the world of photography.
• Cupcakes by Cheryl Porro
• A blog for a Software Engineer/Pastry Chef (Sugar Faery) for hire.  Not only is this Pastry Chef getting a place to share her love of passion for cupcakes, she is getting a place to share her experiences and knowledge.  Her willingness to share the information makes it intriguing, as she is not selling the cupcake any more, but her skill to make it, at least better than those of us who would attempt and fail.

These blogs are successful and yet very different in what they are marketing.  I believe that what makes these blogs successful is their level of involvement with their audiences.  

These blogs have a very "Can Do" attitude that quite frankly is a little infectious.  Yet at the same time these blogs are all selling something, a product, a service or a brand.  They are making themselves a "One-Stop-Shop" for their product.  With Joann's its the knowledge base and the collection of products they carry to perform their projects, B & H is their amazing selection of Photographic Equipment that I dare say is rivaled by none and Ms. Porro is marketing her ability to make seemingly delicious pastries with skill.

Follow you into the dark

If your still looking for a way to "find your way" through the darkness to create an effective Marketing Campaign I would suggest heading on over to Social Media Examiner and checking out Micheal Stelzner's blog.  His blogs give you previews, giving a general message, as well as a podcast, and allow you to sort through and then choose to engage more by either reading the full blog, or listening to his podcast.  Two big take away's that Stelzner provides is growing your e-mail lists from social media and the use of videos to promote an event.

Closing Thoughts

In Addition to Mr. Stelzner's blog, I would also like to call attention to Justin Yoder's blog, particularly his effective guidelines post from February 11, 2013.  In this blog Mr. Yoder is able effectively lays out a few very simple rules that plainly state what the plan you should follow is, followed by the reasoning behind it.  Another interesting blog to look at is Ian Burleigh's blog.  Though not as polished as the Yoder's, Burleigh's blog does incorporate some nice visual that aid and assist the message, truly transforming the medium to become the message.