Unfortunately it's not enough to come up with great ideas and then build them. We have to actually get out there and tell people about our service, business or product too if we ever expect them to buy. When we start we envision great ad's from the likes of Budweiser, Coca-Cola and others, and recognize that spreading the words is essential for building a great brand, at least in terms of recognition. But we're entrepreneurs, we can't hire Madison Avenue or even a marketing person for that matter... or can we? There are great marketing people out there we can outsource to or hire as needed, though it behooves us to know a thing or two about what we need before we pay someone (the person you hire will appreciate that too, because a consultant worth their salt doesn't want to B.S. you). Alternatively, we can bite off the marketing work ourselves (bad idea) or, ideally, a combination of hired help and personal involvement (best idea).

A few steps that might help (all of these assuming you already have a viable product):

1) Do your research. What kind of marketing do you need? Online? Magazine, Grass Roots?

2) Define your target market, well. Seriously think about carving out a niche, not just "the whole world" assuming volume will overcome all (because not much business will likely come to you). You'll have better luck targeting "people who love German Shepards" than "people who love dogs." You'll save yourself a ton of money advertising to them too.

3) Find guidance. It's worth spending to get someone who really knows what they are doing. Marketing/Advertising is an art and a science, and the pro's are good at making it look easy, but it isn't, and if you don't know what you are doing it can cost you far more to try it on your own with less results than it will to hire a professional. (How to find someone good is Thursday's post.)

4) Understand the difference between Marketing and Advertising. (Tomorrow's post).


There are a million and one approaches to marketing and many of them are somewhat counter-intuitive so put your ego aside and get someone on board to help you or if you insist on doing it on your own prepare to spend a LOT of time learning, so get books, read on-line and study anything you can. Then be prepared for a painful learning experience. You can learn it, but the start is usually rough for most people who are brand new to marketing.

I personally know one marketing consultant and wouldn't hire anyone else though I know there are other good ones out there. Most of them will probably give you a free 30-60 minute meeting to help you figure out what you need (at a high level, don't expect them to give you all the answers) and some perspective. They'll also be figuring out if you are serious or a waste of their time so be prepared.

As a Marketing Reference:
Wendi McGowan
Wendistry, LLP.
www.wendistry.com

Labels: marketing, recommendations