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Marketing is a wide discipline and there are many tactics, tricks and hacks that can be used to increase your customers.
The problem with marketing resources
Each of the marketing tricks or hacks found on entrepreneurial marketing resources, such as YouTube, Instagram, Facebook groups and forums help business owners and entrepreneurs communicate with their customers.
There are several marketing options across each of the resources above. Each resource provides examples with several marketing 'buzzwords’, which are high in jargon, but low in tangible benefit to you as a new business owner.
Marketing resources should be used to help get your message out to your current and potential customers, so you can demonstrate you have the best solution for your customers problems or needs.
What are popular entrepreneurial marketing resources?
When it comes to marketing, you should provide your customer with your message in an easy to understand format. Your marketing message should state why your solution will meet their needs and why it makes sense for them to start (or continue) the relationship with your business.
You may have used some of the following to get your message to your customer.
Website sign up forms
Email messaging platforms
Social media marketing (paid and organic)
Video platforms
Podcasts
Industry trade shows and events
Webinars and video presentations
Communities, groups and forums
Influencers and well-known personalities across all platforms
What to look out for in good entrepreneurial marketing resources?
Entrepreneurs and small business owners have access to a wide variety of tools. Much the same as big business, but if you already have direct access to your customers; some of the in-depth marketing resources can be an unnecessary and unneeded distraction.
If you want your business or entrepreneurial project to be a success, your marketing message will need high visibility with potential customers, so your message will give them a reason to interact with your message or your brand.
The more interactions you can generate should lead to increased customer engagement and eventually more interest, more leads and more sales.
Take the time to review your target market and consider creating a profile of your target customer, to understand how your target market interacts with similar businesses. If your target customer leans towards specific marketing platforms you may be more suited to contact your customer on their preferred platform.
Why do you need to track performance of your marketing resources?
The world has exploded with marketing resources at varying costs with different payment options. Some of the marketing resources are monthly subscriptions whereas others are usage based.
Either way, you should track the performance of your marketing messages, response rates, increase in your customer email or contact list and new business opportunities.
Efficient use of your entrepreneur marketing resources will help you make better long-term decisions on your next marketing campaign. Understanding your customers and your historical marketing performance means you can invest in the best solutions to encourage your customer to interact.
Choosing Marketing Resources
Choosing and planning marketing resources ensures you’re making the most efficient use of your resources and you’re tracking the outcome.
For the best results you should use your marketing resources in coordinated campaigns or marketing projects. This separation of your marketing messages into marketing campaigns will help you reach your preferred customers and also track the results of different campaigns.
Your marketing budget (if you have one) will not be infinite, and usingall the available marketing resources would cost too much time and money. Therefore, it’s wise to test marketing with your customers and understand which marketing resources and messages are working for each specific customer group.
This will help you modify your marketing message and use of marketing resources for each of your customer groups. Helping you build a high performing marketing plan over time and understanding your customers with more accuracy.
Deciding what to do with your marketing resources
It’s a waste of time and money to create an unused marketing plan or marketing calendar.
Any plan is only as good as it’s objective. You should understand your preferred result (e.g. generate 100 new customer leads or 5 new enquiries from existing customers).
Then work backwards to create a marketing plan with tasks and activity based objectives, which use your marketing resources towards your preferred result.
Over time you will learn when your objectives are realistic and you can modify your marketing plan and marketing messages with activities and tasks accordingly.
If you can focus your marketing plan on delivering your message or offer about your product or service, this provides a focal point for your customers to engage and understand your proposition from competing options.
What should marketing resources mean to you?
As an entrepreneur or small business owner, you should use marketing resources; marketing plans, and marketing tactics designed to help small businesses meet their targets or lead generation goals.
You need to efficiently use the entrepreneurial marketing resources at your disposal, which are built for small businesses without paying for additional unnecessary services.
Using online services is one way to get your message to your customers and increase customer interactions. This will prevent you making the same mistakes of other entrepreneurs.
You could have the best product or service in the world, but if the world does not know you exist, you will find it difficult to provide your product or service to your target customers.
Your business or side project is at risk if you lack knowledge or don’t track marketing resources. This will affect the accuracy of your customer list and results of future marketing efforts.
If the customer list (i.e. existing and potential customers) is inaccurate you may lose money and opportunities by not understanding how your customers interact with your service.
Good luck!
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