For some basic marketing principles see below. To discuss a project or to receive more information or simply to stay on our list choose from the drop-down list and complete your details.
The Chartered Institute of Marketing defines marketing as "the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably". Put very simply marketing finds profitable customers. The overall marketing process starts with marketing research and goes through market segmentation, business planning and execution, ending with pre- and post-sales promotional activities.
For most organisations, marketing is a significant cost. One report says 37% of marketing investment is wasted. Making marketing more effective will save money while reaching reaching sales targets and improving margins. One question marketeers dread is: Can the same sales level be achieved with a lower marketing budget? And when times are hard cutting marketing budgets which are mostly spent with outside agencies is an easy finance director's decision.
The way people buy goods and services has changed dramatically in recent times. This is highlighted, none more so, than with the ways internet marketing and social media influence buying decisions. In turn, this has generated a vast amount of consumer data and, sometimes, conflicting analysis of consumers' buying decision processes. All of which make it difficult to prove the effectiveness of marketing. Marketing is more than advertising and sales promotion. Many non-markting people make this mistake. It defines the way a company should develop its business in terms of new products, new markets and new pricing strategy. It can have a heavy influence on procurment, internal communications and the kind of people organisations should employ. In order to measure marketing effectiveness, then, all these areas of influence need to be taken into account.
Start by writing a simple outline marketing plan. Try and produce it to fill one side of A4 using these headings:
The marketing plan then needs to develop a budget. How much is required to achieve the objectives? Each marketing component needs its own budget. Brand advertising, direct marketing, social media, PR, design/print, sales promotions, exhibitions, marketing database, sales promotions, etc all need to be separately costed then reported on to show effectiveness. Marketing and promotion strategies describe how you will achieve the plan. These will include on-line and off-line activities continuously running and tested for responsiveness. If activities do not bring new business, change them or drop them.
With all the latest digital marketing and social media fads and fashions, it is sticking to the traditional marketing basics that is key to marketing effectiveness. It may be old hat but the acronym AIDA is a time honoured handy tool/check list for each piece of marketing activity. The acronym stands for:
With all this in mind, here are some general marketing tips:
Developing an effective marketing strategy is not always straightforward - especially for start-ups. There may be skills gaps in the management team. At Deve we have knowledge, skills, experience and processes to help you design and implement cost effective marketing activities. To discuss a project of for more information or just to stay on our list (never passed on) submit your details