Yes, you heard me correctly…
If you’re a small to medium-sized business reading this, I firmly believe you shouldn’t try to emulate a business that turned over $ 46 billion globally in 2023. It's a controversial remark, perhaps even outlandish if you don’t truly understand the context.
So, before you decide to nail me to the cross or write me off as some raving looney, give me a few minutes of your time to explain myself; it's worth it, I promise...
Why 'The Big Boys' can advertise the way YOU can't.
One simple word: Money.
If you have millions in your budget to throw around and “get your name out there”, then you might have some success with this marketing style, often referred to as ‘awareness campaigns’ or ‘brand building’. This is when you launch a clever ad, via social media, billboards, TV, Radio, etc, and have something that grabs the audience's attention, but doesn’t have any ‘call to action, or attempt to gather your contact details in exchange for something cool.
Have you ever seen those adverts for perfumes that make absolutely no sense at all; with no offer, action to take, or insert your contact details here? Yep, this is exactly what I'm telling you NOT to do if you're a small to medium-sized business.
Why this works for them.
If you've spent millions of pounds over a long period of time drilling your name/product into the public's brain, naturally your product will be the first thing they think of when they have a problem.
Companies like ‘We buy any car’ or 'Compare the market' are seemingly everywhere; on the radio in the car, on the TV between episodes of your favourite program, day in and day out. When you want to sell your car or get your insurance sorted this is probably the first thing you think of, so you fire up the laptop and punch their details into Google.
Why this won't work for you.
The problem is, if you’re a small business that might have a few thousand to spend on marketing every month, you're not going to scratch the surface trying to market this way, and there's absolutely no way to measure results to see if it's worth investing more!
You can get away with this if you have millions to spend on marketing and the customer already understands what your product does well and where they need to go to buy it. Everyone knows what Coca-Cola is and that they can pick it up from their local store, so no direction is really needed with their advertising.
If you're a local accountancy firm, what are the chances you launch an ad with just "Matt Accountancy, the smart way to do your accounting" and slap it on a billboard with no offer, no direction, and no call to action, that people are going to find you and do business with you? They'll drive by, maybe stare at it a second, and go about their day.
Stop trying to sell to everyone - Why specilization works.
If you don't have a quadrillion bucks to spend on marketing you're best off trying to find a niche and specialize in selling to them.
This allows you to stand out and be different by offering a solution that's extremely specific to their needs. Keeping the soft drink theme running, instead of selling a very generic soft drink like Coca-Cola to the masses, you niche down and target the older generation, pregnant women, or people who want to compete in marathon racing. Maybe these would or would not be good ideas, however, the point is that if you try to sell to everyone, your marketing and messaging are not going to be able to 'cut through the clutter' and you'll be left in the sea and swallowed up by the great white sharks or big brands.
With technology nowadays and advertising platforms such as Facebook and Google, it's easier than ever to pick a niche, come up with some marketing specific to those people, and use these platforms to pick them off like a SAS sniper.
Why direct response marketing works.
If you're not familiar with the term, direct response is where you get in front of someone who might be interested in your product/service, tell them why they need it, and make them an offer right then and there.
This could be in the form of, Download my free guide on 'monkey taming", or whatever it is you do, in exchange for their contact details. This could also be "buy my monkey taming guide" at 50% off for the next 24 hours when you use code 'MONKTAME' at checkout.
This makes it very easy to track your conversions, see your ROI, and capture contact details for later marketing opportunities (that part is crucial!).
If you only have a few thousand to spend on marketing each week/month, YOU NEED to know that’s working and generating you leads/revenue.
Get their contact details.
This is a big problem with 'brand building' & 'awareness campaigns'; how the hell do you know who's interested and follow up?
You need to be collecting their contact details at every opportunity. Don't give anything away unless you are getting something in return. Obviously, make sure what you give them is valuable so they will love you and keep engaging with your content when you market to them via email, SMS, direct mail, carrier Pidgeon, or any other creative way you're able to get back in front of them.
Pre-launch Checklist.
Here are a few tips to ensure your campaign will be a hit…
Have you specified who your target audience is?
You need to build a picture of your ideal customer and tailor you’re marketing to them. How do they speak, what language do they use, what problem are you trying to solve for them?
Is it measurable?
If you spend X amount on the marketing campaign, can you measure exactly how much money you generated? If a sale comes in, can you clearly identify the lead source?
Is it scalable?
If you were to put more money into it, would it generate you more profit, or is there a limit on its capabilities? This one may not be truly known until you've tried it in the first place, but this is why we say, "Start small, get the data, then try spending a bit more if it's generating a return".
Are you giving them an action to take?
You need to offer them something in exchange for either their money, time, or contact details. You need to be capturing contact details to market to them later. Maybe you offer them a free download or information pack on something that’s useful to them and try to sell to them later. Maybe you offer a special discount if they purchase within the next 7 days, etc.
Make them an offer they can't refuse.
Yes, I do put on the godfather's accent when I tell this to clients!
What you absolutely must be doing is capitalizing while you have their attention and make them an offer. Yes, I'm going to make you say it again, capitalize while you have their attention, or 'strike whilst the irons hot'.
There’s no point getting their attention, getting them excited for what you might have to offer, and then being like “ok, great to see you, bye!”.
You need to offer them something in return for their contact details or money; right there, right then.
It’s like going to a bar in a town you’ve never been to, chatting to someone attractive, and not getting their phone number. What are the chances you’ll see them again and go on a date? Slim to none. Obviously, If you’re a behemoth like Coca-Cola, you can go to every bar, every night and chat with everyone all the time…
A clarification.
Just to be clear here, I’m not against ‘brand building’ and getting known as a company, I'm simply saying it should be a by-product of direct response marketing rather than the actual main goal.
If your main goal is to generate leads, build up your prospect lists/contacts, and convert as much as possible into revenue at every opportunity, then if by magic, you will build up your brand in the process.
Does that make sense?
If you're looking to generate more leads & clients for your business? You can get in touch below for a free consultation.
Matt Mckee
Marketing Director - Smart-Clicks
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