To grow a business now a days, one needs to understand why traditional marketing and sales strategies fail and how to develop a sales marketing strategy that works.
WHAT IS SALES MARKETING?
A well-crafted combination of sales and marketing is necessary for the successful growth of the business. Sales involve direct one-to-one interactions, those interpersonal connections that add revenue directly to bank accounts. Phone calls, networks and meetings are part of the direct sales process.
Marketing, on the other hand, involves all the actions that a company takes to reach and recruit prospects. Examples include direct mail campaigns, advertising, public relations, and radio or television ads.
Direct sales marketing incorporates all these strategies. The number of “touches” that a prospectus requires to convert it into a sale varies, although research suggests between three and twelve points of contact. More important than quantity, then, is to follow and maximize each contact so that the time, cost and effort invested in each sale decrease.
WHAT IS NOT WORKING?
Some of the most proven and true marketing methods still work. People still love video advertising, for example. In fact, according to Cisco Visual Networking, video accounts for 69 percent of all consumer Internet traffic. However, many other marketing strategies are falling flat. Undoubtedly, Sirius Decisions reports that the average sales cycle has increased by 22 percent in the last five years, as more decision-makers are involved in the buying process.
- According to the DMA Response Rate Report, direct mail is expected to experience a 19% decrease in the next 12 months;
- A mere 13% of people who read printed publications report seeing the ads;
- 44% of direct mail never opens;
- 70% to 80% of online users do not watch online ads, preferring to focus only on organic search results;
- 86% of people ignore television commercials.
EFFECTIVE SALES MARKETING IDEAS
As buyers become increasingly saturated with advertising gimmicks, it is even more important for business owners and marketers to devise innovative ways to target potential customers. So, it is the function of the owner of a business to ensure that the information is delivered to potential customers at the right time, in the right format and on the right platforms. This is where an incoming marketing strategy becomes crucial.
RESEARCH
It is not necessary to spend large amounts of time studying case studies. Instead, “research” refers to the time devoted to understanding the company and its objectives, to understanding the industry and the customers. This is where entrepreneurs focus on attracting customers instead of looking for potential clients and customers.
Clarify what the business is and ask:
- What does it mean to “grow the business?”
- How will someone know if he succeeds?
- What are the long and short term objectives?
- What is the sales process?
- Take a look at the industry
Whether a person has been in the industry for two, ten or twenty years, it is very likely that the industry will continue to change. As innovations emerge or new expectations are established, it is important to stay ahead of the curve. This is where industry research comes in.
- How are other companies doing compared to meeting (or exceeding) the objectives?
- What marketing strategies are other companies in that industry doing to attract customers?
- What events and current news are impacting that industry?
- Is there a business to business market that the owner of a company can access?
- Is there a leader that an entrepreneur can talk to within the industry?
DISCOVER YOUR CUSTOMER BASE
Talk to people in the field, those who communicate directly with customers, to better understand the customer base. These are the people who can provide the most information about what customers want. When talking with them, here are some questions worth doing:
- What marketing tactics are the most effective?
- Do customers complain about some current strategy, such as too many emails or unpleasant ads?
- What is the demographic data of the client?
- What questions are the most responsive sales teams?
- What pain points does the product or service help to alleviate?
CREATE EFFECTIVE CONTENT
It is no longer enough to leave an inactive website while waiting for clients to magically discover their presence. Instead, business owners must update their content consistently. More than 70 percent of marketers say that relevant content is the most effective search engine optimization (SEO) tactic, while companies that blog 16 times or more a month enjoy four times more potential customers than those that publish blog content less than five times a month.
The most effective content is focused on helping clients achieve their goals and / or solve their problems. While content on the Internet often becomes obsolete a few weeks after publication, it is best to ensure that the content is as green as possible so that it can retain its value for years to come.
It is imperative to recognize the importance of having an efficient and qualified editor, either in the staff or in independent work. Doing so can substantially increase the company’s income, double its customer retention rate and create brand recognition.
PAY ATTENTION TO SEO
In the world of marketing, SEO is the latest buzzword, and with good reason. SEO consists of all the factors that influence the ranking of the search engine. It’s like turning on a spotlight so customers know where to find a business. After discovering what a company’s customers are looking for (see above), it’s important to weave those keywords into every page of the website.
To optimize a website for SEO, Entrepreneur magazine suggests that business owners:
- Create a priority list of specific search terms that relate to the customer base and the market segment;
- Review relevant industry sources and competitive lists to determine which keywords should be used;
- If users misspell a word frequently, include it also in web pages;
- Track site rankings every 30 to 45 days to ensure that keywords remain effective;
- Determine the objectives in advance and make sure they are measurable so that it is possible to observe the return on investment regularly
- Place strategic words and phrases throughout the content of each page;
- Test and continuously measure business success using objective tools to do so.
Develop podcasts
People love to receive something for nothing. In the world of marketing, the most valuable asset is knowledge. Offer this to customers through effective use of Podcasts. Podcast listening increased by 23 percent.
BECOME AWARE OF SOCIAL MEDIA
The effectiveness of marketing in social networks is contentious. While some people say it is a complete waste of time, the numbers suggest otherwise. After all, the breadth of audience participation is unparalleled.
- 72 percent of adult Internet users use Facebook;
- Over the past two years, the consumption of content on Facebook has increased by 57 percent;
- Instagram has 500 million monthly active users;
- LinkedIn has 450 million members, with 25 percent active monthly;
- Thirty percent of the thousand-year-old Internet users in the US UU Use Snapchat regularly.
STAY IN CONTACT
Depending on the product or service offered, it may be that the company is thinking about the customer daily, as in the case of a food product, or only occasionally, as is the case of expensive beauty treatments. In any case, it is essential to be in the client’s thoughts as soon as they are ready to buy. The way to do it is to maintain a constant and consistent communication.
- Collect customer information at every opportunity;
- Create email or text campaigns to keep in touch with potential customers and past clients;
- Make sure the business is listed in local directories and search engines.
Effective marketing means more than relying on advertising by direct mail or television ads. It has become a multidimensional, multi sensory process. Stay up to date with DIGITAL MARKETING IN PAKISTAN, as well as with the new technology available to assist marketing efforts using these suggestions.
