The Marketing Blender

10 Questions to Ask (...to grow your business)

It's not about having the answers, it's about asking the right questions.

Too often, we don't learn as much as we can about an aspect of our business, because we assume we already know it inside out. Or, we subconciously decide that we don't want any new information on something we already presume to understand.

Good leaders and good marketers are constantly asking questions, not giving answers. In that spirit, here are some questions you should ask to help grow your local business:

• Ask one client what first led them to do business with you

• Ask one ex client what led them to do business elsewhere

• Ask your web team what your conversion rate is, and then ask them how it could be improved by .25% in the next 10 days

• Ask your marketing/advertising agency how much revenue their last campaign for you generated (just to see if they know)

• Ask a fellow business owner/marketer in a related industry what the single most successful tactic they used they in the last few months

• Ask a local journalist if there is anything you can do to help them write a story about a problem that your clients face (and preferably, one that your product or service solves)

• Ask an employee for an idea

• Ask a client for an idea

• Ask about local speaking opportunities

• Ask for a referral

Real Estate Marketing Madness

It's March on the outskirts of Toronto, which means my mailbox is crammed with marketing materials from local real estate agents trying to get my business in the busy Spring real estate market. I've received 10 flyers in the last week alone.

And like every year, I see examples of agents who have wasted their money on ineffective marketing tactics that simply aren't going to work.

A quick sidebar for our American readers -- the real estate agents here in Canada are still enjoying record years when it comes to the housing market. And while there are some spots in the US where real estate values are falling, the challenge facing agents are the same on many levels -- to convince those who are thinking of moving to list their home with you.

It's the "convincing" part where most agents fall short.

After sifting through the flyers, I've developed some thoughts that are specific to improving real estate marketing but would be applicable to any business where the client is being asked to make a significant, high dollar purchase:

Build Trust - If you're going to get 5% of the value of my home as a commission, I'll need to trust you first. And you don't build trust by telling me your trustworthy, or that you're good.

Own the Information Advantage - To build trust, one option is to own the expert position. Share information freely with the local market (and the local media) about where the market is headed, and whether it differs from the national picture. Anyone thinking of moving craves information - how much are other homes selling for, how long they've been on the market, and so on.

Any dollar spent on marketing that doesn't work towards building trust among potential buyers is a dollar wasted because it doesn't get you closer to a sale.

While we're at it, here are some phrases I'm tired of seeing in real estate ads, and that generally don't work:

A trusted professional. Trusted? By whom? Prove it.

I get results! Good for you! Show me.

Free Home Evaluation with this coupon - I'm sure some appointments are made thanks to the free evaluation premise, but can we lose the coupon idea? Don't cheapen the experience by pretending that the unaddressed piece of paper that EVERYONE got in the mail is actually required to get a home evaluation.

Marketing messages I'd like to see more of from real estate agents:

The choice for families - Parents often worry the most about moving their kids, and what the local schools are like, etc. If you could position yourself as an expert in this area through your marketing and the client experience, you'd build a huge advantage for yourself. (Build trust as a credible source of information for families, and you're on your way...)

Your Condo Market Expert -  Know everything there is to know about maintenance fees, the makeup of certain condo buildings (demographics, etc). Position yourself as the leader in this category. (Again, building trust through shared knowledge)

25 years of serving the community - Experience is perceived as an advantage in real estate, and if you can make a claim to a long service history in a particular community, you should.

In a wide open market like real estate, where there tend to be dozens or literally hundreds of competitors in each community, positioning is critical. And proving your position goes a long way towards building your profile in the market, and building trust among potential clients.

You Just Proved Blog Advertising Works!

You’ve probably seen a similar piece of advertising on benches and other outdoor advertising spaces in your community. It’s intended to be a “gotcha” – you look over at a bench or a bus shelter, and see a message that reads something like:

“You just proved outdoor advertising works!”

This is typically accompanied by a phone number to call to advertise your business in that same space.

Clever...but not true.

Looking at an ad doesn’t mean it “worked”. (Can you remember any of the ads you saw on TV last night – you saw ads on TV, didn’t you? How come they didn’t “work”?)

Getting an ad to “work” takes a lot more than catching a fleeting glance from a passerby. The ad itself would have to be memorable, well targeted, timely, and so on. It needs to be part of a meaningful market position and/or brand message.

There is some irony in these advertising messages. Those who own the advertising space on outdoor signs and benches need to sell it to businesses to make money. So they push the concept that simply owning advertising space for your business is the key to making your advertising work.

Of course once they’ve sold the space, they’ve cashed in their chips. Whether your advertising actually works or not has no bearing on the commission they’ll make from selling you the ads.

The even greater irony – the space where they placed that clever message was clearly unsold inventory – so instead of running an ad for a paying customer, they ran their own ad to attract a paying customer.

If the ad copy read “Nobody else saw the value in buying this space – how about putting your ad here?!” – do you think anyone would buy it?

Outdoor ads on benches and bus shelters may be useful for your business, but simply having ads in high traffic areas is no indication of whether your ad will “work” or not.

Radio Advertising for Small Business Owners – Part 3

If you didn't catch Parts 2 and 2 in this series, you can find them in the archives on the right hand side of the blog...

So you’ve committed to a multi-week radio advertising campaign. Now what?

You’ll need to create your ad. Most stations will put the ad together for you in house, and in many cases they’ll do it at no extra charge. But…you get what you pay for.

If you opt for an in house ad produced by the station, here are some guidelines to get the best ad for your money:

Use a Popular Station Personality – instead of a nameless announcer, try to line up one of the stations regular on-air personalities to record your ad. My local sports radio station runs an ad for a shoe store featuring the popular afternoon talk show host – and it’s one of the few ads I remember because of his distinctive voice and the implied endorsement.

Use your Own Voice – you can be the star of your own radio ads, and you don’t need a great booming radio voice – but you do need character. Your voice needs to be different, folksy, friendly, deep, etc.

Be in Charge of the Message – you can’t expect the local radio station to “get” your brand message after a 3 minute talk with you. Give them any marketing materials you can to give them further insight into your brand and your target market. If you have an idea, give it to them in explicit detail. This is not intended to knock those who create ads for radio stations – it’s more a recognition that they are put in a hopeless predicament and need as much info as possible to create an ad that you’d actually want your customers to hear.

Radio can be an affordable advertising option for small businesses -- following the tips in this series will help you get your campaign off on the right foot.