5 Tips to Make Your Marketing Strategies Work

There are a lot of marketing strategies – some work brilliantly, some do not work at all. Many companies live and die by their marketing capabilities. A lot of small business owners get stuck on what marketing strategies to use. The great thing though is marketing is very measurable and traceable, and once strategies are found to work, it can be replicated. Here are 5 tips to make your marketing strategies work, so you can achieve success.

Market
You have to define your market, this is the very first step in any marketing plan. Do not be too specific, nor too broad in your plan. For example, are you marketing to primarily men or women, teenagers or middle aged, tech savvy or not. All of these things make a big difference on how you will successfully market your product. There are companies that do market research and can find this out for you. Though sometimes the product may tell you who the market is, for example perfume or race car parts. Once you know who you are marketing too, you can find strategies that work to market to them.

Track
It is important to track any marketing campaigns, this can show you what works and what does not. If you have any web related campaigns, use Google analytics or other tracking software to see where your traffic is coming from. You can even see what converts, for example ads, or posts on blogs, or from other sites. Once you know what is effective and what is not, you can put more resources into the effective strategy. If it is not web related, it may be more difficult. Something like a coupon code can be used, or simply asking them where you heard about the product.

Multiple Ways
When marketing, it is important to hit your potential customers on multiple venues. This can ensure that you get them wherever they may be, so do not only concentrate on internet ads or flyers. Concentrating on one source really makes it difficult to find a lot of customers.

Reviews
Make sure people like your product, if it gets bad reviews on the internet it is doomed. Most people go online and research a product, or even restaurant before they spend money. Try to take care of any complaints before they become a big deal and hit the web. A lot of money can be wasted if the top few sites about your product are complaints.

Website
Make an easy to understand, concise and clear website. It does not have to contain too much information, but at least your contact information, information about the product, and anything else that is important. Make sure to update often, as an out of date website bothers many people. Do not worry about flash, or fancy sound or pictures, but do make sure it has all that is needed at least for a basic web visit.

A marketing strategy will work as long as you are willing to adapt and work at it. The most important thing is to listen to your customers, and see what is holding potential ones back. The great thing about marketing is, you will find that sweet spot and start bringing in a lot of customers. Once this happens, just maintaining the marketing program should be more than enough to stay successful.

Andrew Wakile writes about business, finance & more at www.businessinsurance.org.