As a marketing company, one of the things we hear most often is, “I don’t need to do any marketing, I have plenty of business already”. When I hear this, I personally get a little confused. I see companies like Macy’s, Dell, Shell, Toyota and a few hundred other companies constantly spending money on marketing. Yet I’m sure they have plenty of business. Everyone knows who they are, so why are they marketing?
Here is what I believe is really being said, “I make enough money to survive and I don’t really bring in enough revenue to put into marketing”. That might sound a little harsh and probably offensive if you are one of those people, but let’s put it into perspective.
Are you happy with just surviving?
You might get plenty of walk-in traffic. You might have plenty of return customers to keep you busy. But at the same time, you have competitors that believe differently about marketing. They are investing in advertisements, coupons, internet marketing, flyers, etc. Will they gain customers? Absolutely! Any form of marketing eventually gains customers. Those customers they are winning over are customers that might have come to you, eventually. They’re client base is growing while yours remains the same.
Are you happy with just surviving? Or would you eventually like to sell your business for a nice profit? Would you like the ability to be profitable enough to take a few days off every now and then? Would you like some extra spending money? If so, then why would you be content with just surviving?
Now, is what I hear starting to make sense? Let me keep going;
Our own business (Coastline Marketing Group) brings in plenty of residuals, walk-ins and referrals, this makes up approximately 95% of our business each month. We could absolutely stop marketing and we would do just fine, for awhile anyway. Yet, we still choose to put up to 5% of our monthly revenue into marketing. For example, let’s just say we bring in $50,000 a month. That would be approximately $2500 per month spent on marketing. So why would we put that much into marketing just to make up that other 5% (from the 95% mentioned above)?
Here’s a simple answer: That 5% that we pick up every month becomes part of our 95%. They become repeat customers and they become referrals. This builds our 95% base. This builds and strengthens our business.
Now, do you see why I don’t quite understand why a company chooses to not market their business? I’ve been working on a simple, easy to understand motto that I can pass on to those that choose not to market their business. I’m still working on it but it goes something like this;
The reason you are not marketing is because you don’t have a marketing budget. The reason you don’t have a marketing budget is because you’re not marketing your business.
It all comes down to priorities. You hate to give up any portion of your revenue each month to marketing because you need to pay the bills. Yet, you struggle month after month to pay the bills. You MUST, somehow, someway create a marketing budget. It’s ok to start small. The most important part is that you start, and stay consistent. DO NOT market for one month and say it didn’t work. Yes, you will be right, it won’t work. But the point is to stay consistent. Never stop marketing and always increase your marketing budget.
What is the right marketing strategy for you?
There are so many different methods of marketing and search engine optimization. I would be more than happy to suggest a few for you. The internet world has become much more complex than just a few years ago. Pay per click marketing, email marketing, display advertising, social marketing, search retargeting, and on and on. Not all methods are the right methods. Developing a strategy is the best way to go. Don’t jump into Pay Per Click marketing if you haven’t done any SEO. Don’t do any SEO if your website hasn’t been tested for conversions.
It’s a different world, but it’s a better world. We are able to target your audience like never before. We are able to measure your return on investment like never before. This is a great time to be in business. We are still at the beginning of the internet marketing revolution. Jump on now because as time goes on, and your competitors are investing in internet marketing, it will become that much more difficult for you to fight your way to the top. Strengthen your position now, set aside a budget for marketing and get professional advice. Focus on that 5%!
Phil Fisk
Coastline Marketing Group
831-975-4524
sales@coastlinemarketinggroup.com
426 Salinas St. Salinas, CA 93901