Should I start with SEO, Social Media, Email Marketing or...
NONE OF THE ABOVE!
Often times, small businesses are drawn to the idea of starting certain marketing "tactics" like the ones mentioned above without having a PLAN in place first. Without a marketing plan, it will be hard to prioritize tactics and measure success. An initial internet marketing startup decision is the beginning of online success!
Internet Marketing Startup Decision 101
Here is the simple Internet Marketing Startup Decision that we follow here at Gainesville Marketing for companies that ask us to help them build and implement a marketing strategy:
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- S.W.O.T. Analysis - SWOT simply stands for your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats and helps give you insight into how to proceed within your market.
- UVP - What is your businesses Unique Value Proposition? How do you differentiate from your competitors? Expressing this clearly is vital to success.
- Identify Targets - who are your "best fit" customers? What is their income and how old are they? Where do they LIVE online and how can you reach them?
- Map Sales Process - how long is your sales cycle? 1 month? 1 year? You want to understand how purchasing decisions are made and engage early in the sales cycle.
- Build Marketing Objectives - your marketing objectives will need to factor in not only your target market and your unique value, but also your internal resources and factors such as seasonality of your market. They MUST be measurable!
- Identify Tactics - tactics help you accomplish your objectives and most importantly, are MEASURABLE. Each tactics metrics will help you understand whether you are hitting your objectives.
- Measure Everything - without metrics, you aren't going to understand what's working and what isn't. Determine your key performance indicators (KPI's) and create a dashboard that helps you see at a high level how your marketing campaigns are performing.
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A Warning About Being the Low Price Leader
Many businesses simply identify their primary value proposition as "the Low Price Leader". You can and should do better than that. Being priced competitively can be beneficial but tying in other value elements such as superior customer service or the addition of a consultative, educational component can have a positive impact on the average lifetime value of your customer. Keep them coming back, not because of price, but because of value and relationship.
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