While the value of getting a free marketing consultation may not be immediately apparent, there is some no-risk value in doing so. Even getting a fresh set of trained eyes to look at your marketing methods, may give you a gem that you never thought of before. As Brian Tracy says, “you never know where [live changing advice] is going to come from.”
Along the lines of life changing advice, advice that will help you target the right user will likely be among the first advice that you will receive. This may sound dubiously obvious, but consider the subtle nuances of your target demographic and ask yourself if you are targeting them on a deep, feeling based, level. Are you 100% certain about where your target market goes on the internet to get information? Are you even certain that the set of people you have in mind to target are actually the best match for your product or service? While some of these you have likely answered “yes” to, were there some you were uncertain of?
Once the target market or buyer personas have been identified, it is time to look at what reaches that persona. Different types of messages, like photos or videos, can speak differently to different people and illicit different responses.
Additionally, looking at what time your posts go out can radically affect your site traffic, because different personas have different times that they are on the internet. For instance, a teenage market will likely be most active after school is out and if you are targeting a more preppy persona, then they will be available for a little while after they get home and then a few hours later when their homework is done.
Various websites that you may not be promoting on is another example of tactics. Link building strategies are another example of tactics. There are really too many to mention here and they are different for different industries. Nonetheless, there are likely things that you could be doing that you are not doing currently.
In the spirit of making the most impact, making refinements to your marketing messages can also go a long way, but it is not that simple. Marketing messages should be targeted to specific stages in the buyer’s journey and even be so specifically targeted that they handle objections in the prospect’s mind. The purpose of your message should not be “buy me,” but rather, “this is your problem, we understand your problem, this is our solution, here is how and why it works.” Your prospects are on a journey. Companies that do well realize that they need to walk that journey with their prospects.
So, getting a fresh set of eyes on your business may or may not be what you need. Either way, remember these 3 main points when going to market: Target the Right User, Sharpen Your Tactics, and Send the Optimal Message.
