My previous post talked about some of the factors that play a role in once effective marketing going bad. Marketing is one of those necessary ongoing elements of successful business because markets, potential clients and even industries are fickle, changing constantly.
Add to that the fact that tools you rely on for marketing (advertising, social media, web sites, etc.), can change quickly, too. So losing steam in your marketing activities is very common. And it is fixable.
One of the best ways to revitalize your marketing activities and improve your results is by stepping back and looking at exactly what it is that your target audience wants.
Looking Through Your Potential Clients’ Eyes
Understanding how your clients think isn’t easy. You need to step outside yourself, your business and your priorities to see through their eyes. You may be able to do this in some capacity by clearing your mind and trying to view your brand and marketing as if you’ve never seen it before. But that’s difficult and usually not enough on its own.
Here are a few other ideas on how to get into the heads of your potential clients so you can market to them more effectively.
Conduct a Focus Group
You can organize a focus group to get some feedback on your existing marketing processes or new campaigns you’re working on. A focus group is basically a way to have a group of people experience something and then be interviewed about it. For example, you can walk potential clients through your email marketing campaign, and then ask them questions about their experience.
The challenge is finding the right people and getting them to dedicate the time necessary to participate in your group.
Talk to Current Clients
You have the potential to get some great feedback on your marketing efforts from clients already on your roster. Since they’re clients, they probably like you and would be happy to help.
The question is, would their input be unbiased enough to be useful and how does the fact that they know you and your business already skew the data?
Use an Exit Survey
If you want to get feedback on your web site, you can use an survey that either pops up when visitors are leaving or periodically during their visit, asking for their input on the user experience. This can be tricky though. Not only are pop ups frowned upon and sometimes annoying, but if someone is leaving your site, chances are they won’t want to stick around to answer a few questions without any incentive.
What to Do with What You Learn
When you’ve completed your research, the question becomes what do you do with the data you’ve gathered. You may start by making minor changes over the course of several months to see how your target market responds. You can keep your existing marketing efforts intact and try a few new ideas. Or you may decide to scrap you have and start fresh.
The most important thing is to adopt an ongoing plan for analyzing your activities, revisiting what’s going on in the heads of your potential clients and being willing to adapt and change every step of the way.
Do you ever step back and look at your marketing materials/activities through the eyes of your target client? How do you decide when it’s time to change things up?
Image credit: rickfurb
Alyssa GregoryAlyssa Gregory is a digital and content marketer, small business consultant, and the founder of the Small Business Bonfire — a social, educational and collaborative community for entrepreneurs.
