One of the most effective ways to grow your business is to have a solid marketing strategy where you can track results and convert sales. Whether you have a brick and mortar business that depends on foot traffic or you are a services oriented online enterprise, here are 10 signs that your business needs an immediate marketing review.
Sales are diminishing. You have no backup plan.
Is it business as usual when your web orders have slowed and the phones have stopped ringing? Do you chalk it up to the seasonal flu? This is no time to let your guard down. This is the time to go into hyperdrive so you can reverse the downward trend. In order to do this, you need to critically review your marketing plan, collect the right data so you know where you stand and either do the legwork and address every point in this article or hire professionals to help you. Wait. Did you just say “we don’t have a marketing plan?”
Your business is undergoing drastic change.
This can take various forms from launching a new product to major changes in personnel. Hopefully you’ve conducted a marketing audit prior to implementing these changes but if these changes were sudden or beyond your control, your marketing strategy needs an urgent review.
Your marketing materials are all over the place.
Do you know where your original logo assets are? Where your logo is being used? Is it the latest version? How fast can you find it on the company server? Without a brand guide or worse, no brand strategy in place, your business is flirting with fly-by-night status. Use the right digital asset management software to organize, track and preserve all your content.
Your website is rarely updated.
Are you relying on your part-time office manager to update your web site? Do your customers even know you have a web site? There are so many tools available to you that you can automate content delivery and keep your site looking modern, branded and a real asset to converting sales. Having a well-thought out content delivery strategy, custom branded graphics library and a super easy way to make changes to your web site are mandatory business tools to keep your business alive.
Your competitors are outranking you.
Is your web site continually lagging behind your competitors? How does their social presence compare to yours? Take a look at how they interact with their customers. Are they producing higher quality content than you? Building and maintaining a connection with your customer takes time, effort and strategy. If you’re not talking to your customer on a regular basis, chances are they’re talking to your competitors.
Your branding is inconsistent.
What does your branding say about you to your employees, customers, vendors and partners? Is it clearly defined in a brand guide or communications strategy? Do your graphics represent your company in the best possible light: professional, trustworthy, market leader? If they don’t, why are you still using them?
You’re getting the wrong leads.
Are you getting lots of web clicks and likes but no sales? Do your emails go into the black void? Are you hearing crickets when you post to social media? Having that marketing plan could come in handy now because you would have identified your buyer persona, know what they want from you and how to reach them. If you did your homework, you’d be busy now creating branded content including e-newsletters, e-books, podcasts and other inbound marketing items that are highly targeted, tracked and conversion optimized.
You have a lot to share with customers but don’t.
Whether you’ve been in business for years or just started 6 months ago, you have a unique story to tell. Does your customer know it? Content is king and everything about your business is a reservoir of content ideas. Do you know how to mine that reservoir and present it in the most flattering and business-centric way?
Your visitors don’t love your content.
No to low engagement on website, social media or emails? From collecting the right data to tailoring your content to the right audience, content marketing is en vogue. Is your brand message clear or confusing? Strike a balance between hard sales copy and informational, sometimes light-hearted but always authentic content relevant to your audience.
You don’t know who your customers are. Your customers don’t know who you are.
Being available to your customers, actively listening to them and identifying solutions for their problems will allow you to educate them and make the sales conversion easier. Your business is continually changing and improving. Your customers need to know this. Find ways to maintain a connection with your customers whether it’s through web surveys, newsletters or social media. Keeping your business “top of mind” with a clear brand identity will remind your customers why they can continue to trust you.
If any of this sounds like you, take heart in knowing help is available! Call us anytime for a complimentary review of your marketing efforts.
