Sales and Marketing - Jen Jordan

Sales and Marketing - Jen Jordan
Jen Jordan brings a wealth of life and leadership experiences to her writing. After 10 years creating a variety of content for a nonprofit, Jen decided to establish her own writing business. She specializes in creating high quality blog and website content for small businesses. When she's not writing, Jen is a competitive triathlete with a goal of completing a triathlon in all 50 states.

4 Common Marketing Mistakes Your Small Business Must Avoid

4 Common Marketing Mistakes Your Small Business Must Avoid

Small businesses need effective marketing to thrive. Building your brand, attracting customers, and cultivating returning customers all help drive revenue. Marketing mistakes can sabotage your hard work and marketing plans. Avoid these common marketing mistakes:

1. Neglecting Market Research

Effective marketing is built on the foundation of market research. Finding your target audience, competitors, and the demand for your product guides you to navigate marketing challenges successfully. Skipping quality market research can have devastating consequences.

  • Research where your customers hang out (online and offline).
  • Evaluate your local marketing options like local SEO and local or niche publications.
  • Determine a clear positioning for your small business and how it is distinct from your competition.

2. Failing to Identify Your Target Audience

Not defining your target audience can increase your marketing expenses and decrease your results. Before you develop your marketing strategies, you must identify who makes up your audience. A sharp vision of your customer persona helps form an effective marketing plan.

  • Determine your product or service characteristics. Evaluate what problems your small business solves and who would most benefit.
  • Lean on your market research to start identifying your consumers.
  • Dig into demographics. Understand the unique characteristics that comprise your ideal customer.
  • Use this information to form your brand and determine which media channels will best reach your audience.

3. Inconsistent Branding

Consistent branding across your channels is vital. It immediately tells a story about your small business. Inconsistent or chaotic branding makes it difficult for consumers to recognize or understand your small business.

  • Establish brand guidelines for logos, colors, images, and text. Consistency is key to building customer trust and loyalty.
  • Stand out. A professional and consistent image creates a recognizable brand. Use your brand choices on everything: web pages, business cards, social media, flyers, etc.
  • Budget accordingly for your marketing efforts. Establish goals and calculate the necessary budget to meet those goals.

3. Ignoring Your Online Strategy

Websites and social media are powerful marketing tools. Create user-friendly, optimized, " dynamic " content (meaning customers can view it easily on various devices).

Website:

  • Use SEO. Identify keywords to drive traffic to your website and social media. Remember local SEO options. Using local SEO helps new customers in the area find your business.
  • Use reputable backlinks to help build credibility and rankings. This increases your authority in web searches.
  • Have a dedicated landing page to ensure a consistent experience for new customers. Limit the links on your landing page to increase conversion rates, and include a clear call to action.
  • Offer engaging content that educates customers about your business and what you offer. Keeping customers engaged and reducing bounce rates will help you rank higher in searches.

Social Media:

  • Engage your customers. Use social media to communicate and build relationships.
  • Create compelling content. Social media delivers immediate information to your target audience. Keeping them engaged allows direct access to promotions and calls to action (CTA).
  • Use social media to highlight your small business and move traffic to other platforms you offer.
  • Use paid advertising when needed. If you are trying to build a following or increase sales, paid advertising on social media can help you reach a target audience.
  • Avoid using too many social media channels. Identify the best media for your targeted audience and work to deliver consistent marketing on them.

4. Not Measuring Marketing Metrics

Tracking your marketing metrics and monitoring your key performance indicators (KPIs) provides valuable feedbac on your marketing success. Pay attention to this data to save your business money and avoid ineffective marketing methods.

  • Establish KPIs you will regularly track. Some easy, useful KPIs include website traffic, conversion rate, customer satisfaction, and social media engagement.
  • Use your data to adjust your marketing efforts and plan.
  • Don’t be afraid to use customer surveys as a form of KPI data. Go straight to your revenue source for feedback.

Building effective marketing plans can take some time. Be willing to adapt and change with marketing trends.

Sources:

  1. https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/small-business/marketing-mistakes
  2. https://jennielyon.com/5-common-online-marketing-mistakes-how-to-fix-them-workbooks/?mc_cid=1ef0494d7b&mc_eid=58517eb648
  3. https://www.adobe.com/express/learn/blog/target-audience
  4. https://www.driveresearch.com/market-research-company-blog/6-kpis-your-business-should-be-measuring-market-research-syracuse/#:~:text=However%2C%20if%20you%20are%20primarily,is%20to%20identify%20your%20objectives.
  5. https://riskplaywin.com/en/knowledge/marketing-mistakes-small-businesses
  6. https://unbounce.com/landing-page-articles/why-should-i-use-landing-pages/#:~:text=Having%20fewer%20links%20on%20your,the%20destination%20of%20their%20traffic.