2015 is here, and it is time to crank up your marketing engine. Here are a few strategies to help get you going.
1) Be Intentional
Do you know your destination? You need to know where you are going, and you need to have a road map. How to do this? Look at your sales numbers for last year, and decide on what your target will be for this year. Can you increase by 10% or 15%? Now that you have your number, how many widgets will you need to move, or how many clients will you have to sign to reach that number? Then map out the path from where you are today to each one of those sales. Do you have the tools or processes in place to get you in front of the right people to hit your target? Decide on what you are going to do to get where you need to be, and write it down, on paper, on purpose, with intention.
2) Advertise a New Service
Something new will always pique interest. Look over your product offerings: is there anything recently created that you haven’t told your clients about? Is there a hole in your product suite that needs to be filled? Is there a product you can re-brand and pitch anew? Even if you don’t have a new product or service, pick a facet of your offerings that is less well known and make sure everyone knows about it.
3) Stay Friendly with Clients
Are you staying in contact and top of mind with your client base? If someone has purchased from you before, they are likely to buy from you again or to refer someone to you, so don’t let them forget about you! There are multitudinous ways to accomplish this – email newsletter, social media, postcards on birthdays – whatever you decide on, stick with it, and stay in touch.
4) Hit “Refresh”
Take a look at your current marketing materials , and see if it needs an update. Or better yet, ask someone else to take a look at your marketing materials, and ask them what they see. We often have a hard time seeing beyond the money spent on our website, logo, postcards, business cards, flyers, signage, and apparel, but what we see doesn’t matter when compared to what our potential clients see. If your stuff looks dated, then you may be passed on in favor of your competition, so refresh what needs updating sooner rather than later.
5) Simplify
The definition of focus is saying no to everything else. If you are trying to be everything to everyone, you risk being nobody to anybody. So simplify. Take an honest look at what marketing avenues work well for you, and intensify your efforts in that area. A watered down effort in five marketing avenues will likely never yield as much result as a laser focused approach in one or two avenues that are a good fit for you.
2015 is going to be a great year. Make sure your marketing allows you to participate in it! Best of luck and Happy New Year!
