What the Deadliest Catch Can Teach Us about Marketing

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Where are you directing your marketing efforts?

It sounds like an easy question to answer, but very few business owners actually understand the importance of setting marketing goals.

For instance, marketing the existence of your business by simply stating, “We are located here, and this is our number,” is an insane waste of your time, energy and ad dollars. The only possible goal you could have established for that message would be to draw more people in to your store. While that seems like a great concept, it’s too broad, and offers no incentive to its recipient.

medium_4152895341Marketing success is all about maintaining focus on your target audience. Your ideal customer should never be described as “anyone.”

Why?

Because not everyone is your ideal customer, not everyone will appreciate the value you bring to the local area, and not everyone will be willing to pay the price you are asking. Actually, if you have been in business long enough, you already know your repeat customers. You know where they hang out, what publications they read, where they get their haircut and what channels they watch on TV.

Well…at least you SHOULD know it.

The biggest cause for resistance I’ve experienced while operating my marketing firm, is due to the fact that the service I offer is not tangible, meaning someone can not put their hands on my offering. Also, I am constantly threatened with the perception of instant failure, because my marketing tactics “will not work in Clinton!” To that, I say…

Pish! Posh!

In order for a business to experience a positive return on their marketing investment, they must first start taking chances. There is no possible way you can tell me that a new marketing tool will not work, if you haven’t tested its effectiveness. Now, if you are catering to the customer base of women between the ages of 65 and 75, a smart phone application may be a huge step in the wrong direction, but there are definitely ways to reach that demographic using a method you’ve never tried.

If my business pumps out 10 to 12 different marketing pieces in the form of snail mail, email, radio, news print, podcasts, text messaging, social media advertising, video, door hangers, billboards, coupons, television, punch cards or banner advertising, I will have increased my chance of finding the one which provides the best bang for my buck! But if I limit my media options to one or two, I am limiting my chances at unearthing a gem.

A straight up marketing diamond in the rough!

Until you step outside of your comfort zone, and take a stroll down the path less traveled, you will never be able to prevent your business from wasting gobs of cash.

It’s that simple.

Look  at how an experienced fisherman works. They test the waters, mark where they’ve been and document the location of their “honey holes.” If you have ever watched the hit TV series Deadliest Catch, you will witness each Captain performing all three steps I listed above. They have to try out new spots, because those shots in the dark could turn out to be the best fishing they’ve ever seen.

How would they know without trying?

In the book Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days, Jay Conrad Levinson breaks it down into three parts. In order for you to be able to focus your marketing and define solid goals, you have to do the following:

 1. Continuously learn about new marketing methods

 2. Perform competitive marketing analysis. Who is doing what marketing and what seems to be working best within your industry or marketplace?

 3. Define what business you are really in. Are you simply selling glasses or are you selling the ability for one to see better, clearer and live day-to-day safer? Are you   selling drills or are you selling holes? Are you selling circus tickets or are you selling the thrills?

I strongly encourage you to grab a hold of the reins, and start directing your business, rather than letting the success of your business direct you. The world of marketing is like a glacier, ever-changing, expanding, shrinking, moving and flowing.

All without the notice of the naked eye.

Unless you begin to measure and pay attention to the changes.

“When you are through changing, you’re through.” ~Bruce Barton

Andy Sokolovich

P.S. If you haven’t done so already, be sure to slap your name and email into the empty boxes on the top left hand corner of your screen. I will then send you a FREE copy of our popular Ebook The Very Best of Bent Business Babble: Volume 1.

A bazillion dollar value for FREE.99 🙂 ~Andy #themarketingguy

photo credit: troyjmorris via photopin cc

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