5 ideas to get the most from marketing investments
In a corporate culture where priority is the achievement of short-term economic results, reducing marketing spending becomes a quick and simple. Without certainly cut the marketing budget can improve the bottom line short term, but there is a clear risk of undermining our brand image and relationship with our customers, which have a negative impact on the profitability of the company, its growth and its capacity to compete.
We can not forget that in a context of oversupply make our mark is the preferred is a rather more critical and complex than in times of economic boom.
Rethinking marketing
Through this article we share with all some tips that allow professionals refocus marketing, from a more traditional approach to a more current. At this time the strategy should not remain only in reducing the budget, but to try to maximize the return on our investments in marketing for clients and our own business. Although the road is not the easiest, certainly has much more chance of success to continue with the inertia of the past.
Decisions such as “more of the same, but with less” seems to us wholly inadequate to meet the challenges of the future in a competitive market. As said Don Peppers and Martha Rogers in his recent book The Moving Company, “the crisis of short-termism, the source of all problems … the obsession of the companies on short-term results is enormously destructive.”
5 ideas to get the most from your marketing investments
1 Investing in knowledge
Although the term “knowledge society” was first used in 1969 are still a few companies have the tools to deepen the knowledge of its customers. At present there are very powerful technology solutions that capture economic, interpret and exploit all the information derived from the relationship with customers, by transforming information into knowledge for decision making to provide more value to customers and our organization.
So have a Database manager where you include information of our target audience such as: preferences, buying habits, services used, channels of interaction or responses to marketing campaigns, allowing the marketing department sending messages , offers and proposals relevant to each client, add value to the relationship and improve communication efficiency.
MARKETING IN A TIME OF CRISIS, Redefining
Having an Excel or Access DB on our clients (current and potential prescribers) is obsolete compared to web technology solutions latest generation now available to any company regardless of size.
2 Creativity & Innovation key to differentiating
What reminds advertising right now? Almost certainly will not be many and among them, for obvious reasons of its main competitors. There is no single reason why advertising so pass unnoticed, but among these is the lack of creativity. To refer to what others do has become a common practice in the marketing world, it is certainly a good policy not to take risks, but also to get a little differentiation from competitors.
So, if innovation and creativity have become the pillars of competitiveness in industrialized countries, at least these should also be the engine of the new marketing of our company. Tip: Opt for innovative campaigns designed to strengthen the emotional bond with your target audience and your organization’s commitment to its customers.
The traditional model of repetitive and functional advertising around the product is moving toward an advertising emphasizes creativity and emotions. Able to reinvent advertising, arousing curiosity and interest of an audience saturated with the classical advertising.
3 TECHNOLOGY YES, BUT NOT AT THE COST OF QUALITY CUSTOMER SERVICE
The negative stories in customer service are numerous, all suffer this kind of unpleasant experiences. It is a paradox that being immersed in an economy of care services generally, so little customer service. The technology must become a tool to improve service and attention to our customers, however sometimes the emphasis is on reducing the costs of this service instead of investing to improve customer experience. Do not forget that the lack of interest and attention is 3 to 5 times more important in the loss of customers that the characteristics of the product.
Tip: The small details count a lot. Thus, a simple email response thanking a customer participation in a campaign can make a difference. Seems simple but is very rare. A Pew Trust study reported that 94% of respondents, ie virtually everyone had described as “very frustrating” experience of calling a company and to hear a recording instead of a human being.
4 COLLABORATION IN THE HEART OF THE STRATEGY
Win-win has become the new standard in the business world. Also in the marketing area businesses are stepping up campaigns where the manufacturer and distribution channel go together to implement projects for the end customer.
If your market is made up of professionals who use their products, is a winning choice position as a partner, with a value proposition focused on providing, on an ongoing basis, collaboration and support in their professional work. Such customers greatly appreciates access to useful information and documentation, continuing education, counseling, presenting novelties and recognition. In short, a great opportunity to build a collaborative relationship continued over time, full of meaning and content.
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