Your marketing resolutions?
Happy New Year friends. I’m “making my mark” this year – not just a ponytail behind the computer screen in the comic!
It’s that time of year again where everyone is resolving to make 2023 better than ever. While you’re dusting off that gym membership, and Marie Kondo-ing your house this January, we’re sure you’re also thinking hard about how to improve your marketing (…right?).
Before you go gung-ho into an advertising plan that falls as flat as your quest to totally cut out carbs, consider taking things slowly and building your marketing strength up. Here are a few reps you can try:
1) Make sure your business strategy is sound. Advertising can shine any turd but if your product or service isn’t aligned with your consumer you’re only going to frustrate people.
2) A good brand MUST be defined early. This is a big piece of the puzzle that everything else uses and makes you recognizable to your customer. We are passionate about branding for a reason!
3) Stock images are a good resource, but to really showcase your unique business, investing in great photography will set you ahead.
4) It’s 2023, you need a website for:
a. legitimacy and proof of business
b. business contact information
c. your business’ “vibe” – the feeling a client gets when they come to you.
5) Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok and more – pick the social media platform where your most valuable customers hang out. Existing in that space makes it easy for them to find and remember you.
6) Know what you’re saying with an advertising strategy. Pick just one topic to have a “conversation” about. Brand awareness, a new product, or an event, but just stick to one message at a time.
7) Now comes the actual advertising which needed all the previous elements set up before it can be utilized. This is where the campaign that you strategized in the last step is executed through media buys, paid social ads, etc.
8) Be a memorable face and name in your community initiatives, this lets people know what causes your brand is aligned with and also keeps you top of mind.
9) We hope you’ve had your creative hat on or contacted a creative agency for your advertising efforts, but in highly saturated ad spaces you need to think about unconventional advertising to shock and awe people into noticing your message. Maybe chalking the sidewalk outside your shop or using an inflatable gorilla. Is it whacky and getting people talking?
10) Hopefully you’ve been receiving feedback, now is the time to make adjustments to your strategy, your brand, your advertising, and begin again.
Trying to do everything at once right out of the gate is a recipe for disaster. You may have short term results but it’s unlikely you’ll sustain the momentum (or income) you initially created.
Lay a strong foundation for your marketing and build it up piece by piece to set you on a path for a great 2023
Kate (+ team AdMaki)
