MISTAKE #66: You’re not appealing to people at every step of the shopping process
If you’re expecting to grow sales, you should anticipate a steady stream of new prospects entering your sales funnel.
In the past, marketing your product primarily meant buying air (television or radio advertising) that expired immediately after delivery or print ads that lingered in dated publications. There was some ability to target profiles that better aligned with your prime prospects, but the tools were still pretty temporary and pretty blunt.
This meant that the message contained in the ads had to appeal to a broad range of needs…from people first being introduced to the product to those that were currently buying it, and every step in between the two.
As you can imagine, most marketing missed the mark…not delivering the right message, to the right person, at the right time, in the right place. This was probably the underlying reason behind the famous quote
“Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.”
BREAK THE CYCLE
One of the most wonderful benefits of the omnichannel era of online content is the ability to overcome this inefficiency.
Smart companies have realized they can develop very targeted messages that uniquely appeal to each step of the purchase lifecycle.
That content can be created and optimized one time and continue to exist into perpetuity. It can also be easily updated and modified to adapt to changes in the marketplace.
And with some smart utilization of SEO and social media tools, prospects will discover or be exposed to the right components of that overall message that are relevant to what they are currently looking for:
People just beginning their search will find higher-level overviews, basic information, or simply entertaining content to feed their interest.
People that know a little more about products can zero in on the particular information that is going to influence their final decision.
People already buying the category can be targeted with more advanced content to ensure a fully satisfying consumption experience while motivating both repeat purchases and social referrals.
DON’T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY
Companies that continue to can a single message hoping it will appeal to all shoppers at every stage of the purchase lifecycle will soon discover they have no audience.
They will become lost and irrelevant as they hold onto the one-size-fits-all mass marketing model of Yester-decade.
Successful products will need to launch with the marketing platform of the future built on a detailed understanding of the purchase lifecycle and carefully crafted and cohesive content specific to each step. This will only be possible through:
Having a better perspective of who prime prospects are (beyond demographics) and what they are looking for.
Distribution plans that provide access to the right products in the right places.
Properly utilizing today’s platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.) while being ready to quickly adapt to changes in the market and incorporate the new trending platforms of tomorrow.
Sound exciting? Maybe a little overwhelming?
Not sure how to get from where you are to where you need to be?
Believe: Embracing the fact that this future is coming fast is the first step.
Commit: Accepting the time and effort involved in getting this right is the second step.
Get Help: Realizing that few companies have the knowledge or resources to do this on their own is the final step.
Start by figuring out the right strategy that is very specific to your category and your product. Then find partners to help execute the tactics.
And most important, don’t get yourself out of order. Don’t start working on tactics before you have the broader plan in place.
We don’t do the tactics but would love to help figure out the bigger strategic picture for you. Reach out if you’re struggling to get started.