Know your audience. Successful
campaigns get that way because marketers know their audience. They fully
understand their needs, how to help meet those needs and how to create
demand. Knowing and understanding your audience through proper market
segmentation means a well targeted campaign that generates a profitable
return.
Focus on the offer. A marketing
offer is the driving force of marketing promotions that drive results.
In fact, market testing has proven that the offer is the most
significant criterion for conversion. Focus on your offer if you want to
be successful.
Split test. Never ever run a
campaign without testing something. One of the most common is a split
test which allows you to simultaneously test two versions of something.
It can be a web page, post card, or email. Split testing is essential
for improving performance.
Never work alone. The most
creative ideas come from working with other creative people. Don’t
feel like you need to have all the answers or great ideas. You may start
with an idea, but an open dialog with creative individuals will make it
better.
Don’t sell on price. I’ve seen
so many marketers fail because they sell on price alone. This leads to a
discounting war, lower profitability, and often bankruptcy. Rather,
focus on creating so much value that the perception of price becomes
insignificant.
Consistent messaging. Consider the
entire user experience before you launch a campaign. From email to
website to offer, is the prospect having a consistent user experience?
If they are, your campaigns stand above 98% of others.
Create value after the sale. As
marketers, it’s our job to understand our market segment and build
relationships, not dump people off at the front door of our store and
walk away. Focus as much of your energy on building relationships with
customers as you do prospects.
Test. Test. Test. In addition to
split testing, you should consider multiple forms of testing in each
marketing discipline. For direct mail, test headlines, offers, copy,
time of direct mail drop, etc. Consider testing a life long mission.
Integrated Marketing Works Best.
You can’t rely on one form of marketing to carry you to success.
It’s okay to generate most of your leads or sales through PPC
marketing if you will but what happens when that dries out? Use multiple
media sources to meet your goals.
Nothing can replace experience. You
can run out and hire all of the best consultants in the world, but you
still have to do the work. Nothing can replace actual experience. It
will make you a stronger marketer and more successful in the long term.