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How well do you know your customers? What motivates them and why? The more you understand your customer, their needs, wants, challenges, and values, the better you can communicate with them. Marketing personas are highly detailed profiles of your ideal customer that will help provide clarity in your marketing strategy.
A marketing persona, also known as a customer or buyer persona or customer avatar, is a generalized profile of your ideal customer and a key segment of your target audience. You form this picture of your customer and their characteristics by using customer research and analyzing the data. Look at demographic information such as age, gender, location, and job or role. Depending on the product you sell or service you offer, it also can include the psychographic profile that includes lifestyle, interests, preferences, and concerns. This description is not just who buys your product – i.e., the business owner. It’s a generalized representation of your target audience and the traits your customers have in common. It helps you to visualize this person because you understand details about why they buy your product or service. If you understand the unique characteristics and needs of your customer segments, you can design products and services that will appeal to them and structure your marketing activities to get their attention more effectively. Determine the base information for your buyer from your current customers. Do you see a pattern with your current customers? What is the key demographic information such as age, gender, location, and job? Do they have common lifestyles, interests and preferences? What is their story? Describe their needs, goals, and concerns. Include how they make decisions and if there are any common objections. Once you have identified your marketing personas, use them as the foundation of your marketing. You will be able to create strategies that align with the people that really want your products and services. Content Marketing Defining marketing personas helps you understand how your target market searches for solutions. Do keyword research using your personas to understand how your audience searches. What questions are they asking, and do you have well-optimized content that answers these questions? If not, use this information to develop your content strategy. This will ensure you are providing your audience with the information they want and need from you. SEO Persona-driven SEO can make your organic visibility more effective. When your SEO activities directly target your ideal client, the people who find you in the search results are those visitors who are more likely to convert into leads. Website Structure Ensure your website provides the content your ideal client is looking for. You’ve done the work to get a more targeted visitor to your website, now give them what they want. Directly speak to your visitors with messages that are meaningful to their needs, guiding them through your website. When your visitor sees that you understand their needs, they will follow the path you set for them. Social Media Part of your marketing persona profiles should include what social media they use. This will enable you to focus only on those platforms that make the most sense. You can curate better content to post on your social sites that will attract your audience as well. This makes you a valued resource of information your audience needs without having to search for it. The more you know about your ideal client, the better business and marketing decisions you can make. This information can help you create the right service offerings and eliminate those that are of no interest. Personas also give you a clear focus on who you are trying to attract and enable you to create content that solves the problems that impact their lives.
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Did you know that in 2023, more than 50 percent of all holiday sales from Black Friday through Christmas came directly from email marketing? This statistic is a testament to the power of email marketing. As the holiday season approaches, it’s time to gear up and set yourself up for email marketing success. For online retailers and small business owners, the holiday season can be overwhelming. It’s a unique time when email marketing strategies differ greatly from any other time of the year.
Start by reviewing this year’s performance; which campaigns were successful? Which campaigns had lower open rates or actions? Use these insights to establish clear goals and the steps needed to achieve them. Get all your assets – content and creative - ready to go. Standing out is crucial. This is the time to push boundaries and differentiate your brand. Adopt the mindset that boldness and creativity can help your brand rise above all the commotion. The most successful brands build excitement around their holiday offers. Start hyping up your deals now to engage your audience. You can try offering limited-time products as they are a unique concept. In this, you offer something only available in a scarce time window and let that scarcity drive action. Using the same branding during the holiday season as you do year-round can be a missed opportunity to connect with your audience. Just as brick-and-mortar stores decorate for the holidays, e-commerce brands should refresh their creativity to capture that festive spirit. Consider sprucing up your email headers with holiday-themed elements and adding seasonal touches to your designs. These small adjustments may seem minor, but they go a long way in getting your audience into the holiday mindset. Make sure that you do not repeat your content failing to make your campaigns feel special and unique. It’s essential to avoid sending the same message repeatedly. If you struggle with writing fresh content, reuse content and emails that have performed well for you throughout the year. One of the biggest mistakes to make is holding back on email frequency. With inboxes overflowing, your email could easily get lost. Step out of your comfort zone and increase your sending frequency. Use your highest-performing subject lines to grab attention. Revisit subject lines that previously led to high open rates and consider incorporating fun elements like emojis to make your emails stand out. If you are not segmenting your contact list, you may be missing some important opportunities. You shouldn’t always send the same message to everyone. Relevancy is essential. Ensure your messages are customized to your client’s needs. Connecting your content to each customer’s situation goes a long way and requires minimal extra effort. For your existing purchasers and loyal customers, consider offering something special this holiday season. It reminds them that they are appreciated. You can offer them a special that is only available to a specific group and has a countdown to add urgency. Consistency is key - - your email marketing should seamlessly align with your SMS, social media, and website during the holidays. This creates a holistic and unified experience, ensuring customers engage with your brand with clarity and confidence. Don’t let Dec. 25 be the end of your celebration. Immediately start a pre-New Year campaign where the cutoff is Jan. 1. And even though a lot of people want to decrease their spending after Jan. 1, don’t forget those who received gift cards and cash as presents. Struggling with your holiday marketing or email promotions? It’s not too late to call me at 610-405-0633 or email [email protected]  Imagine you are at a show or concert. You receive a simple text message. It’s from a nearby store offering a discount on show merchandise with your ticket stub. You glance at the text, smile, and decide to redeem the discount after the show. The message was quick, personal and timely.
What Is SMS Marketing? SMS marketing, short for Short Message Service marketing, is a direct way for businesses to reach their customers through text messages. It is all about engaging customers with promotions, reminders, and time-sensitive information. In the world of marketing, SMS stands out because it's simple and effective. Companies use it to share promotions, send reminders, announce new products, and even ask for feedback. Why is SMS marketing so popular? Well, nearly everyone has a mobile phone these days, making it a universal marketing tool for businesses. Plus, it's easy to set up and can offer a high return on investment (ROI). Why SMS Marketing is Effective Most business owners understand the importance of investing in an attractive and informative website, but they don’t all realize that you need to update your website to keep it relevant and current. Here is why you may be due for an update:
1. You need to increase engagement with customers One of the most important reasons to update your website is to create a constant stream of communication with your customers. A static website that has standard information that your customers have already seen won’t inspire them to engage with you or revisit, but a regularly updated website that provides high-quality content will. 2. You need better search engine performance Organic traffic is hugely important when it comes to sustaining a successful business website and one of the top ways to help your business website gain organic search engine traffic is by keeping it updated with new content. The reason for this is because search engines typically pay much more attention to websites that are regularly updated than those that are not and updating your website with new content gives search engines more chances to index the pages on your website. 3. Are your customers leaving for competitors? The key to long-term success for any business is to consistently provide value to your customers. You want your customers to return to your site as often as possible and if you make no changes, there will be no reason for them to do that. You want your customers’ loyalty and providing them with new and relevant information will help that process. 4. Are you using it as a tool to gather data on prospects? It’s natural to look at your business website as a great marketing tool, but another way to use it is as a tool for gathering valuable marketing data. What better way to learn the buzzwords, topics, news, and industry information that current and potential clients want than by seeing what they are viewing the most. You should be updating content and paying close attention to analytics so you can use this information to take your marketing to another level. 5. Give the best impression of your brand – Have you updated your brand? And finally, one of the top reasons to update your website design and content is that you want to keep your brand foremost in clients’ and prospects’ minds. Making smart updates to your website shows that your company cares about its brand, values staying informed about current events, and truly cares about its customers and the information they are providing. It may not just be about your website. You probably want to look at your brand and see if it is time to do a complete overhaul keeping yourself modern and distinguishing yourself from your competition. Ignore every stigma you’ve ever heard about cold calling. A lot of entrepreneurs and salespeople believe that it is no longer an efficient form of marketing. But then again, many entrepreneurs started their business using cold calling and still believe in its effectiveness.
Basic tips for your cold calling efforts: Start with your target industry. Public annual reports, business organization lists, and press releases are a great place to find prospects to add to your calling list. Also, depending upon your industry, you may need to delve further into research, but it will be worth it when you have a successful list.* Call outside normal hours. Do not call several times a day; that’s annoying. Instead, call early in the morning, during lunchtime, or after work. If the person that answered the phone isn’t the one you want, act like that person is the one you’re trying to reach. Modify your strategy. And, if they direct you to the correct person, thank them. Add the phrase “Can you help me?” and many people will! First off, try not to sound like a salesperson. You’ll have 10 seconds to catch their attention. Don’t waste it making it all about you. Say “Hi (name), my name is (your name). I’m hoping you can help me. If I wanted to provide (your product or service) to your company, who would I need to impress to get that business?” Remember, if you sound like a salesperson, you’re guaranteed to get a dial tone. What about rejection? You cannot take it personally. You need to be immune to rejection. How do you get good clients? In the beginning, it is quantity first because it is impossible to know which of them will be “good.” And what is your definition of a good client? Many believe it is the size of the client or the amount of money you make. Or it could be the loyalty of the client – knowing that they will stay with you and that turns into long-term income. Some of the best clients could come from jobs that some might consider the worst. And some of the worst clients may come from projects that you consider to be the best. So, it is hard to determine who is going to be that “good” client. There is no way to guess. Think about how many appointments you need to make to close one account and figure the time you need to make that many calls. Then make sure to carve out that amount of time in your day. A few calls a couple of times a week could make all the difference. *Want a custom call list? We provide that service! Call us at 610-405-0633.  Printed marketing and sales materials play a crucial role in securing customers for your business. Unfortunately, too many businesses use the “set it and forget it” method of creating collateral. While some pieces can be used for a while without trouble, others might quickly become outdated. We rely so much on our websites and social media that sometimes those materials are forgotten, yet they are being passed around to potential customers all the time. It’s smart for businesses to get in the habit of auditing their printed materials and refreshing them regularly. Even something as simple as your business card may be due for an update! Why should you audit your collateral?
Using fresh, up-to-date marketing and sales collateral ensures that you accurately represent your brand to customers. These materials should speak to your brand, demonstrate what your business does, and showcase your current offerings. If your print materials are irrelevant, it can cause confusion or frustration among buyers. Depending on how much your branding or your business has changed (think Covid-19), the materials might not even be effective for your target market at all! If your goal is to persuade customers to make a purchase, you want to ensure your messaging is both accurate and fresh. When should you do a collateral audit? It’s a good idea to revisit these materials every three months, or once a season. Not only will this help your team catch necessary updates, but it also allows you to capitalize on seasonal promotions and align with seasonal trends in your industry. There are other times you may want to update, or better yet create seasonal materials you can stock and reuse. Change or add:
 Do I need to know a Kardashian? I recently read a book about Harry and Meghan and found it interesting that Meghan Markle made moves early in her career to align herself with influencers, and then became one herself, launching The Tig. So, the answer to the question above is NO, you do not need to know a Kardashian or a Megan Markle to align yourself with influencers. Over the years, influencer marketing has become an immense part of the marketing landscape. Honestly, I had to do my due diligence to learn more. Influencer marketing often sounds too good to be true, but the numbers don’t lie — on average, for every $1 businesses spend on influencer marketing, they make $18.
New to influencer marketing? Confused as to exactly what it entails? You’re not alone. It is something new to my range of services too. The term “influencer” is tossed around a lot, and it’s not always clear what it means, so let me share what I have learned. First, what’s an influencer? The term “influencer” is shorthand for social media influencer. A social media influencer is a person who has gained credibility in a certain niche. Today, influencer marketing is a method of choice for top-tier brands around the world, but it wasn’t always this way. For a while, it was considered nothing more than a passing trend. One thing you need to know: you do not need to be a national company to benefit from this type of marketing. It can be done on a local level, using local influencers. Simply stated, local influencers are bloggers, reviewers, and social media personalities who are based in the same area as your business. Going to in-person events can help you put a face to a name. Of course, we are still in the midst of a global pandemic. And now is not the time for me to talk about networking to meet influencers. Of course, there are plenty of other ways to meet influencers. One option is to use an influencer marketplace or platform. These let you search for creators and influencers within a certain distance of your region. You can further narrow your search by looking for influencers who are in a certain age range, and who are interested in certain topics. The concept of being a one-stop shop is one that has long been considered by companies of all sizes. There are always pros and cons to any change, however, there are different ways one can set about being all-inclusive. A lot of this depends upon your business.
Keep in mind that you do not want to stray too far from your relevant industry. Example: I would never consider adding a service such as auto detailing to my marketing services – it makes no sense! Although I am sure many of us have seen examples of that in our world. But you do not want to be known as the “jack of all trades, master of none.” There are times when it makes sense. As I mentioned in a recent article, “Are You an Owner or Entrepreneur?” there are two ways you can grow your small business:
Benefits of these “one-stop” opportunities An introduction of new revenue streams to make more money from the same customers. More comprehensive offerings to differentiate you from the competitors that may not be able to offer the same extensive range of products and services. The convenience factor which allows customers or clients to have everything done in-house rather than having to deal with numerous suppliers. Consumers appreciate ease. One-stop shops breed greater customer loyalty. When clients and customers subscribe to a broader range of products and services, it’s harder for them to move their business elsewhere. Expanding business activities to incorporate a more comprehensive range of goods and services does require efficient coordination, and it does take care to ensure company resources aren’t spread too thinly. For a smaller, more flexible business, however, becoming a one-stop shop that provides customized “packages” for its customers and clients can really help differentiate it from the competition. |
Boost Your BusinessMaria NovakI have over 35 years' experience in Marketing Small Businesses. Categories
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