Senin, 09 November 2009

Strategic Marketing - The Key to Making Marketing Really Work

Part 1

A dairy company decided to implement an interesting promotion hoping to increase sales dramatically. Within some of its milk cartons placed a small device that makes a MOO sound when the box was opened. If the consumer had the cardboard, it would be a winner. The promotion was well until over one of the cartons are opened on a plane and the "lucky winner", looked inside and saw the wires. Panic spread and the plane was forced to make an emergency landing. The dairy company is responsible for all costs associated with the emergency and had to pull the promotion of the market immediately. What began as a great idea, ended in disaster for the company.

So what happened?

In short, the company has designed the promotion, without regard to a number of external factors, although anticipated, would have helped prevent this disaster from happening. For example, if he had seen exactly where their small cardboard boxes being distributed, they would have realized that placing this type of promotion in the hands of airline passengers can have very logical and frightening.

In this example, the company was guilty of merely adopting tactical marketing approach and did not look at the strategic implications as they should. A strategic marketing approach would have prevented this disaster from happening.

In this article I show how marketing is a strategic task, and should not be driven by tactics and tools. I will show how, if you do marketing at a tactical level, which could be losing money (and potentially lose money as the dairy company mentioned above) and is less effective. People often say "marketing is expensive." I agree with that statement if that marketing is not well thought out and planned beforehand. Often a great idea is just that - a great idea - but when the rubber hits the road and establishes the fact that great idea has to have something more than creativity. You need a dose of reality and honest and that instead of analyzing the potential risks through strategic eyes.

What you should look for - to maximize their opportunities

Marketing is all about choices and making the right decisions that give the possibility to maximize the opportunities. It is too simple to choose a marketing tactic in isolation and to implement it, without weighing the options of "what else can we do?"

Small and medium enterprises are particularly guilty of this because they often do not have the time or resources to evaluate all possible options that are available. Simply go to the Proven "old" - brochures, business cards, etc. web site - and feel that the time you have spent your money on these marketing tools, then fine. I do not understand is that you are placing the most dangerous place in the minds of potential customers: "ME TOO-ville." That will look and feel like everyone else and makes them vulnerable.

So how out of "ME TOO-ville." Well, it's very simple: change your thinking. Start looking for opportunities that are not being met, rather than an imitator.

What marketing is - the tactics and tools

At home I have a toolbox. It is filled with all the latest gadgets, widgets, devices that allow me to fix things around the house. Therefore, my toolbox is full of the best tools in the business - then why is my house in a state of disrepair? It's actually pretty simple, just because I have the tools does not make me a handyman. And if I was handy, it would really be able to solve the electrical and plumbing problems that require a little more knowledge, and all because I have a full toolbox. Absolutely not.

What is the key to this problem? It is about knowing in advance what can and can not do. Do not buy the tool and save it in the toolbox, if you have no real need for it, or if someone else uses it because they lack the knowledge and experience. In fact, having this tool is a waste of money and could actually be very dangerous in the wrong hands.

What are the marketing tools we have in our marketing toolbox? Well, there are tons of them (to name a few: business cards, brochures, flyers, warning, social media, website, trade show, etc), and like most of the tools in a box tools, used only a few achieve. The other will lose and it is those others who are often the most important and impressive. So how does that work?

Decide before you buy (or use) of the tool, whether it is appropriate to have. And that is called planning.

Recently, a very intelligent budget caught my attention: "If you do not have a plan for you, you will be part of another person." I realized that it was absolutely true and completely unavoidable. The fate of any kind is in your hands if you do your plan. Is not part of a plan, after the destination is in the hands of another person. Are you sure you are satisfied with that? If not, then get planning.

People often have difficulty with the definition of marketing, and I recently met one of the simplest definitions that not only puts in perspective of marketing, but does the same for sale.

Marketing is the thinking part of the sale - to decide what products to sell and at what price, so the distribution channels and how to promote them. This is a planning, the positioning function.

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