This is probably one of the most intriguing, and misunderstood question in business world. For some people, marketing is about creating catchy advertising slogans that attract customer’s attention. For some other people, it is about promoting the business in social media channels to build customer intimacy. Some people also equate it to the ability to create a strong brand (read Apple), that will create cult-like following with customers. Can you really describe marketing within these narrow boundaries?
To me this reminds me of a story where a group of blind people are asked to identify an elephant just by touching it. The person who touches the trunk describes it as a pole. The one who touches the ear identifies it as some type of fan and so on. It is only when you look at it in its entirety that you are able to understand the true and complete picture.
More than Advertising
In a similar vein, marketing is more than meets the eyes. It is about segmenting your customer base; it is about targeting the customer with the right products at the right price. It is also about creating a long-lasting brand for the business as well as producing creative advertising that will attract the attention of existing and new customers alike. When you combine all these elements together marketing has the ability to build a business that will span multiple generations, just like McDonald’s or P&G.
Marketing for Small Business
Do small businesses need to look at marketing with a different lens than large corporation? The answer is probably yes. The primary difference between small business and large corporations is the resources they have at their disposal. While companies like P&G can throw millions of dollars to do market research and build brand loyalty for product such as Tide, small businesses cannot afford to do that. They have to use their limited resources judiciously to get the most bang for the buck.
SmallBizMarketingIdeas Blog
It is for that reason that I have created this blog. My goal is to help small business owners create solid marketing plans with the small amount of resources they have at their disposal. I will provide tips on how to beat the large gorillas at their own games with innovative ideas. Let me make one thing clear – you do not need large amount of money to create the loyal following within your customers. Do you need proof? Just go and look at the lines forming at food trucks at lunch time in Los Angeles or any other big cities. None of these guys spent thousands of dollars to create the loyal following of their customers. This is the power of word-of-mouth marketing. This is what you can also do to grow your business.
We will discuss this and many other ideas in the coming days on this blog. In the meantime, do let me know your thoughts on what you think is marketing in the comments below.
Great article.
“you do not need large amount of money to create the loyal following within your customers” – It’s amazing how clueless many small biz owners are when it comes to basic customer service. Many never respond to email (legit questions from prospective clients). Some don’t even answer the phone and when they do, they’re short and impersonal. It’s the little things that are usually free that make a big difference.