5 Marketing Mistakes You’re Making and How to Fix Them

Regardless of what business or niche we’re in, all entrepreneurs have one primary focus — how do I reach my target audience and convince them to buy? With the digital world constantly growing and changing, algorithms on social media platforms, and the competition of larger brands, it can be tough on entrepreneurs when it comes time to market their businesses. If you ever feel like your speaking into a black hole and hoping someone will talk back, then I’m here to help. Most of these mistakes are easy to fix and can be avoided by asking ourselves “How will this be received by the answer? What will they think and feel when they see this?”

People do not buy goods and services. They buy relations, value, and good service.

1. Lack of Uniqueness. It’s human nature to want to conform, but to be a successful business you MUST differentiate. I speak with a lot of people who tell me “I’ve never seen it done that way so I didn’t do it that way”. 🤦🏾‍♀️ That is the absolute best reason to do something, when no one else has ever done it! You don’t want to blend in. No one will see you. You HAVE to have something that makes you stand out and whatever that is, it needs to be at the forefront of your business. Your uniqueness is the reason that customers will want to buy from you and not someone else. This is what sets your products or services apart from those of your competitors.
2. Trying To Reach Too Many People. NICHE DOWN! NICHE DOWN! NICHE DOWN! I know that I always talk about it and I know we all think that we are niched down, but we’re often not. I was guilty of this myself for a while. We think that because our audience is “women” or “business owners” or “anyone who wears clothes”. But that’s still too broad. Your brand and messaging should be focused on a specific group of people that you know everything about. You know what time they wake up in the morning, you know what they do all day, you know who matters to them, you know what bothers them and you know what they pray about at night. 16 to 24-year-old, male student, who likes to hang out with their friends late and procrastinate studying and doing homework until the last minute. When they aren’t at school or socializing, they are playing sports or working a part-time job. This is the target audience of an energy drink company that fits the description of 19 million people. This isn’t to say that women won’t buy energy drinks, however, the company understands that majority of their customers will be men, and therefore all of their branding and messaging is geared towards men. Not in an obvious way, but in a “what do men like to see” and “where do they hang out”? Niche down so that you can focus on just a few million people who all do the same thing. That it makes it so much easier to find them and get them to purchase from you.
3. Not Tracking Performance. How do you know when something isn’t working if you don’t track it? And if you don’t know that it isn’t working, then how are you going to fix it? And you don’t fix it, then how will you grow your business and increase your revenue? Your metrics should be checked regularly so that you can make changes when necessary. Let’s say that you share an awesome post on social media that goes viral. 5,000 people visit your website in an hour but only 5% make it past the home page. Checking your metrics will not only show you what is performing well so that you keep doing it (like that amazing post that you shared), but it shows you were people are disengaging so that you can fix it (like on your home page).
4. No Repeat Customers. Every customer that you get is not only a chance for free marketing, but they’re actually paying you to market their product. When people purchase something that they like AND they receive AMAZING service, they are going to want to post it social media, tell their mom about it, and scream it from every rooftop. We’re humans, that’s what we do. We talk about things we like and we talk about things we don’t like. Too many business owners think that the customer interaction ends at checkout but it shouldn’t. With each customer, provide them with such exceptional service that they not only want to come back, but they want to tell everyone that they know about your business.
5. Not Willing To Invest. As small businesses, we all share a common hurdle: a small budget. With that being said, marketing is the absolute last place where you want to cut back (okay, if you have employees, then payroll is the last place, but you get it). Social media posting just will not cut it when it comes to reaching your audience. You must be willing to invest in the people, programs, and tools that are specifically qualified to reach your audience. If these things didn’t work, that would still exist and no one can do it alone. Increase your marketing budget and realize soon enough that it pays for itself.

For additional marketing tips and strategies, visit my website at www.dovebennett.com.