Why isn’t your Marketing 2.0 working?
That was the title of a great blog article I just read by Mark Gibson, a certified inbound marketing professional with 29 years of international sales, marketing and business success.
Mark’s post addressed common concerns expressed by many Baby Boomer entrepreneurs and managers, some of whom believe Social Media is a fad. It’s not: Social Media Revolution 2.
The article listed eight typical complaints from company officials whose social media strategies have not “worked” for them:
- No one’s reading our email newsletters.
- Cold calling is a simply not effective and we’re not getting any voice mail call-backs.
- We have a WordPress Blog, but no one is reading it.
- Our referrals and word of mouth leads have dried up.
- We have a Twitter and Facebook account; what a waste of time!
- We have inquiry and registration forms on our Website, but we’re not getting any leads.
- I fired all the sales guys and now it’s me calling, and I suck at it.
- No one has ever heard of us, despite the fact that we advertise, spend a healthy sum on PPC and have been in business for 10 years.
“The above list may be familiar in many companies who have embraced the tools of Inbound Marketing without a cohesive strategy and a realistic view of the road ahead.” — Mark Gibson
Mark operates a consulting firm specializing in helping companies transform from the Old World to the Inbound Marketing model, and his organization advises clients that all of the tools in the marketing 2.0 mix need be integrated and made to work together. . . “or productivity will be an issue. “
Mark suggests that the answers to the following questions should serve to focus inbound marketing efforts:
1. What is a lead worth and how many leads do you need to produce a year, based on your conversion ratios to hit your revenue goals?
2. Who is your target audience, who are the buyer personas you wish to engage?
3. How will you reach your target audience; where do they hang out online?
4. In what areas can the agency claim thought leadership; how does the agency create unique value for clients; how does this connect to your brand?
5. What are the major messaging themes that will resonate with buyers and what keywords do you want to rank for on Page 1 of Google?
6. What is the goal of the email newsletter; how will you track conversions and improve performance?
7. What is the goal of the Website and in particular; what is the goal of the home page?
8. Have you created compelling content that can be easily shared, downloaded or viewed in exchange for contact details?
9. Have you created calls to action that lead to high quality landing pages with compelling offers? (“A Contact Us” page tends to collect more SPAM than leads)
10. Is there a blogging platform to amplify thought leadership, that integrates with the main Website, with hyperlinks to and from main Website pages, where content is easily shared….or is the blog stranded, lost Robinson Crusoe style in the vast ocean of the Internet?
11. How will you nurture prospective customers that do register as leads, but are not yet ready to buy?
Finally, here are Mark’s suggested “TAKE-AWAYS”
To make this marketing 2.0 stuff (i.e., Inbound Marketing) work, you need the following:
- Clear messaging to engage your target audience,
- Proven inbound marketing methodology,
- A toolset that’s integrated and productive, that enables small agencies to compete with the big boys,
- Inbound marketing training for Marketing Agencies ,(which can be found for free),
- Consistent input, ongoing analysis and optimization, a strategy to drive it and top down commitment to making it happen,
- Easy access to a trusted, skilled talent-pool and services marketplace, to leverage in-house skills.
* * *
So here are my questions for you:
1 – Which of the “complaints” mentioned above have you experienced and voiced?
2 – What are your answers to any OR all of the 11 questions Mark poses?
3 – Finally, what steps have you taken to make your Marketing 2.0 lead to the results you have envisioned?
Unfortunately, many businesses have this notion that if they create a good product – everyone will automatically buy from them almost like entitlement. Well that kind of thinking is dead wrong and will hurt your business in the long run. I always tell my clients to think of ways to stand out and earn the trust of people they engage with. Hard selling days are over.
Agreed! Selling is OUT and finding out what customers want is IN.
Also keep in mind that the New Normal is people doing business with people, NOT people doing business with products or organizations. If your organization’s “people” are product-pushers rather than personable people, then you will not likely be successful in today’s economy.
I continually try diferent methods of getting leads, or cold calling. Discard the ones that don’t work. I find getting leads very easy now. I would never think of going back to the way I was getting leads just a few months back. I’m much more focused now and I’m beginning to reap the rewards. Keep trying. You never know which method you try will work.
I think a lot of people fail at social media because they don’t fully get it. There are so many intricacies, and I think some companies think it’s supposed to be whole lot easier than it is.
This list of questions is a fabulous place to start ~ knowing what exactly you’re trying to accomplish, having a clear brand and message, compelling copy and a clear call to action are all critical.
I’ve seen a lot of success with companies creating buzz through contests, so I’d go that route if I was a company struggling to gain traffic through social media. Or something similar…you have to get creative to cut through the noise! And of course, hiring someone who has a track record to get you where you’re trying to go. Thanks for this great information, Shari.
Beth, you hit the nail on the head by pointing to the necessity of thinking & acting “creatively.” To stand out from the crowd, you must STAND OUT from the crowd, and that means being unique — to give people something they have not seen or participated in before.
BTW, i appreciate your insights on your blog. Here’s the comment I posted on your most recent post: “Don, the rubber band idea is a cool trick for whatever change/reminder is needed in one’s life. I’m certain to try it.
Re: Beth’s article, the line that resonates most strongly with me is “bringing more awareness to the choices you make” — people do need to be more thoughtful and deliberate in their actions.
Before using the rubber band method to take up Beth’s challenge, however, I feel the need to think a bit more about WHY we make explanations . . . and whether “offering explanations” isn’t at times the kindest way to deal with problematic situations.
Also, I’m probably just being “semantic” here, but “complaining” [or some more acceptable word] is absolutely necessary when people are doing wrong and no one else wants to point it out — to at least discuss both sides of the issue.
THX for giving me the opportunity to spend time thinking out this interesting slogan. I still may consciously look at my day tomorrow and see if I can do it, i.e. neither complain nor explain.”
Shari, this was the perfect post for me to find today. A friend of mine owns a computer sales and repair store and has asked for my help to come on board and help with his online marketing. I’ve been working with him on some of the points in this post. Now I have a complete list of things to show him and have him be able to focus on what he wants to accomplish with his websites. Thanks!
Stephanie.
Stephanie, yes, we need to get the word out so that businesses trash their businesses OR social media.
🙂
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Shari,
What a valuable article. I have faltered on many of the items listed. But then, I had an original focus of getting on page 1 in google for my keywords to build my local therapy practice. I did accomplish that. But building my lists, offering and promoting my products and services, that has proved to be more difficult and more intricate. There are still some pieces I need to put into place.
Erica
Hi Erica, this is SO COOL. I love TSA. I just posted this article in the last half hour.
And, yes, Mark did a great job of encapsulating the reasons that businesses do not take full advantage of the great potential in this Frontier Wonderland:-)