Blog Post

When You Need Marketing Consulting

  • By Mark Baker
  • 29 Jun, 2015

For many in B2B industries, professional networking, relationships and groups are more important than general marketing. Although word of mouth and referrals are some of the best ways to acquire new customers, there are times when concerted, focused marketing is necessary to grow or save your business. At times like these, outsourcing your marketing consulting will allow your business to focus on its primary goals: excellent products and services, efficient customer service, and maintaining its industrial brand.

SHOULD YOU BE MARKETING?

The following are instances when external marketing is necessary for your business's health and continuity:

  • Need For Diversification: Many B2B businesses can start and do very well with only one customer. This is one of the major advantages of starting a B2B business instead of a B2C business. One B2B customer can order enough product in a year to keep you in business. This is also one of the major pitfalls of small industrial businesses: they grow with one customer, and they close with them. If you are at the point where you realize that your customer list is too small to keep your doors open if you lose one or two, it's a good sign that you need to be marketing to expand your customer list.
  • Expanding Product Lines: As you expand your product lines, your target market changes as well. This is true even if your products are in the same industry and are compatible with each other. For instance, if you're a printer manufacturer and you decide to add printer repair services to your product line, your expanded target market now includes satisfied customers who don't need a replacement printer. And you need a marketing strategy to sell to this new demographic.
  • Expanding Market Share: Even if your business is in a solid place with enough current customers for each product line that you offer, marketing your business is still necessary if you want to grow within your market.

QUESTIONS WORTH ASKING

The foundation of a good marketing campaign rests on understanding who your customers are, why they need what you are selling, how you fulfill their needs and what you need to do to reach prospective customers.

Answering these questions represents the fundamental difference between value-based marketing and spam. Value-based marketing targets people who could be your customers and communicates to them the value of your company, products, and services. Spam sends out random information to random people in the hope that customers will accumulate simply as a result of the overwhelming amount of messaging.

Knowing your customers is critical to inbound marketing. Who are the decision makers? Are they boards, CEOs, or small-business owners? What do your customers do? How are you a part of their business processes? The answers to these questions helps you gain a deeper understanding of your current and prospective customers and how you can help them grow.

With your ideal customers in mind, you also need to understand your own organization. A great marketing plan matches your strengths with your customers' weaknesses and communicates the potential for a strengthening alliance with them. What are your core values and mission? With this in mind, you can set your business apart from others in the industry. Without an understanding of your unique strengths within your industry, your marketing will not provide a reason that your customers should join you.

BUILD VALUE AND GET RESULTS

The goal of any marketing campaign is to build value for your customers and prospects so that they see you as a thought leader before they ever ask for your product. The right marketing consulting partner will help your business swiftly answer these questions, address your need for growth and get results so that you can continue serving your customers and create an excellent product. Get in touch with us today to see how our marketing consulting can provide the results you are looking for.

Mark Baker

Mark Baker is a natural artist. Since starting his first business hand painting graphics onto vehicles in high school, Mark gained experience in the entertainment, sports, and retail industries before founding this company in 1993. Honest and pragmatic, Mark knows that anything can be accomplished with a great communication plan and creative thinking. 

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