What’s great about the internet is that you can find most things on it and usually for free. And, the growth in social media channels has really helped that.

But, what’s really going on?

On one hand we have the technology developing and bring applications that enable people to communicate differently. Is technology driving the cultural changes or merely a catalyst?

Social Media hasn’t just arrived but has emerged over a 20 year period and, don’t just take my word for it – the technology evolution is discussed here.

There is another shift that’s been happening alongside this. It’s the shift in marketing from pushing your messages out there to demonstrating your leadership through content. And, this is affecting all companies – global, local, large, small. No one is immune!

People are changing the way they consume television, newspapers, books, how they keep in touch with friends….and, there’s the blurring of the business with the social. All these things have an impact on how people choose to make purchases.

Take a listen to this audio prepared for subscribers of MaxWeb on how technology, society and marketing created now!

So, instead of pushing sales messages, you market through information. Enter – Content Marketing. The concept has been around for a while with the white paper, conference papers, the ebook, the book – but, with the technology the ways content can be produced is booming.

Now, that’s great news for everyone, for you can cost effectively deliver material in different formats and Junta42 gives 42 ways. The big advantage of this is that your prospects and clients are receiving the material in the format that best suits them.

So, you know the different formats and that social media is here to stay, what will you say? And, from working with clients and our own marketing, this can be the most tricky aspect.

It’s not necessarily what you find of interest that your market will find of interest.

Content Marketing is about knowing what will appeal to your market and where you want to lead them and how they will get there.

What’s a real issue with content marketing is setting up a system that will enable you, your business to effectively lead people through your content to buy from you and have an ongoing relationship without flagging in your material.

I know there are pundits out there that say, don’t wait just do it! And, I can see where they are coming from. But, from our own experience, it is better to gather, trial, create your content strategy and system and then go live!

Please remember social media marketing is in addition to what you do offline unless your market is completely online.

Let me know what your experience of content marketing has been.

With Social Media being the thing of the moment, all of a sudden the world is awash with experts. So, here’s the criteria for helping you to distinguish between the wannabes and the people who may be able to deliver results.

Social Media is about content marketing Check their website and/or do a google search for the content they’ve   produced. The content can be white papers, ebooks, audio, videos and  articles.

1. How does their website, blogs, profiles reflect their social media expertise?
2. When did they start using social media? For twitter you can see this from their profile in Tweetdeck. If you can’t  see it for other sites, contact them and ask them for their credentials.   Or, just look at their linkedin profile.
3. What success have they had in social media? It’s easy to talk about it but to make sure you getting a proven system,   ask them what they’ve delivered
4. Does their offering just revolve around the mechanics of the different sites  and media? Make sure it covers how to do content led marketing as well as how to use the different media.
5. What is their background? Look at the various profiles. Linkedin is a good one as it shows a more professional picture than some of the others. Make sure the person has lots of experience  in your area and check whether their web presence is something you would  like your company to have.

All criterion are important and together will give you the piece of mind to take part in any training.

You want to learn from people who are doing it – have a system for doing it for their business and with clients.

You owe it yourself to build the business you know is inside you without going down too many rat holes

The real question is “Does anything go in a straight line?” Even though, it would make life so much easier.

The marketing text books set out the process as easy steps, followed one after another:

1. Define Vision, mission and values
2. What is your market hungry for
3. The products and services offered
4. Branding
5. Marketing Mix (price, channels, promotions including website)
6. Implementation
7. Monitor results and amend

Now, this presumes a couple of things:

1. Time, Money and Skills available
2. Agencies commissioned to do various elements as required

Whilst this may possible is, it the best use of resources?

In small business, the linear model is replaced by Swirls Approach (like the technical term?) This is where the goal appears to be in a straight line but the movement to get to the goal is a forward moving swirl.

Whilst the business is operating in the market, it learns about

• customer requirements (see What is Marketing? Post)
• what’s hot at the moment
• where their market “hangs out”

As a consequence, the company adapts:

• What it says
• The products and services offered
• Promotional material
• Information on the website
• Where the company is seen

The more learning means the company has a tight fit with its market and will be reaping the rewards with

• high sales
• sales to “hungry” customers
• satisfied customers
• more sales

Things slow down when the learning and adapting also slows or stops.

Markets are not fixed. As they are made up of people, the one constant is Change. People change, companies requirements change. So, firms have to be adapting and learning continuously.

This may be common sense. What maybe common in appearance doesn’t always translate into commonplace action.

Check out the Summer Sizzler and have a marketer for a day to boost your revenue.

Photo by Teejaybee

Found this and just had to share, the Content Grid

The next time I meet with clients to talk about social media, this is grid is coming too.

Its is so simple yet covers so much ground.

Now, you can go to the grid, see the steps a prospect would go through and plot their path to closing the sale and it shows what to monitor according to each objective.

Whilst the social networking site is listed, it presumes you have a blog/website that will be able to process visitors receiving their whitepapers, booking a webinar or writing a testimonial as three examples.

Looking at the middle section of the KPIs, there’s funnel conversion. This is where the prospects moves onto the next activity and this is known by monitoring what they do next through email marketing system and/or web analytics. See the Worked Example below.

Explore this and how you can use it in your business. As always, happily answer queries and insights  you have.

Worked Example

The term Unknowns relate to people who haven’t yet purchased from the company.

Knowns are those people who have made an enquiry, current client and those who’ve purchased sometime

An IT support company has a client base of small businesses and wants to expand in this area could do the following:

Unknowns

Create a curated list of the Top 10 Backup systems for different IT configurations and requirements. It would be available on the website and people informed of its availability through social media and off-line marketing.

Preparing Whitepapers can be the next stage of taking the “unknowns”  to the next stage of the buying process.

Unknowns and Knowns

Webinars and demo videos sharing expertise on an IT topic like business continuity and apps for the company to monitor systems remotely.

E-newsletters are the glue by which people are informed of the latest information available and be given a link for downloading.

Trend Reports prepared and supplied to those people who are already on the company marketing list. This gives them information on how IT is moving and what effects could be on their business continuity and employee satisfaction. A call to action within this report would be to have an appointment to discuss in more detail the impact on the particular company.

Speaking at Seminars would give that additional exposure of seeing and believing. The important thing is for there to be staff available to talk to interested people and make an appointment.

ROI Calculator available to determine the cost of doing or not doing various elements of IT support.

Knowns

Ask them to provide testimonials on LinkedIn and organise for a video production company to film various testimonials. This could be done whilst running a seminar. Videos would then be hosted on Youtube and embedded on the company website and various directories the company is registered with.

there are lots of ways to do this. I’ve given one example. The final choice would depend upon the time and skills of the employees.

I originally posted this in Oct 2009 and I include the comments received then. What can you add?

It’s really sad when there are so many blogs that have absolutely no comments.  Afterall blogging is part of your social media presence. It’s about two way communications so have a gander down this list and see how you whether you have all these or most of these elements.

Oh, and please add to the list… it can’t be complete

1. Leave some things out on your post so people can add to your list or ponderings
2. Be sure to thank everyone who leaves you a comment so they feel welcomed and will spread the word
3. Try to keep some balance on the comments left. Having a list of argumentative and negative ones may scare off others
4. Respond publically to comments made so new readers can see that you are engaging in the process
5. Make it easy to comment. Let your readers just hit the return key. If you create a barrier by asking them to sign in, they will probably leave it
6. Create new content so people can see something of you rather than just a rehash or what’s already out there!
7. Post in the positive. Negative posts make you seem scary
8. Your final sentence or question makes it easy for people to respond
9. What about reasons 9, 10 and beyond….?

Here’s the risk, will there be any comments…lol

Here are the comments received in 2009:

What comments have you got to add?

Had a couple of interesting conversations with prospects this week and both commented that they didn’t realise marketing covered products, pricing and goals.

It reminded me that many people only consider Promotions as marketing. This is only one P in the marketing mix. The short list consists of the Four Ps – Product, Price, Place and Promotion. It is extended for Service Marketing to the seven Ps. The four plus People, Process and Physical Evidence. and, that’s enough of the theory for today

Marketing, as defined by the Chartered Institute of Marketing, is

The management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably.

I’ve always liked the CIM definition because it encompasses much more than an ad campaign, producing leaflets, flyers or going on Twitter.

Small business owners think about the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably. But, it’s thought about as something different to marketing.

Perhaps this is where Business coaching comes in. And, because it stops before the P for promotions,  the advice and guidance can fall down or not be followed through.

Still, turning back to Marketing as the CIM defines it.

To be able to identify, anticipate and satisfy customer requirements, there are a few activities and let’s break them down.

Identify Customer Requirements

We start off with creating a customer profile. And, there is a different profile for each type of customer the business serves. For example,

For an IT company who services computers for both consumers and businesses, there will be at least two profiles

Once these profiles are drawn, they become people. So, everything done can be run past Sam and Charlie. Would they like this? Would it serve their needs? Would they pay for it? And, how much?

Creating the customer profile comes from identifying common themes from your existing customer base. And, when you want to go into a new segment, then some market research is required to find out what the profile would be. Of course, this would be tested and retested fine tuning the profiles and gaining better results.

Anticipate Customer Requirements

You may be thinking, surely this is the same as identifying.

Once the customer profile is complete, attention can turn to what’s happening out in the world and what will be the reaction of your customer profile.

Everything is moving so fast, and people adopt new things at different stages. So, for some of the customer base, being informed of the impact of  the latest trends on them would be vital information and a trigger to repurchase. Their opinion of your company would be reinforced as a “mover and shaker” or a font of knowledge. People like to buy from experts!

Going back to the IT company example, the managing director considers what is happening in each of the following:

Political – what’s on the agenda for policy changes? Is there a change in government likely? Is there stability locally and abroad?

Economic – what’s the economic forecast? Is there growth, decline or staying the same? Is unemployment rising? What’s happening about interest rates? Is credit available?

Legal – how are the new laws impacting upon the lives of the customer base? Are there new measures coming to affect the business? Are all the employment law requirements met?

Technological – what are the trends for technology? What are the implications for laptops when considering smart phones and tablets? What about cloud technology? Who is it really aimed at? What about computer security? And more widely, how will these changes impact upon the lives of the customer profile.

It wasn’t that long ago that a dial up modem was used for accessing the internet. Now, phones that do that. For some businesses, these changes have been huge opportunities. For others, they’ve spelled doom and disaster. Yet, it doesn’t have to be!

So, by scanning the external environment, customers’ requirements can be anticipated. New products and/or services can be developed. How these anticipated needs are interpreted can be part of how a company can differentiate themselves from the competition.

Satisfy Customer Requirements

Satisfying customer requirements is very broad and covers the

• Wow! Factor that the customer’s  requirements has been anticipated
• What was said and how it was said in promotions
• The service they receive initially and throughout the lifetime of the customer
• Response received what calling the company
• How the company adapts to changes in the environment
• Being consistent in all communications

With regards to satisfaction, this is a moving target. Business have to be continually adapting to the environment and to customers to retain customers and grow the business.

Profitably

This is a brilliant word. Everyone knows that profits are what’s left from the sales revenue after all the costs and taxes have been paid.

This means that the Price paid has to be more than the sum of the costs.

The Price will vary according to the segment of the market. Going back to the IT company, the home user market has different service needs to the networks business environment with several staff members.

The routes by which the customer can purchase (P for Place) also can have an impact on Profitability. Consider, the supermarkets, Daz washing powder is found in each retailer yet the price may be different in each. You may expect it to be higher in Waitrose and Sainsbury than in Asda, Tesco or Morrisons. Yet, it’s the same product, just a different environment appealing to a different customer segment.

Management Process

The process is the glue by which all the various elements work toether to achieve the results sought. Where there is a team of people working on marketing or there is a dedicated person, having a well defined process is a given. Marketing actvity has a  place in each element of the process. See the diagram below for how elements of the marketing mix fits together.

When we learned what satisfies todfay, it helps to inform how we develop our services, produce enhancement, pricing and promotions. Marketing activity is continuous and enbales us, as business owners and marketers, to identify-anticipate -satisfy requirements.

So, the next time marketing comes into your mind, let it wander and take in the richness, depth and huge impact it can have on your business.

There are five easy, no cost ways to have more clients. You may read them and think, I know these already. And, are you doing all these?

More buyers arrive when you are out there, making contacts with people of your client profile.

For each way, ask yourself:

1. Which of the ways are bringing in clients regularly?
2. Which activities bring in high value lifetime clients?
3. How much does it cost to gain these clients?

So, onto the five ways

1. Talk those people who already love you. These people will be a combination of clients, suppliers, prospects and people in allied professions.

Ask them what they particularly love about you and who, in their network, would also benefit from working with you.

By having this conversation you learn more about how they perceive you as well giving others the opportunity to be helpful and increase standing in their network.

This is such a fabulous way to attract buyers. You simply keep in touch with people. In doing so, you show appreciation and that feeds the next lot of referrals.

2. Approach companies serving your market with different products and services. There are a number of options here. Make sure you are clear what you want and can offer.  Presenting a win:win makes it an easier proposition.

Three options include:

• joint email promotion where they send an email to their list with one of your offers and you can offer to do the same.  Be prepared to disclose the size of your list and the responsiveness of it.
• deliver a seminar to their list where you present high value information of interest to their email base. Depending upon the list and your topic, this can either be a webinar or face to face. If there is a charge, list owner may want to have a higher than 50% share of the revenue.
• they become an affiliate for a service or product. You add a revenue stream to their business where you offer a percentage of each sale as commission.

3. Use Social Networking Sites to spread your sphere of influence. I am an advocate of social media. It really works, yet, requires time.   When considered as part of your marketing rather than something separate, it becomes manageable.

Look at the different sites and use the ones where your clients and market  are already. Keep an open mind on where you go. Many people say Facebook is just for consumers and LinkedIn is for business to business. Remember everyone is a consumer. People search for information and entertainment. So, if you can offer these on a Facebook Fan page, then set one up.  this is a great way of building a relationship up with new contacts. There are statistics showing people who a like a business page buy more and are more loyal than non-fans.

There is also cross over in the content presented to the social networks. Consider which are the drivers and deliverers for your market and business.

4. Remember the people in your network who like you. They may never buy but they can spread the word about your sensational services. Better still, ask them who in their network they can refer.  Simply ask them when meeting up whether they have the contact details with them. Can they make the contact now! There’s no better time to take action.  Similarly, you do the same for them. Reciprocity is a great bonding agent.

5. Approach networking groups and offer to deliver a high value talk at one of their gatherings. Plan your talk so you offer them more material in exchange for their email address or, better still, have a low cost product or service on offer at the event. People are already inspired by you, they are more open to buy than when they receive an email or phone call.  

Be bold, schedule time in your diary to complete each of these tasks over the next two weeks. Track what happens. Make changes to what hasn’t worked well. Do more of what did work.

While there is spare capacity, marketing activity should take up between 50 and 80% of the time available.

A great way to grow your business is through joint ventures.

What should be simple and straight forward can become a business owners worst nightmare.

Due Diligence

Take every care with making sure the person is of good character. Even though you may have known them as a friend and have mutual acquaintances, this is no reason to do your due diligence. Ask them to give details of their suppliers so you can talk about how they treat them, whether they pay on time and would the supplier give their client a testimonial. Yes, I know it may seem like the wrong way round, but you may be surprised in what you find for good, hopefully.

Next turn your attention to the business. How long has it been trading? Is it profitable? Consider what the problems could be if the turnover is low after a long time. Talk to your potential business partner and ask them what happened, if anything.  If there hasn’t been a loss of a major client or change in direction that may be reasons for the low turnover or low profitability. If there is nothing major, consider carefully whether doing a joint venture with a company that just doesn’t seem to be able to get its act together. There will be reasons for this and it won’t help your profitability.

The venture itself

Here are 8 points to work through

1. Have a shared goal for the joint venture

   There is nothing worse than one partner going to revenue while the other is looking for increased awareness. Unless that is how you are going to work and divide the profits accordingly.

2. Create an organisation chart of the jobs required for the goal to be achieved

   Just because someone does that role in their business, consider carefully whether this is appropriate for this joint venture.

3. Choose the structure at the outset

   Agree who is going to be the accountant and the structure of the joint venture. Have the relationship and agreement drawn up for signature. No signature, no JV!

4. Draw up Job descriptions

   Include the job descriptions and organisational chart as part of the joint venture

5. Agree the frequency of meetings

   There is nothing worse than finding that there is no structure for reporting the good news and the bad.

6. Agree what will happen if…

   Yes, this is hard because you are positive and optimistic about the joint venture and want it to be successful. But, believe me, it is much easier now to decide what will happen to overcome poor performance, non-payment of the partners or suppliers. Reacting when there is an issue is so much more difficult.

7. Make it clear who is in the relationship

   This may seem to be odd. But, I’ve had an experience where, even though there were only two signatures on the agreement, there was a third person in the relationship and business. This just complicates everything and may even lead to the demise of the JV.

8. Do the action as agreed

   Providing everyone does what they’ve agreed to do by the date they’ve agreed, there shouldn’t be any problems. A=If there are, use your reporting structure to flag up quickly…. too much time lapses and you may have a whole new set of problems.

This is my hitlist for making a joint venture successful. These have been drawn from my experience of having joint ventures. Armed with these, unfortunately, doesn’t guarantee success. But it will help! Enjoy!