The Proof Is in The Pudding

The big questions…

• What is marketing anyway?
• What classifies as working?
• How do you know you are making more money?
• How do you know marketing is attracting more attention to your business?
• How much money do you want to make and how it determines your marketing strategy.
• How do you know your business is ready to grow?

In reading this article the hope is, you will take with you the values of marketing, make every business transaction a successful one, and draw many new clients to you each quarter for the duration of your business life.

Marketing and company growth for a business is like the leaves to a tree. Without the leaves, the tree cannot make food or turn carbon into oxygen and release it back into the atmosphere.

What is marketing anyway?

Marketing is a management system used to transform products and services from an abstract idea to the consumer. The four P’s of marketing come into play when creating a marketing strategy for any business. Number one is the product! It is selected, established, and developed. This information determines what marketing components will be use and how. Next is the price at which the product or service will be sold. This is where you make money. Supply and demand for the product or service is analyzed and a competitive price point is reached. Getting your products or services to the place target customers will buy them is important to think about. Will you drive a company car, higher a trucking company, or have customers come to you? Lastly is the development and execution of a promotional marketing strategy. This is mainly how new customers find a business, buy products and service as well as proving to be a growth plan for the business. Think of when you last bought something, come on anything. From the food at the store, to the cloths on your back, to the services you use. You have bought them because they have been promoted and put in your face. That’s why you did not buy the things that you did not know about or that where not hyped up as much.

What classifies as working & how do you know you are benefiting from a marketing plan?

Investing in a marketing strategy with a marketing company is an investment in your business and in you, for growth. Why do we invest in the stock market, IRA, or savings for a rainy day? When the money grows we do too. We can benefit from it with a little patients, faith and precise investment knowledge. Is there any guarantee that you will 100% not lose money with your stock market investments? If no why do you continue to invest in them then? You hope they will do well and maybe have seen some results in the past with your investments. The key here is taking a risk first with informed knowledge to invest in the right company and sticking with it until you see positive results. Then do more of what works and less of what does not. At the end of the day if you are seeing your contacts grow and revenue increasing more than before, guess what, your marketing plan is working! Tracking technology can be incorporated into online marketing to identify website/video clicks and page views. This tells you if your marketing is reaching your target market, furthermore the increase of calls and emails that come in is how one can quantify results. Comparing profit and loss statements each quarter after the marketing strategy was initiated is another way to measure results. Stick with the strategic plan from any reputable professional marketing company, it takes time and will work.

(If you are not seeing the results you want, just like you would call your broker to sell and switch stocks with a better ROI, call a meeting with your marketing strategist and alter the techniques uses for a different outcome.)

How much money do you want to make and how it determines your marketing strategy.

The initial capacity that your business has to invest in a marketing plan determines how much the marketing company puts out for growth. In the same way, it’s not possible to pay for one chicken and get to take home three from the food store, we cannot expect to put out funding for three blog posts a month and get eight. While eight may attract twice as much attention and interest if it’s not in your budget scaling your marketing is a decision you will have to make which is perfectly fine. There is a starting point for ALL businesses. What will set you apart from the competitors is that you actually have a marketing plan and are building your rock-solid reputation every day. As your profit increases you can add you your marketing process. Stick with your plan, you can do it your business will grow with the right professional marketing strategy. If you are reading this, thank you, it is part of our strategy. Let’s now talk about where you want to be in five years. Whatever your starting capital is large or small your strategy should evolve around that five-year vision. Beyond that maybe stretching a little bit too far to act in the now which may cloud your thinking, take away from confidence and a vision of attainability. A two to five-year goal is much more attainable and will motivate you to get up and get going.

How do you know your business is ready to grow?

It starts with you the owner. If that person is ready to grow, the desire to make decisions and actions with a marketing plan can now be set forth. If there is a feeling of boredom, wanting more, or evidence that your sales are stagnant, now is the best time to make a marketing move. If business is great and you want to take it to the next level that is another ideal time to implement a marketing plan. I challenge you to get in touch with what you want for your business. How much money do you want to make? By what date? How much capital do you have right now to invest in that five-year plan? What changes can you make now to affect your company’s sustainability and support a marketing push? Who are you going to higher when more work comes in? What kind of new car are you going to buy when your profitability doubles from the implementation of your marketing plan 5 years ago? Do not let another year pass without a plan. There are monthly strategies and affordable marketing services at your reach just a phone call or email away. Reach out to Three Summers Creative now to start changing your life. The proof is in the pudding. Make it taste the way you want![/az_column_text]