Let’s break this down. Marketing is simply having a plan to communicate your brand and message consistently to your customers. It’s that simple. So why is it that most business owners leave this last on their list of to-dos?

Often it’s for these 3 reasons. They lack time, they don’t know where to place their message to attract ideal customers, or they lack excess money to spend to market their business. Sound like you?

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1. Be Intentional

Everything about marketing stems from being intentional. It’s so easy to throw money at some advertising and not see results when the intention isn’t super clear.

As we create a marketing plan, you should question the intention behind where you put your money, where you advertise, and how much time you spend chasing those customers. This will help make very clear calls to action and help you evaluate whether these advertising avenues are worthy of your hard-earned time and money.

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2. Meet Your Customers Where They Are At

You must have a very clear idea of who your customer is so you know exactly how and where to place your message or advertisement in front of them. Don’t get sold on the fluff and usually grossly misguided stats some local advertiser is pitching to get you to place an ad with them. Do your research!

Ask your customers what local magazineS they read, what they watch at home, or how they heard about your store. Don’t spend any amount of money on advertising in places your customer just won’t see it. In order to take control of your business, you’re going to need to get really good at saying NO and not feeling bad for it. 

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3. Consistency Always Wins

Marketing is all about testing and repositioning. If something doesn’t work, you simply move on and try something else. If a particular ad is performing well, maybe you want to keep it running for a while. Something that worked really well once, may not have the same effect the next time. Whatever you do, it’s the doing that works.

For some of you, you haven’t done any marketing for years, or worse, none at all! You thought if you opened your store, customers would just naturally flood your doors. Some of you are brand new, but what happens when the honeymoon stage is over and you notice your customers are coming in less frequently?

The point is, the key to getting more customers in your door is to constantly be on their mind. That’s not to say you should bombard or annoy them until they come in. But maybe the infrequent foot traffic is a direct result of infrequent efforts to get noticed by customers.

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Once you have created a marketing plan, you will be able to make smarter financial decisions for your business. You will no longer feel obligated to say yes to random advertisers who walk through your doors to try and pitch you their packages. Lastly, you will have the confidence and clarity to narrow in on where your ideal clients will find you and how to get more people through your doors.