“Mate, I’m not sure I trust your industry. I’m spending $3K a month on Google Ads and social media and I don’t really know what I’m getting. Flashy reports, but not sure it’s really bringing in new business?”
A weary smile creased my face.
“Brendan I get it, but just because everyone else is doing something – and just because your agency believe in their ‘solution’ – doesn’t mean it’s right for you.”
“It’s always about the fundamentals… And until you’ve got answers to those, you’re probably wasting your money on the wrong stuff.”
What you do need is answers to these questions:
- What do you want to achieve with your marketing? (And is that realistic?)
- Who is your target market? (There’s normally more than one.)
- What drives their actions?
- What are they really buying?
- A critical review of your marketing activity. What’s working, what’s not, why?
- Analyse your customer experience – from enquiry to after-sale. What are the gaps and opportunities?
- What are your business / marketing goals for the next 3-5 years?
And that’s just the first step.
If anyone in marketing tells you that they have “the solution for you”, without finding out answer to those questions first, they have no idea what they're doing.
The second step involves a strategy and plan on how reach those goals.
- what you are doing
- why
- how that will cut through
- action plans, milestones, outcomes, budgets.
And it might involve Google Ads & social media – but these are just tactics, and often minor or irrelevant.
We helped a conveyancing business increase their revenues by 53% just by reshaping their value proposition, and how they took that to market. Digital marketing was irrelevant.
If you’re unsure where your money is currently going, let’s jump on a call and chat about where you’re at.