Marketers across organizations large and small are tasked with “getting the message out.” Often, we hear company executives reiterating the need to educate the market and spread the word. Whether you have a limited budget or unlimited resources, today there are infinite opportunities to communicate and engage with customers and prospects via analog and digital channels. Determining the right marketing mix is relatively easy. The hard part is defining your message and having conviction on who you are delivering it to.
Organizations spend time and money on campaigns without clearly articulating the “what,” “how” or “why.” They can be myopic on the customer need, competitive landscape, and how their product or service stacks up to others. Thus, marketing opportunities are wasted because the right message is in the wrong place, or the wrong message is in the right place.
The key is understanding the “persona” of your target customer. At the core, this could be a combination of demographics (gender, age, education, profession, occupation, income level, etc.), psychographics (interests, hobbies, lifestyle, etc.) and geography (places, locations, regions, etc.).
Drilling down further, you need to understand the need. What are your customers buying? How are they buying? Why are they buying. Another factor is when are they buying? Perhaps the time of day (coffee), seasonal (snow shovels) or cyclical (home construction). So, whether you make the best Greek yogurt or wireless speakers, you need to be able to articulate why people should care about yours.
The more information that can be distilled from these questions will help drive the message with empathy and clarity. Conveying empathy allows people to connect with your brand and creates loyal customers. They reward you for understanding them.
So, before you launch your next campaign, be sure to audit your marketing message. Is it clear and concise? Does it resonate with the appropriate persona? Simplicity is key. Not only will it help convey, attract and amplify, but also make it easier for others to share it.