Business marketing must engage customers using multi-channel, multi-media messages. Tips for turning prospects into customers was the topic of today’s USA Today article.
This morning’s USA Today online edition intrigued me with an article titled "Marketers Aim for ‘Engaged’ Customers." This article outlined the need for multi-channel, multi-media messages in order to close the sale, retain and re-convert business customers in today’s economy. This article landed on my desk not that long after I had a related conversation with a marketing automation vendor, and these events and our experience of late has convinced me that, in order to be successful, we must employ multiple channels of marketing communication tactics.
The article explains:
Much of the ad industry has been converted to the belief that engagement — ad speak for getting consumers to spend time with brand messages — is what gets results from advertising. One way to do that is to send the consumer — often with a traditional TV ad — to a website to interact with or sometimes create the ad. Such interaction can extend a consumer’s time spent with a brand to minutes or longer vs. 30 seconds for TV ads.
For years, HALO Business Advisors has screamed the necessity for small businesses to measure EVERY tactic. Now, I may revise my message – measure every marketing process or track. In other words, small businesses can employ these same multi-channel, multi-media messages. It requires only a small amount of thinking and planning in order to have prospects and customers flow through certain channels of pre-planned marketing (including traditional media, email, web sites, phone, direct mail or other "Results Revolution" uniquely designed marketing tactics) towards the desired outcome. As customers flow, it will become obvious which combinations work best and most efficiently. Measurements will include shortest amount of time in the sales cycle, number of conversions, value of the conversion, customer retention statistics, etc.
Small business marketing tip: Think of marketing as a process instead of a silver bullet. Look for processes that work instead of a single magical solution.
