BUILDING a brand that connects with people is an integral part of any good marketing strategy.
The foundation of all successful brands and their subsequent marketing campaigns is a strong, consistent message. But have you ever stopped to think about what your business is really saying every time you make contact with customers or prospects?
Unfortunately, before creating marketing materials and deciding upon their own marketing message, most business owners go and look at what other businesses in their industry are saying to their customers. The end result is a glut of same-same marketing and an audience of confused consumers who can’t really see much difference between the businesses talking to them, other than variances in price.
While it’s good to keep abreast of what the competition is up to, copying their marketing message (even that of the market leader) is not going to do your brand any favours, nor will it guarantee success. Quite often, the opposite can be the case.
Ideally, you want your marketing to look and sound very different to your competition, so that customers and prospects have a clear idea of how doing business with you will be better for them.
Here are my four methods to create a message that’s unique to you and designed to get results.
1) Quit being a copycat. List what other businesses in the industry are saying in their marketing messages and avoid using these words/phrases yourself. For example, if everyone is telling customers they’ve been in business 20 years, are family owned, offer ‘great service’ and ‘free quotes’ etc. you should avoid bombarding your prospects with more of the same.
2) Be an individual. Make a list of what makes you different in your chosen niche and use words/phrases like these instead. Prospects should know straight away from your pre-approach marketing, touch point letters or campaigns, advertisements, website, radio ad or print ads why doing business with your company is better. Prove that you’re different.
3) Know what they want. You have to know what your prospects really want, care about and aspire to, if you’re going to be able to create a marketing message that speaks to them in a way that will engage them, inspire them and motivate them to take action. If they care about price, offer a quality satisfaction guarantee. If they care about reliability, evidence yours with testimonials.
4) Don’t be a bore. Your brand should have a personality. For example, rather than being the ‘professionals’, could you instead be ‘the professionals who think outside the square’? The latter brand message certainly has a very different feel and personality to it.
Have fun wherever you can; customers want to be engaged with the brands they interact with.
DIY marketing message tip
In all of your marketing material, you should feature a strong benefit-rich headline that focuses on the customer instead of on your business.
Standing out from the crowd is easier than you might think. You simply need a strong, unique, benefit-laden marketing message and a plan for implementation that keeps you accountable and is results driven. Do it right and not only will people engage with your business, they will become advocates for it as well.
Your marketing message is usually the first thing that your client engages with when dealing with your business. It needs to have your personality, what makes you stand above your competitors and what’s in it for them to deal with you.
Try something different, test and measure your results and focus clearly on the main aim of the marketing game – getting new customers in the door.
Do you have a ‘stand out’ marketing message that succinctly tells your prospects the why, how and who of your business? Does your message stand out in the ‘sea of sameness’ that you operate in, or are you just one of the crowd?
Steve Salvia is a financial planner, business success coach and principal of the Financial Excellence Network. Contact Steve on 0418 919 775 | ideas@southernfinancial.com.au
