Basics of Marketing: The Secret Ingredient to Beginners Luck
Newbies Guide to Grasping Marketing Basics
Have you ever gone to a store thinking you only need to buy some vegetables and a pack of rice flour but came out with a bag full of things you never planned to purchase in the first place?
Well, it could be a box of chocolates that you saw in the aisle that set off your sweet tooth craving, a peek at the new flavor of your favorite chips that you always wanted to taste, or it could be a designer new top that caught your fancy and, you went ahead and purchased all of them. Of course, the icing on the cake would be a far bigger bill than what you anticipated.
Well, I sure am guilty of such an antecedent, and that is something that makes me realize that marketing is all around us, either actively pursuing us or in a subtle passive manner. No matter what, Marketing is there to stay for the long term.
You might have started your new business or landed a new marketing job and might be wondering where to start. Marketing is inevitable, and every company has to come up with a marketing strategy that successfully promotes its products and services. If they are not competent enough and do not evolve constantly, they risk the chance of being obsolete.
This awareness can lead you to believe that marketing is very complicated. The business marketing world is full of impostors who promise the moon to you if you put your faith in their secret tried and tested marketing tactics to get the ever-elusive success in marketing and sales.
Do not blame yourself if you are confused and frustrated with all the options available. I was also puzzled, and that is why I started my internship program with Digital Deepak, an expert and influencer in the field of Digital Marketing. Based on my learnings during the second session of the internship program, I have written this article on the Basics of Marketing that any new entrant in the field of marketing should be aware. It is my effort to empower you with the building blocks you need to stay ahead in this aggressive industry.
If you look beyond the fads and gimmicks, and complicated marketing techniques, you will find that marketing is a science. And like all other science, the more you understand the fundamentals, the easier it becomes.
So, let me give you a peek into the topics that we are going to discuss here:
1.What is Marketing and How does it work?
2. Building a Strong Brand
3. Digital marketing vs. Traditional marketing
4. Importance of Communication Skill in Marketing
5. CATT Marketing Funnel and Framework
6. Integrated Digital Marketing
7. Personal Branding: MassTrust Blueprint
STEP 1: What is Marketing and How does it work?
Marketing is not about having a shop or a website with all your products/services conveniently arranged or listed and hoping for sales to happen magically.
In layman’s language, Marketing is the process of convincing people how great your product or service is and why they should go ahead and buy it.
Dr. Philip Kotler, the father of Modern Marketing, defines marketing as “the science and art of exploring, creating, and delivering value to satisfy the needs of a target market at a profit.”
What does that mean to you? Well, it means marketing incorporates everything you need to do to ensure that you come up with a much-needed product or service, post which you make potential customers aware of it, then make them want it, and finally sell it to them.
But how does a company or an individual conceptualize a product or service they want to make and then actually get the customer to purchase it? It turns out that marketing has a vital role to play throughout this entire cycle. Let’s take a look at how this works.
1.1 The idea for a product or service is conceptualized — A great Product is sold on its own.
1.2 Research is done to check whether the idea has a potential market — the main point to be noted here is that marketing starts before the creation of a product/service. It begins with understanding the customer and needs of the customer that lead to the creation of a product/ service that fits.
1.3 Once the idea of a product or service is ready, it is created and distributed in the market — You need an amazing product/ service. Marketing helps people discover the product/service.
1.4 Now is the perfect time to tell people about your finished product/service. This is where the marketing team is going to get down to hard work.
1.5 This entails figuring the right message to deliver and where, when, and how to reach the target audience — marketing is all about sending the right message to the right person at the right time and place.
1.6 Next measure the results of your marketing in the form of sales by the customer.
Marketing does not end once the sale has taken place, as marketing is not just about selling. It is about ensuring that your existing customers are happy by regularly communicating with them and ensuring that they remain your lifelong customers.
STEP 2: Building a Strong Brand
Pepsi is more than an aerated drink. Google is more than just a search engine. Amazon is more than an E-Commerce site. Rolex is more than just a watch.
These are brands that are recognized and loved by almost everyone. We are attracted to them for the experience they are giving us. Their name extends far beyond their logo.
A recognizable and loved brand name is one of the most valuable assets that any company can hold. According to Nielsen’s Global New Product Innovation Survey, 59% of customers prefer to buy new products/services from brands familiar to them.
Who doesn’t want to be that well-known, loved brand that customers brag about? I know I would want to be one of them.
“When people use your brand name as a verb, that is remarkable.” — Meg Whitman
As a small business or a start-up, you may have to compete with big brands that already have a dedicated set of loyal customers and an unlimited marketing budget. That is the main reason why you need to find ways to stand out from them. Never try to be the number one player in any segment. Try to be the only player in that segment. Deciding the segment in which to compete, is equivalent to winning half the battle.
So, how do you go ahead and build a strong brand? Getting a cool logo or website alone is no guarantee of being a great brand. You need to do more; you need to be more. It’s that intangible feeling your customer gets when they interact with your brand.
Your funky name, gorgeous logo, crafty tagline, a fantastic website are all part of the tangible components of being a brand. But a truly great brand focuses on the intangible aspects equally well and tries to connect with the audience at an emotional level as well. Once the tangible and intangible components merge, a successful brand follows.
Marketing is a medium that helps to build a strong brand. Branding leads to awareness, recognition, trust, and revenue. Once you build a strong brand, your marketing cost eventually goes down.
STEP 3: Traditional Marketing vs Digital Marketing: Which one should you choose?
Traditional marketing refers to any form of marketing that is not online. It includes newspapers, radio, television, billboards, etc.
Digital marketing refers to any form of marketing done online via social media, mobile applications, email, etc.
We all are aware that the marketing trends in today’s age are evolving rapidly. From the tried and tested traditional marketing tactics to the modern and creative strategies of digital marketing, there are many avenues that a business can capture the interest of their customers. It ultimately comes down to which one fits the needs of the business.
Choosing between digital or traditional marketing depends on your requirements and objectives. If you are trying to attract local customers fast, who do not access the internet regularly, traditional marketing using flyers will work well. Or, if you want to target the older generation, TV or radio commercials are fruitful, as they are more inclined towards the television or radio than the younger generation.
But if you want to target the Millennials or young adults, or a set of customers outside your local limits, you have to go digital. If you are a small startup trying to make it big, digital marketing is the smartest thing to do. It will allow you to invest your resources wisely and reach out to a lot of customers in no time.
STEP 4: Importance of Communication Skill in Marketing
Good marketing is all about good communication. Every form of communication that your targeted audience has with your company can influence them in some way and ultimately affect business results. Communication does not mean speaking fluent English. It means conveying your message in a manner that is understood by your audience.
“The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn’t being said.” Peter Drucker
STEP 5: CATT Marketing Framework
The CATT Marketing Framework is used to build your brand. Wealth is directly related to the niche of your business in this model. The formula for the process is:
Wealth = n ^ CATT
[N] Niche: You love the idea of starting your own business. But you are not sure of your niche. Or maybe you have an idea about your niche, but you are not sure if it will be successful and generate the desired revenue.
Well, if you are nodding your head, you are not alone. Choosing a niche can be tricky. To begin with, make sure you choose a niche with a hungry market based on your passion, talent, and the scope in the market for them.
We have all heard of the expression, Jack of all Trades, Master of None! This expression is for a person who is skilled in multiple things but is not an expert in any of them. In the world of business, it is always profitable to carve out a niche market and position yourself as an expert and a go-to brand for a specific set of audience. It increases your credibility over other players in the market who are more of a generalist and dabble in multiples skills. Your expertise makes it easier for the right customer to choose you over your competitors. Your success and wealth ultimately depend on the niche that you select.
[C] Content: Create valuable, engaging, and relevant content to attract customers for your niche market. Marketing your products or services is impossible without having great content. It is through content that your targeted customers discover more about your brand. Content should add value to your readers’ lives.
[A] Attention: You have a limited amount of time to grab the attention of your prospective customers before your competitor seizes them from you. Whether rewarding your loyal customer with a box of chocolate during the festive season, giving new customers their first purchase for free, or optimizing your organic search, you need to be creative to grab the attention (traffic) of your targeted audience.
[T] Trust: You are an honest person. You are an expert in your niche, and your friends, colleagues, and family trust your advice. But this does not mean your customers will also have faith in you automatically. In business, trust is not established automatically. Instead, you have to build it over some time. The best way to build trust with your audience is to help them and offer value. Consistently produce high-quality content for them, retarget them, and always give them the feeling that you are there for them.
[T] Transaction: Now that you have gained the trust of your audience, they will buy your product or service depending on their requirement. It will generate profits for your business.
STEP 6: Integrated Digital Marketing
If you look around, you will see far too much marketing and advertising. Brands are continuously putting in efforts to win the customer’s attention. Even in the digital domain where ever you are, you will be bombarded, with dozens of ads and contents vying for your attention. But is it enough for your brand to only have a website to die for to be successful? Or would just having a strong social media strategy be sufficient to beat your competitors?
“You can’t just place a few “Buy” buttons on your website and expect your visitors to buy.” — Neil Patel
Well, to flourish, you need to find a way to connect all the various components of marketing and integrate them. This is where the concept of Integrated Digital Marketing comes to your rescue.
According to Digital Deepak, “Integrated Digital Marketing is the art and craft of using all the digital marketing methods available today in such a way that each digital marketing channel complements the other by playing its strengths rather than trying to reach the goal of increasing revenues and customer base on its own.”
To understand this concept better, let us take the example of Irene, who is busy promoting her new Event Management Company.
Irene understood that quality content is the master wheel in the whole integrated digital marketing concept and hence started her journey by attracting the audience to her free and useful content. People began to sign up for her weekly newsletter, and she got access to their email ids. She made it a point to ensure that all her free content, as well as details of her business, and upcoming offers, were emailed to everybody on her email list.
Then she went ahead with a multichannel rollout of her business details and free contents by publishing them on all social media platforms and achieved mass sharing. She started connecting with her audience at a personal level on various social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. She also did paid advertisements and improved her SEO strategies. All this led to increased traffic to her website, and she started converting her leads to sales.
STEP 7: Personal Branding: MassTrust Blueprint
Your brand is the unique combination of your skills, experience, personality, and capabilities that ultimately makes who you are as an individual.
If somebody mentions your name, what would you like them to say about you?
Well, there is no wrong answer to this question. Whether you want to be known as the messiah who saved the world from the curse of poverty, the most entertaining and hilarious standup comedian, or as the business tycoon who changed the industry standards, all are examples of a perfect answer.
“The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else, which makes you unique.” – Walt Disney
Your brand is how you promote yourself. It is what helps you stand out from the crowd. At times personal branding can beat company branding. Let’s take the example of Elon Musk. He is a bigger brand than his company. It is his popularity that has contributed to Tesla being in the limelight.
Evolution of Personal Brand (MassTrust Blueprint)
There are six steps in the process of evolution of personal brand using MassTrust:
Learn: Learning is all about acquiring new skills and knowledge on an ongoing basis through understanding the concepts, remembering the facts, and practicing the procedures.
Work: Once you have learned a new skill, you need to start implementing your newly acquired skills. By implementing these skills in the real world, you would be in a better position to master them.
Blog: Now go ahead and start a blog. Write about everything that you are learning. It will help you understand your subject more accurately. It will also benefit you in building a brand around yourself. Additionally, it will help people learn more about you and will let them connect with you.
Consult: Once you have created a personal brand, you have reached a stage in your business knowledge where you can work as a consultant with other business owners instead of working for them.
Mentor: Once you become a pro in consulting people, you can start mentoring others who would like to be as successful as you are. Mentoring others will increase your understanding of that topic to a different level.
Startup: Voila! Time to start your business. The understanding that you have developed about the market, the problem, and your skills will help you scale up your business to great heights.
Key Takeaways
When you make an offer that your target audience cannot refuse, then the deal is as good as done. Marketing is all about sending the right message to the right people at the right time.
Design a product tailored to your customer’s desires. Create a brand identity and reputation that exceeds the expectations of your consumers. Next, you can chill and relax, for the product will sell on its own.
Instead of being one among the crowd, learn how to stand out from the rest. The best known will always beat the best. Create a strong brand for your company as well as a strong personal brand.
Keep your existing customers happy by communicating with them regularly, so they remain a customer for life. Connect with them on a personal level. Ensure they retain the trust and loyalty towards your brand by regularly being in touch with them.
Business is all about making the right choices. Therefore, if you want to imprint your name in the world of business, choose smart tactics like the CATT Marketing Framework, MassTrust Blueprint, and Integrated Digital Marketing to create a success story for your business.
Recommended books to read:
The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing by Al Ries and Jack Trout
This is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn To See by Seth Godin
If you enjoyed reading this article, please give claps and show your support. Also read an article on Effective SEO Techniques: https://lissymiranda.com/5-effective-seo-techniques-to-grow-organic-traffic/
Please feel free to express your thoughts and viewpoints in the comments section. I would love to read them.
This article has been written as part of the second assignment for the Digital Deepak Internship program.