Marketing is not a one time thing. The best marketers know how to keep a brand in the minds of targeted customers over time. Why is this important? Very few customers, even highly motivated ones, will make a purchase at first glance. It usually takes (much) more than one sighting of a product to cause a prospect to convert.
Moreover, marketers must direct these efforts at targeted customers, not the general public. Because consumers have so many choices these days, it is futile to direct even the best marketing efforts at prospects that are not true targets. Here are some best practices for keeping your brand top of mind with targeted customers.
Indirect Marketing
Believe it or not, the less direct you are with your marketing, the more likely you are to stay top of mind. Indirect marketing involves inserting yourself into the lives of your customers rather than trying to yell at them, “Buy my product!” from the outside of the group. This is an old-school way to market, and it does not work in today’s real time, one click marketplace.
Using social influencers, infotainment like podcasts, and other methods of indirect marketing puts your product in front of your audience many more times than a single direct ad. Take heed to these new ways of marketing and utilize them judiciously in order to succeed with your target customers.
Targeted Webspace
Targeting your customers means targeting your webspace. Yes, there are an infinite number of websites that are available to visit; this does not mean that the majority of those websites will ever be visited. Find out where your target market hangs out the most and advertise there. If you make purchases from these websites in bulk, you may be able to score better prices and keep your message in front of your audience for that much longer.
You may also be able to target a webspace in ways that do not require you to spend money at all. Guest blogging is one way to increase your branding without reducing your ad spend. Webmasters are also more likely to keep blog posts up for a long time, because those posts are bringing valuable information to the audience. Even if you are not a good writer yourself, you can hire out copywriters to actually do the work once you have sealed the deal with the webmaster. This one-time fee certainly beats the ongoing cost of placing ads.
Adding Value
If you are looking to sell to any audience these days, your main goal should be to add value to that audience, not sell. In every piece of content, including direct ads (if you still use them), you should look to create value through information or entertainment. This will keep your audience coming back for more.
Keep in mind that prospects already know that you want to sell to them. This is not an idea that you have to repeat. The idea that you do have to repeat is that you are a viable source of information within your industry. Once your audience recognizes you as a legitimate expert, they will naturally think of you when they need solutions to problems.
The best practices above will definitely help your branding efforts and keep your long-term marketing from becoming an overbearing ad spend. Get away from old-school direct ad, wide net techniques and use the new tools of the Internet to keep your brand top of mind with targeted customers.
