The old adage “Build it and they will come” is a nice metaphor for business dreams. These days however, that phrase rarely holds true given that customers have a multitude of choices, limited time and are spending more selectively.
How do you generate consumer awareness and raise the bar for creating top of mind recognition to capture your piece of the pie when it comes to purchasing power? Connect the dots by planning your marketing strategy.
As a child, connecting the dots was a competition between you and the dots. Once completed the finished product resulted in a picture of exactly what you expected to see. If you deviated in any way, you would not produce the picture that was intended.
Connecting the dots to market your business is much the same way. Let’s take a retail establishment. You have a great concept you want to share with the world. You have what you believe is a great location, a great name, a great product, a great price point and great customer service. You open the doors with Grand Opening fanfare and the register is ringing.
But several months later the register does not ring as often and you are seeing less traffic and sales than you expected.
Did you deviate from your marketing plan? A Grand Opening is a terrific event to call attention to your arrival on the retail landscape, but strategically reinforcing or connecting the dots from the Grand Opening to your bottom line is the key to maintaining sales momentum and revenue generation.
Consistent communication with your customers through direct marketing, advertising and online promotion are but a few avenues to remind your customers about the value and benefits they receive when they visit. What about the retail experience? Is your customer service still what it was when your operation opened or has the experience become a bit less personalized? These marketing channels are important elements to every business operation, but the key is to not lose sight of patiently connecting those dots in a deliberate way so you get the business picture you envisioned.
Kathleen Gill is the principal of Integrated Marketing Services which provides marketing services. She is a Certified Marketing Director and a member of the American Marketing Association.
For more information, she can be reached at kgill@ipsginc.com or by calling 661-294-9355.