Dear <<First Name>>,
We’re asking this on bright late October day, as the sun streams through the window. Sonja’s back from a brief half term surf trip to a Cornish beach, and we’re thinking again about why we do what we do.
So what is the point of marketing? To build a pipeline of leads? To tell the world about what you do?
Yes, in a way, but there’s another bigger point to marketing. Get it right, and the leads and the awareness will follow. More importantly, you’ll build a loyal following of advocates – people who will spread the word about you and your business far more effectively than you could do yourself. Let’s explain.
The ‘enjoy every moment’ approach to marketing
The owners of the house where Sonja was staying invested a lot of thought in making sure her family got the most from their couple of days away. An ‘enjoy every moment’ philosophy ran through everything from the way the house was laid out to the guide for visitors.
There was a beautifully designed pack of information covering everything from ‘10 things to do on a weekend in Bude’ down to a print out of Jamie Oliver’s pizza dough recipe so she could use the outdoor pizza oven during her stay.
Nice touch don’t you think?
This thoughtful, helpful approach and attention to detail IS marketing. Delighting the people right in front of you so that they enjoy every moment of their experience with you is the best marketing you can do, whatever type of business you run.
Serve your customers better and you’ll need to spend less time trying to flag down strangers. It’s a way more rewarding and sustainable approach to building a business.
Create an experience to shout about, like BeerBods
If you’d like to see this approach in action take a look at BeerBods story. They devote their marketing budget to serving their customers better – great product, great communications – and by sharing the big-hearted joy of what they do. What an experience.
What could you do to help your customers ‘enjoy every moment’?
Is there some content you could create that would make their lives better? Something that would unlock understanding for them or teach them something new? If you don’t know what would really help, then ask them.
Turn the traditional marketing funnel on its head. Focus your efforts on the people who already love you before trying to grab the attention of anonymous passers by. Use what you learn in helping your advocates to create content that you can then share more widely. They’ll help share it too.
Anything else that would help you? Do let us know.
Sonja & Sharon
PS – Still struggling with how to use social media for your business? We're holding a special, one-off Pub School session Thursday 17th November pm as part of Social Media Week in Bristol. All welcome, but this will be of special interest to owners of small independent businesses (especially owners of ‘boring unsexy’ businesses) who think that social media couldn’t work for them, and are feeling a bit confused and left behind. A few tickets left >> DETAILS HERE
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