Marketing challenges vary from industry to industry. Here are three of the most common concerns we hear and how to address them.
Marketing Challenges
Competition is on the rise. There’s no question about it. In a global economy, there are more companies providing similar products and services, often at a lower price than U.S. companies can offer. Yet, competition is not always bad. It forces companies to re-think their corporate distinction, focus on innovation and enhance customer service. As well, competition reminds companies to build brand loyalty and communicate more often and more effectively with their target markets.
It’s difficult getting the time, attention and interest of customers and prospects. With all the “noise” in the marketplace, whether through emails, advertising, social media, telephone calls or other outreach mediums, many people simply tune out. This creates an opportunity to break the mold. Spend the time to research, understand and personalize communications to your target audiences. Ask and answer these questions:
Is your contact list current and complete?
When was the last time you added new prospects to your database or modified your CRM requirements?
Do you continually evaluate the content of the messages you are producing to make sure they are customer-centric rather than self-promotional?
Are you positioning you and your company as thought leaders and problem solvers? Are you giving your audiences a reason to do business with your company?
Companies that pay attention to these key issues are more likely to “turn lemons into lemonade” and garner a greater share of the marketplace.
Resources (time, money and personnel) are dwindling. In recent years, budget cuts have become the norm. As a result, people are expected to do more with less, even when there are competing priorities. Hiring a full-time writer, social media specialist, graphic designer and SEO expert can be expensive. An alternative is to consider outsourcing projects and responsibilities to outside experts. When you hire reputable freelance talent, you leverage a wealth of knowledge and experience while saving on the cost of full-time employees.
Turn Lemons Into Lemonade
In a rapidly changing business landscape, marketing challenges are inevitable, but not insurmountable. To survive and thrive, companies need to be flexible, adaptable, insightful and observant to the types of challenges, trends and conditions that exist and impact the global marketplace.
