6 - Sales and marketing

There are lots of businesses   that do not bother with mar-keting  . They leave communication to chance. Is this a good thing? Who cares if your business   communicates well? Does it have any bearing on your fortunes? Can you live without marketing  ? Most companies wrestle with these issues   at some point in their development. What happens if you choose  not  to communicate adequately?

Nothing disastrous, you might reasonably conclude. However, as your business   grows, so will its reputation, and a reputation is a fragile bundle of opinions that could have a signifi cant bearing on your success. The problem   is that if you decide to say nothing, customers   will simply draw their own conclusions. Their view of your business   may be accurate and well informed, but then again it might not. So it is better to design it in a style that suits your needs rather than leave it to chance. 

  MARKETING    MATTERS

 All of your effort so far could prove irrelevant if you don ’ t bother to tell anybody about your business   and what it has to offer. Your business   is going to develop a reputa-tion whether you like it or not, and this is likely to be determined by:

    [1]      How  you  behave personally 

   [1]      How you  tell  people   you behave 

   [1]      How you tell  your  people   to behave (if you have them) 

   [1]      How your products   deliver   

It all starts with you. You need to tell anyone who will listen what type of business   you are. That ’ s half the battle. Then tell your staff (if you have them). They need to behave in a way that is appropriate to what you stand for, and what you believe to be right. They can only do this if they are told what is expected of them. And, of course, you need to behave that way yourself.  How much should you spend on sales   and marketing  ?

First, we need to examine the distinction between sales   and marketing  . In the purest sense, sales   are purely fi nancial transactions, and in theory they can occur in the absence of marketing  . Equally, marketing   can generate a lot of activity publicizing products   and services  , but not actually lead to any sales  . In this respect, they can be viewed as separate items, but in most companies they are not. The two disciplines are generally regarded as indivisible  –  marketing   should always lead to sales  , and sales   usually needs the help of marketing  .

Most organizations therefore now combine the two things. Much has been written about appropriate marketing   investment   levels. As a rough rule of thumb, mature companies that embrace mar-keting   as a discipline spend 8 – 13% of their turnover on it. They don ’ t do this for fun, but for hard - nosed commercial reasons that have been proven to improve their fortunes. Most modern companies have con-cluded that there is essentially no difference between marketing   and sales  . As such, they believe that to have  ‘ no marketing   ’  is to abdicate from sales   alto-gether. The answer for small businesses   may be quite different. There is a huge difference between paid - for

marketing   and free marketing  .

Your most powerful weapon in the early days is you. You need to get out and about and promote what you do vigorously. To start with, you may not have to spend any money   on marketing   at all.  Start by saying hello to everyone who could help. It is extraordinary the number of people   who haven ’ t even bothered to let everyone know what they do for a living. This is one of the most powerful forms of marketing  , and yet many leave it out completely. Word of mouth is free, and much more persuasive than any marketing   you might pay   for. Everybody you meet could be a potential customer  , but that isn ’ t the main point. Far more impor-tant is the fact that, even if they don ’ t want what you have to offer, they might know someone who does.

Creating a buzz around what you do is important, and it needn ’ t cost anything.  The same goes for when you need help in the early days. Don ’ t be afraid to ask for small favours from people   to get you going. This applies to marketing   as much as to painting the walls of your fi rst  offi ce or shop. Do you have any contacts who could help spread the word about what you do? Would they mind if you promoted your business   on their premises? Think broadly about the possibilities  –  the chances are, they will say yes. And don ’ t forget to return the favour when they need one from you.

  CRUCIAL  SALES    AND  MARKETING  INSIGHTS

 You should plan   a sales   and marketing   strategy fi rst. This is the big picture, and should not be confused with the tactics, the activity itself or particular initiatives. Your overall approach needs to be considered before you get into detail, and when starting   a business   there are a number of crucial insights that can be gleaned from the huge amount written on the subject. Important lessons include:

   1.    Marketing   is not complicated.   It is surrounded by an industry and much mys-tique, but for small businesses   it can actually be quite straightforward. 

  2.    Marketing   plans   can be simple.   Vast marketing   plans   are unlikely to be of much help to the small business  . Stick to simple ideas   that are easy to understand and implement. 

  3.    Marketing   doesn ’ t have to take long.   You can write your approach on the back of a napkin and be enacting it next week. 

  4.    Marketing   doesn ’ t have to cost much.   It can even be free. Consider all the free options before you spend any valuable cash, especially in the early days. 

  5.    Marketing   isn ’ t a panacea.   It may not solve all your business   issues  , but if you don ’ t let people   know what you are offering you are probably missing a signifi cant opportunity. 

  6.    Marketing   strategy needn ’ t be daunting.   It is just a word for describing what you have decided to do. 

  7.    People   actually like paying for products   and services.     As long as they are high quality and you give them a reason to justify it. 

  8.    All your staff have a role to play in marketing.     Every time they talk to anyone outside the company, they are marketing  . 

  9.    In tough times, ignore the 80:20 rule.   Some marketers advocate applying 80% of your effort to 20% of your customer   base. Instead, market hard to your top 1%. You will save time, and are more likely to keep your margin  . 

  10.    In tough times, be brave.   The braver you are, the greater the likely sales   result.

  THE  VALUE  OF  PRE - MARKETING  

 Pre - marketing   is another helpful idea   for priming the  sales   pump. One of the most frequent problems   with marketing   is that people   leave it far too late. Of course, it depends on the nature of what your business   is selling, but often people   need time to think about what they might need from you. Particularly if your products   are premium - priced, they won ’ t necessarily make a snap decision based on 30 seconds of chat from you or a col-league. If you can acknowledge this early on, then you can build that consideration time into your plan  .

Impulse purchases are fi ne, but higher value and low frequency items need thought. Pre - marketing   means letting people   know what you can do for them, or provide them with, long before you actually want their custom. In the early days you may fi nd this diffi cult because you want the sale   quickly, but it doesn ’ t take long for you to build a pipe-line of interest that could materialize at some later point in the future. Start this process now, and your efforts will be less desperate later. Once you have prepared your strategy, you can get into the detail of what the specifi c tactics are that you plan   to enact. Here are some ideas  :

   1.    Start with the basics. 

 Think about what you actually want to achieve and defi ne your objectives clearly. Make sure you seek out the right people   in the right way to get the best results. It is important to listen to your customers   and their needs to ensure that your product   or service   really satisfi es their requirements. 

  2.    Get connected. 

 Consider placing your business   in a directory, such as the Yellow Pages, local business   direc-tories such as the Chamber of Commerce, or local web directories. It may seem obvious, but with a one - off payment each year you can reach anyone who is directly looking for your product   or service  . 

  3.    DIY public relations. 

 PR is the art of getting  ‘ free ’  publicity, even if it proves necessary to pay   an agency to achieve it for you. The aim is to persuade a publication or media channel to feature your product   or service   favourably in their editorial. Sometimes they are actively looking for ideas  , so you can make a start by writing your own press releases in the manner of a news story and sending it to your local papers and busi-ness   magazines. 

  4.    Be creative. 

 Creative services   do not have to cost a fortune. Agencies that specialize in working with small businesses   are often fl exible  and good value. Try sharing costs and creative ideas   with other local fi  rms who are in a similar situation. 

  5.    Improve your website. 

 Constructing a website can cost as little as a few hundred pounds but it is a vital marketing   tool. Customers   now expect to see a website as much as they do a brochure. Failing that, you may be able to replicate the same features on a free blog. Huge numbers of people   now investigate businesses   on the web fi rst, so a website is effectively mandatory. This is the place where you can explain all your products   and services  , and customers   can choose the level of detail they are after, and how long they wish to spend investigating them. Also bear in mind that a bad or out - of - date website is as bad as none at all. 

  6.    Keep in touch. 

 Newsletters and emails are a very effective way of reminding your customers   of your pres-ence, as well as giving you the chance to promote new products   or pass on news about your business  . However, only contact those by email who have specifi cally given you permission. 

  7.    Encourage word of mouth. 

 Offer your existing customers   incentives to recommend you to others. Send out a referral form with each delivery or invoice, making it as easy as possible for your customers   to do so. Also include testimonials from existing customers   on your website and business   literature. 

  8.    Try something new. 

 The internet is a good resource for marketing  , but you have to make your business   stand out. Try using a pay - per - click service   on a search engine. Each click can cost as little as a few pence. 

  9.    Show off. 

 Trade exhibitions provide an ideal place to meet your customers   and potential clients face to face, and they usually give you a chance to check out the competition. Looking at what works and what doesn ’ t for others can help you avoid making expensive mistakes yourself. 

  10.    Learn from the past. 

 Analyze which marketing   efforts were effective and which were not, and ask yourself why, in order to refi ne and improve next year ’ s marketing  .     To summarize, marketing   is simply the regular explana-tion of what you do to anyone who will listen. It can be free, and if you can keep it that way, then so much the better. Keep going again and again with new ideas  . There is no point in your business   being beautifully run on the one hand and the world ’ s best kept secret on the other. Spread the word. Let the world know.