Marketing Is About Communication, Not Self-Promotion

by Scott Allen - May 7, 2008
Filed Under Marketing

Too Many Companies Just Don’t Get It

Marketing is about communicating with your target audience — it’s not about trying to push your products/services on consumers until they give in and make a purchase. I still am blown away by how many companies and marketing teams just don’t get it. (Including large, well-established companies who should know better.) I see tons of email advertisements, online ads, offline ads, TV ads, billboards, etc. that are completely missing the mark (not to mention the sales pitches I get by phone and email). The companies marketing themselves don’t try to get inside my head as a consumer or potential client.

To be successful in marketing and sales, whether online or offline, companies need to start thinking about how they can benefit the consumer or client. Long before making a purchase or signing a contract, in fact, before even responding at all, people subconsciously ask themselves, “How does this benefit me or my company?” If there isn’t an immediate answer, then there is no reason to proceed forward.

Companies also need to stop being so focused on their little pitch and product line and start thinking about their target audience, what needs they have, and how to meet those needs. Perhaps, companies need to setup some channels that allow customers to communicate with them and give feedback. Many companies have forgotten that very valuable fact. This feedback can be extremely valuable as it allows you to get into the heads of the people you’re trying to reach. You might learn that the current product line needs to be adjusted to better meet needs. Remember that marketing is about communication, and communication is a two-way street — you need to hear what your target audience has to say. By reaching out to the target audience and focusing on building relationships with customers/clients, businesses will start to build some goodwill, and this can last much longer than any marketing campaign.

How can this be applied to websites?

Here are a few practical examples:

Improve your website’s usability. Maybe you need to improve navigation by allowing for multiple paths to the same destination. The key is to think like your target.
Maybe your company needs to setup a resource center on your site to start gaining some goodwill instead of trying to only pitch products/services. Not doing this is one of the key reasons companies fail in their internet marketing efforts. Who wants to link to a site that is purely promotional? On the other hand, a site that has valuable resources will generate inbound links left and right.
Do potential customers and clients have an easy way to contact you, supply feedback, and get help? If they can’t easily contact you and get answers, they will post their questions/complaints elsewhere, and it could hurt your reputation.
When talking about your products/services, be sure to include how they actually benefit your target, not just technical specs and jargon. Again, think like your target.

One valuable piece of advice I can give: If you really make the effort to connect with your target audience and customers, they will develop a very positive image of your company and may become very loyal. Loyal and happy customers are by far the best marketers. It may take time and effort to build up the relationship, but it’s well worth it.

So, keep all of this in mind, remembering that marketing is about communication, and be one of the companies that gets it.

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