Have you a handy definition about what marketing actually is?

I was interested to read that the American Marketing Association, one of the best-known marketing bodies in the world, revisits the definition of marketing every five years in a disciplined effort to reflect on the state of the marketing field. As of January 2008, the new definition reads:

Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.

Is that how you would describe it?

I always describe it in terms of a visual image (which may confirm that I need to be taken away by men in white coats) this is a sheepdog, sheep and a sheep pen.

The sheep are your potential customers, the sheepdog is your marketing material – and that marketing material is designed to persuade your customers into the sheep-pen – which is your business

Yes, I get that so far…

OK well, you cannot set off a sheepdog to round up sheep until you know where those sheep are and how they tick. In terms of marketing this means it is crucial to understand the needs, wants and location of your target audience first.

The sheepdog does not naturally do a great job any more than words and images just chucked onto a page will do. It needs to understand the way to work – or if you prefer – manipulate your sheep and it does this without scaring them off or driving them in the wrong way or failing to move them at all. This is why it is handy to work with an expert sheep-dog trainer – or marketing consultant!

Where do most companies go wrong?

It is probably a combination of the following:

• they always do what they have always done without measuring whether this is actually working
• they mention the features of their business but not the benefits to their customers
• they forget that they need to differentiate themselves from their competitors (so why would I buy from YOU?)
• they do not market consistently and continually so their message gets lost in the noise and they get roller coaster income instead of steady business
• they’re marketing literature is bland, predictable and fails to engage – what I call marketing wallpaper
• they spend a fortune on marketing literature that looks great but says little and ends up in a box holding the door open because they don’t know HOW, WHEN and WHERE to use it

How do you pick the marketing company for you?

Find out about their local reputation, look at who they work with, see if you like the way they put themselves across – if they have engaged with you they are likely to be able to engage with your potential customers on your behalf.

If possible meet with them to find out how they tick. It’s for that reason I offer a 2 hour free marketing healthcheck – I jokingly say even I cannot blag for longer than an hour and a half – I have to come out with words of wisdom at some point of the meeting!

JANE BUSWELL

Business Fulcrum Limited. Through consultancy, postcards, copywriting and workshops we have 6 years experience in supporting small start ups who are thinking about marketing but don\'t know where to start; are struggling to communicate their marketing message; are not quite sure of their target audience and wouldn't mind chatting through the thorny problem of pricing. www.businessfulcrum.co.uk

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