Marketing for small business has hit a brick wall in effectiveness (no, it’s not just you). 25 years ago, all a small business guy had to do is place an ad in the Yellow Pages and the phone would ring.
Here is what has changed.
Not many people use the Yellow Pages and the phone doesn’t ring anymore.Fragmentation: The average consumer is exposed to over 30,000 marketing messages a day from all forms of media. More messages but still only 24 hours in a day, which means that ALL consumers “tune out” from ALL messages.87% of TV advertisements don’t cover their marketing costs. Large profitable companies have money to burn. They are happy losing money, telling their “branding message” and polluting the marketing pool we all swim in. If business is good for a large company they can barrow money at 1%. If times are bad for large company they can get bailed out by the government and still advertise in every ball park in America.If a small company has a better product than a large one: no one would know about it.Marketing experts agree that “frequency of a marketing message” creates trust NOT “product integrity”. Proof: Ducks and Lizards are the top salesman in the insurance industry.Sure, the internet is a great marketing tool. But every website is a “custom marketing job”. There are a billion websites out there; what makes yours different? Better? Can you be found?Due to fragmentation, nearly all marketing campaigns today require higher upfront costs and longer payback periods.Most marketing consumers are bewildered and have shorter time horizons then ever before. They often abandon attractive long term marketing opportunities after a few months.The demand for immediate ROI marketing campaigns creates a “rabbit hunt mentality”. Often smaller companies are attracted to “hyped up” marketing offers because of their refusal to accept point # 8.Need help from a realist? Call me at 813 944-3190
