Been a while - finished up at work and now happily freelancing - I also passed my Chartered Marketer exam, which I have been working towards for the last two years. Anyway where was I? Last time we talked about having a defined brand and marketing proposition, one of the three things that I undertake when taking on a new client. It's a simple Marketing 101 item which doesn't need to be complicated, we covered target customer, customer problem and (your) solution.
What else do we need for our small business brand?
The final three things on this magic list are:
Unique selling proposition: the magic reason (or reasons) that you probably went into business for yourself for in the first place. What do you do better and differently than anyone else who offers your services, and how does that translate to your customers? My USP I would say is that I take all the hassle out of running your marketing and let you get one with the day job in a way that gives you a full service marketing specialist for a fraction of the price you pay with other agencies. My service and pricing are targeted at small business and by using my cheat sheet and value proposition you can be assured I understand your business, customers and the markets you work in. Also, unlike web agencies, I build sites that, should you wish, I can hand over to you when they are built to manage yourself without too much hassle or paying lots of cash to change and upgrade things.
Describing the competition: preferably without swearing! Who are they? What do they do better than you? What do they do worse than you? Thinking about this seriously can turn what you may perceive as a disadvantage into an advantage. Marketing agencies and freelancers are in the thousands, and a lot of them offer full service marketing that I can not compete with, there are also lots of brilliant small one person bands like myself vying for the same pot of people I am and offering similar services. It's important to keep one eye on this as you undertake any marketing activity and make sure you stand out.
Reasons to believe: this is the really good stuff. What do you know about what you do that gives your confidence you are on the right track? Is it Facebook, Google or CheckaTrade reviews? Is it feedback forms from your customers? Is it the fact that 100% of your customers give you repeat business? For me I know that my customers have had thousands of pounds worth of bookings from enquiries that I can trace back to my marketing. As a marketer this is exactly what you want to hear.
Tying it all up
What I do now, assuming I have done my job properly, is take all six parts of the value proposition that I have worked out above and condense it into a coherent statement, like so:
mihu is for small business owners
Who need support in managing the online side of their business while they get on with their day job
Our product is cost effective online marketing, web management and build
That provides you with leads, new business and increased online presence across social media and the web
Unlike large agencies we understand small business owners and are priced competitively, offering quality while not making things over complicated
Our product/solution has already brought in new business and increased enquiries for all our clients
This gives me (or you) a core set of messages that should be at the heart of everything you do and how you talk about your small business, this should start to inform your marketing. It also gives you brand consistency, messaging content, and most importantly you get a good sense check which leaves you feeling positive about what you are offering,
If you have any comments, I'd love to hear them below. And if you need any help with the above, get in contact. As I stated, I do this for all clients I work with as standard.
Mike
07843989176
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