We have no one to work on marketing the business. Looks like I’m going to have to project manage it myself. But I don’t have the time to focus on it. Now what?
THOUGHTS OF THE DAY: Marketing does better when someone owns the department’s success. Make sure your marketing expectations are realistic. Look for someone who is already working in marketing who would like to pick up some additional work.
Small-business owners wear a lot of hats, pitching in when and where needed.
Unfortunately, marketing plans take longer to complete when there are interruptions. It’s also hard to consistently measure marketing ROI while handling all the other activities in the business.
Make marketing a priority by scheduling time when you can give it your complete attention.
Get away from the office if necessary. If you can’t work from home, try the library. An hour a day dedicated to marketing can make a big difference. Let your employees handle the office while you work on the future, marketing the business.
We often approach marketing on an all-or-nothing basis, either tackling a huge list or not working on marketing at all. Instead, make a list of everything you want to work on and consistently chip away at it. If you can only afford one or two projects for the year, pick those that will get you the most visibility, or those that will lay a foundation for what comes next.
If you have projects that are interdependent decide which one needs to get done first, which comes second.
Here’s a good example. Let’s say you want to work on upgrading your website, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and SEM (Search Engine Marketing). If you commit to buying a bunch of ad words you want to know the right visitors will see your website. Ad words can raise your visibility on the internet, but only deliver meaningful results if visitors take the right actions once on your website. Visitors stay long enough to take action only if the website is inviting and paths to follow make sense to them. Clean up your website. Then research best-opportunity keywords. Next spend on advertising to raise visibility.
Wondering if you should work on web-related activities or support tools for sales? Another set of choices. Ask your salespeople what would help them get in more doors and close more sales. Create literature that answers basic questions. What makes a great customer for your company? Why should great quality prospects choose your company?
Overwhelmed already?
Then you need help. Ask an expert to evaluate your existing tools, giving each an effectiveness rating and priority rank. Ask for help making a plan of attack that you can follow to move from one project to the next.
When it comes to finding someone to market the business, look inside your organization. Anyone around who has shown interest? Anyone with marketing training in their background? Check with your sales team to see if someone there has an interest.
Other option? Look for an outsider, someone who is already working in marketing as a vendor who might want to pick up a few extra hours of work. Adding someone as a part-time expert will be cheaper than hiring full-time. Set up a time to work together each week to keep you focused on marketing.
Worried about the budget? Think of marketing as your next salesperson. If you can pick up extra sales through marketing efforts, that can help pay for future marketing activities. Start with marketing actions most likely to boost the quantity and quality of sales prospects talking to your company
