Wake Up! Marketing Isn’t Just About Bore-chures Anymore

Unless your customers live underground, they are inundated with advertisements from the moment they wake up to the moment they drop gratefully back into bed. There are bold-lettered newspaper ads and unnaturally upbeat TV commercials during morning coffee. Loud-voiced radio announcements on the way to work. GoogleAds when they’re researching a project—even blog banners when they’re sneaking some Perez Hilton! Not to mention the sheaf of junk mail they glance at once before tossing it into the recycling bin at night. All these advertisements are designed to grab your customers’ attention, and to do so each ad screams louder than the last.

Annoying? Hell yes. Effective? Not anymore.

Wake up! Traditional advertising is dated. It’s yesterday. Your customers are so used to it that they don’t even notice it anymore. So that billboard you’re paying $500 a month for? Good luck. It’s a waste of money—just one more thing your customer is tuning out on the way to pick up the kids from school.

So what’s the alternative? Getting back to basics. In a 21st century kind of way.

In the old days, when your grandfather started a business he probably shook the hand of every customer who walked through the door. Moreover, he probably placed handmade flyers in his neighbors’ mailboxes and personally introduced himself to nearby businesses that could benefit from joint marketing. (For example, a furniture store that could promote your grandfather’s lighting store to its customers and vice versa.) I’m sure he worked absurdly late hours, opened when customers needed him to, and adapted with the times. And as a result, he probably generated a loyal following of customers who spread word of his store to their friends and family.

It’s time for today’s businesses—and business owners—to stop being lazy. Because that’s what traditional advertising is: lazy thinking. It’s time to shake customers’ hands again, to knock on doors and share the story of your business. But the 21st century offers a whole new way to do this: online.

I’ve talked before about the importance and the effectiveness of social networking. The fact is, social networking is today’s equivalent of your grandfather’s pavement pounding. It takes the same amount of sweat equity but with potentially much larger payoff. So stop shying away from sites like Facebook, MySpace, YouTube LinkedIn, and Twitter—they’re not just for teens and twenty-somethings! Even President Obama is on Facebook! And it’s important to recognize why.

Sites like these allow you to put your face, business, and values directly in front of customers. Share photos of recent company events. Upload a video tour of your store. Start a company page on Facebook and ask customers to be fans. Use Twitter to update and inform customers in real time. And don’t be afraid to share little personal details on your MySpace profile—your favorite book is Count of Monte Cristo and your favorite movie, perhaps embarrassingly, is Pretty Woman. Customers want to know little things like this about you. They set you apart from the company listed right after yours in the phone book.

Ready to get results, save money, and make money? Cut your funds on dated ways of marketing and do like your grandfather: Get out there and meet the customers! (Yes, virtually counts.)

Related posts:

1. Let’s Be Real: Why Defining Core Values is Crucial to Effective Marketing
2. Google Analytics - The Power of Keyword Marketing
3. Marketing Materials that Impact
4. Stop Yammering and Just Tell Customers Your Story Already!
5. Don’t Get Lazy with Social Networking!