Common Marketing Mistakes Made by Small Businesses
Marketing doesn't often get paid much attention amid the day-to-day realities of small- and medium-sized businesses. Between sales calls, operational duties, delivering products and services, back office processes, and the (ideally) occasional fire drill, marketing can end up on the back burner or ignored entirely.
It's true that many companies survive, grow, and even thrive without marketing. But they often hit a wall in their growth when the referral well runs dry, or when they want to achieve greater scale, or when unpredictable lead generation becomes painful enough.
Awareness of common pitfalls can make a significant difference in their success. Here are some common marketing mistakes small businesses should know and hedge against:
Considering Marketing an All-or-Nothing Investment
It's true that marketing requires investment. Even if you don’t have the budget to hire marketing talent, or the thought of a full website seems impossible, fundamental principles of marketing can be employed strategically to lay groundwork for optimization later. (We'll cover some of them below.)
Overgeneralizing the Target Audience(s)
It's likely you know your customer base. But if you tried to elaborate on the demographic and psychographic makeup of your buyers, how detailed could you get?
Try this persona builder tool from HubSpot as a thought experiment. Pick a very specific, very valuable buyer you know well and try to flesh them out in the tool. Best practice would be to do this comprehensively and to revisit the work often.
Defining buyer personas is a useful method for both sales and marketing efforts, as it helps to:
Keep the target buyer clear in everyone's mind.
Focus your messaging.
Discover new avenues to delivering value to your most important audiences.
Refine materials, pitches, and branding.
Inconsistent Messaging
A popular marketing adage goes that people need to hear a message 7 times to act on it. So it’s detrimental to be flippant about your message if you want your audiences to respond to it.
Consistency is even more important if you don’t have many cracks at a particular audience, or if you have no active marketing platform. If you don’t have active
Neglecting and/or Overvaluing Digital Marketing Basics
In today's digital age, having a strong online presence is crucial. Small businesses that ignore digital marketing, including social media, SEO, and email campaigns, are missing out on valuable opportunities to reach their audience.
Overlooking Analytics
Failing to track and analyze marketing efforts can result in missed opportunities for improvement. Utilize tools like Google Analytics to measure the performance of your campaigns and make data-driven decisions.
Lack of Clear Call-to-Actions
A clear call-to-action is essential in guiding potential customers on what steps to take next. Whether it's making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or contacting your business, a compelling call-to-action can significantly impact conversion rates.
Forgoing Continual Improvement
Hiring Tactically Without Strategy
By avoiding these common marketing mistakes, small businesses can enhance their marketing efforts and increase their chances of success in a competitive market. It's essential to continuously evaluate and refine your marketing strategies to stay relevant and engage your target audience effectively.all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.
Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.