What the Heck IS Marketing and Can It Really Help My Business?

It’s been about 20-ish years now since I kicked off my career in marketing (emphasis on “ish”). To this day, I still get asked what marketing is and what I actually do.

I mean, I get it. It’s quite a broad term given how many ways you can market something these days. Unlike teaching or firefighting or Starbucks barista-ing, which all convey a clear and valued service we understand, the term “marketing” can feel a bit wishy-washy.

But in this day and age, it’s quite likely you’re impacted by marketing more than ever before.

Anytime you go online or use social media, there’s someone advertising something or sharing content to capture your attention. With the rise of influencer marketing (someone with a large number of social followers who sets trends and recommends brands), it’s even more likely that when you least suspect it, you are being marketed to.

In fact, it’s estimated that the average person sees between 6,000 - 10,000 ads per day thanks to the many channels marketers have at their disposal.

So if marketing is more common than ever, why don’t we understand it? It’s likely because there are simply more ways to market. So let me break it down a bit:

1. Digital marketing - This includes websites, social media, email marketing, and blogs to name a few. Anything that can be done online is considered digital marketing.

2. Traditional marketing - This is typically advertising and direct mail. TV and print ads are still used, and while it’s greatly subsided, mailings are still effective for certain businesses.

3. Referral or relationship marketing - This is more personalized, featuring outreach from people you know who are benefitting from recruiting new customers for a business.

With so many forms of marketing, it’s easy to see why a new business owner would be overwhelmed, especially while you’re also trying to run a business. So how can you find a way to focus on doing the right type of marketing for your company?

Here’s where I put on my marketing hat - it’s best to rely on people who can toot your horn for you and understand the best ways to have it heard. You don’t have to fully understand marketing to know when you need help (just like I don’t need to understand taxes to know I need someone else who does). But it is important to admit when it's time to find someone to get the job done.

Marketing is an investment in your business. With so many opportunities to get your message out there, it’s important to choose the right approach. For a free 30-minute consultation to talk about what type of marketing your business needs, contact me today.