Marketing Best Practices

The Big 10
For Entrepreneurial Success
By Dale W. Hutchings

After more than 30 years in the marketing profession, I have learned some basic things about how to market a business that any aspiring entrepreneur needs to consider to be successful. Of course, there is no guarantee that even if you do all these things you will be a whopping success. But if you don’t adhere to most of these there is a good chance you’re destined for failure from the start.

1. Choose The Right Name For Your Business. Don’t make marketing your new business difficult because of its name. Select a name that is easy to spell, remember and has a positive connotation. Equally important, choose a name that immediately tells us what your business is and make sure the wording is fairly short. In a nutshell, keep your name simple.

2. Develop Marketing Materials That Are Reader-Listener-Viewer Friendly. Whether it is a business card, a radio commercial or a promotional video for your business, be sure that you develop marketing materials that are easy to comprehend. People’s attention spans are limited. When delivering any message about your business, make it short, concise and to the point. If people want more information, they’ll contact you for details.

3. Know Your Target Audiences. Many times when I meet with people just starting out in business (and yes, veteran business owners, too), I soon learn they really don’t know their key target audience. Or they are limiting the size of their target audience when there are other markets out there for their products or services. If you are starting a business, talk to other people in that industry. There is no reason why you cannot call a businessperson also in the same trade in another state or region of the country to pick his or her brain. You may learn of a target market you never considered. If you have a new widget, the first of its kind, brainstorm with some other business people about potential target audiences for your product. People are always willing to help. You just have to ask.

4. Make Sure You Have Marketing Dollars To Spend. Too often aspiring entrepreneurs start up businesses on a shoestring budget and fail shortly thereafter. If you don’t have adequate money set aside for marketing purposes, do one of two things: forget starting the business or find investors who believe in your product or service to provide financial backing.

5. Always Have Continuity In Your Advertising/Promotional Materials. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen this Basic Marketing 101 concept disregarded. It is hard enough getting people’s attention without creating confusion by giving them a direct mail piece with one look, a brochure with another, and having a web site that looks nothing like the two printed materials. Please don’t make this mistake; doing so is dooming your business from day one.

6. Always Give Customers More Than Expected. By following this policy, you will not only have satisfied customers, but people who will keep coming back for your products or services. They will also become a wonderful referral base for you. Furthermore, if you want a testimonial from them to help in marketing your business, they won’t hesitate to give you one.

7. Do What You Do Best – Hire Qualified People To Do The Rest. Whatever you are good at in your business, that’s what you should be doing. In those areas that you know are your weak points hire qualified people to handle those responsibilities. That goes for marketing your business, too. If you have no background in advertising, public relations or marketing, get some help. Don’t try to market your business yourself. Do what you do best in whatever profession or business you are starting. Let someone else handle the rest. You’ll enjoy your entrepreneurship endeavor so much more.

8. Ask Yourself From The Start – What Is Going To Make My Business Unique? When your business is still in the conception stage, you need to ask yourself – “What is going to be unique about my business? What will make it different than the competition?” Whatever answers you come up with need to be the focus in marketing your business.

9. Network! Network! Network! -- Join as many professional/business organizations as you can that you believe can help you in promoting your business and then network like crazy in those groups. Go to meetings as often as you can. Offer to be a speaker to inform others in these organizations about your business or to educate them about some aspect of your industry that may be of help to them. Networking leads to referrals. Referrals lead to sales.

10. Always Have A Marketing Plan…Of Some Kind. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but sit down and outline on a monthly or quarterly basis what you plan to do to market your business. Then stick to this outline as much as possible. But be flexible. Life happens.

Dale W. Hutchings, APR, specializes in “out of the box” marketing and has more than 30 years of Public Relations, Marketing and Advertising experience. Since 2001 he has had his own practice with a heavy focus on marketing consultation and copywriting for a wide variety of advertising mediums. For more information on his services visit www.dalewhutchings.com or contact him via e-mail at: hutch7@verizon.net.

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