3 Ways to make your marketing more effective

We’ve been talking about spring… Spring cleaning your marketing… Spring marketing ideas… But let’s get down to the nitty gritty about how you can make your marketing more effective. At the beginning of the year we shared a few ways you can make better marketing choices this year, but I always seem to find that there are certain things that resonate with entrepreneurs and marketers every time it comes up.

So let’s look at some things you can do to make your marketing more effective – and feel less burnt out about the whole process.

Focus your efforts

Whether you’re getting started or you’re re-evaluating your strategy, you don’t have to be everywhere all at once. One of the biggest challenges I see most marketing teams and entrepreneurs face is FOMO (do people still say FOMO???) – the fear of missing out. You can’t let that drive your overall marketing strategy as it’s a quick road to burn out. And if you’re already unsure about marketing in general, you’re really not going to enjoy yourself.

Set realistic expectations and goals for yourself that are based on your time and financial budget. Don’t have the money for it? Put it on hold or figure out a way to do it more grassroots. Don’t have a big enough team or the time to do it? See if you can scale it down or wait until you’re a bit bigger and can execute the way you want to.

Simplify

If it’s not serving you or your overall goals, then cut it out. Period.

That means taking your focus one step further and being honest about your current strategy. It’s always good to do a regular audit of your strategy to see what’s working and what isn’t working. I like to say create a list of your marketing tactics and then prioritize it. But base your priorities on how effective it is. Put the marketing tactics that are working at the top of your list and the ones that aren’t at the bottom. Then start cutting from the bottom up. Be ruthless. You can always come back to it later!

You might be surprised at what you find when you look at your strategy like this. Also, it can make room for new marketing opportunities you may not have thought of before.

Educate yourself

No, you don’t have to be the best – or even an expert – in marketing, but you should have a good sense of what’s happening. The worst thing you can do is to put it in someone else’s hands without understanding what they are doing. There are many quick webinars and blog posts (like this one!) that can give you the basics of what you need to know. And if you’re hiring an agency or freelancer to do the work for you, make sure they take the time to explain the strategy and how it will be executed. You will find that with a little knowledge your ability to discuss your strategy and see where you can add value will increase significantly.

If you plan on a more DIY approach, try to find someone to help you build your strategy and walk you through the essentials to get started. As I an sure you have heard before, you don’t know what you don’t know.

BONUS REMINDER:

I’ve said it before and I will keep saying it over and over again… Social media is meant to be SOCIAL. Engaging with your community of followers will make an incredible difference over time.

Still feeling a little stuck with your strategy? Book a free consultation with us today!