Smart Marketing Strategies For Small Business – Part 5 – How to Develop Your Marketing Message

Smart marketing strategies are simply not an option for the small business owner. Today’s economic conditions are generating fierce competition for the same dollars spent on products and services. There is a trend toward social media marketing and many small business owners are not prepared. The challenges are many, and there has never been a better time to get down to business and discover how to be the smartest marketer in your field. It will payoff in spades, as they say!

In previous articles, we discussed understanding your major goals, understanding your target market, and understanding your customer. We even talked about determining your niche correctly and narrowly. Now, let’s talk about your actual marketing message.

It’s Called an “Elevator Speech”

I went to a marketing conference in Las Vegas earlier this year and we got together in small groups for about an hour to figure out our “elevator speech.” It was time well spent, and it wasn’t as easy as you might think. The idea is to be prepared to answer the question, “What do you do?” if you get into an elevator with someone and they ask the question, and you just have enough time to go up or down a few floors and answer the question. In other words, it has to be short and snappy, and get the point across. I’ve actually developed two of these “elevator speeches” – one is very short – about 10 seconds long, and the other is about twice as long – no more than 30 seconds.

When you work on this, do it with someone who knows what you do, and will be honest with you. Also, pick the brightest and most creative person you can to partner with you on this. You want someone who’s good with words. Have a notebook handy and write it down. You’ll end up scratching out a few of them, but keep at it and soon you’ll have it down. Then memorize it and test it on some people. You may even want to revise it after some use and testing.

Note: You’ll want to refine this short marketing message into your bio on Twitter.

Your Complete Marketing Message

This is the information that you will include in all your marketing materials – business cards, flyers, post cards, Facebook Business Pages. Remember, this marketing message needs to accomplish two things: 1) It will tell what you do, and 2) It will give information to persuade people to become your customer or client.

Here are some thoughts about what to include in your complete marketing message:

Define your prospect’s problem

Give proof that this problem is urgent enough it should be solved immediately

Tell why you have the perfect answer to the problem

Give benefits your clients will receive

Provide testimonials

Explain pricing and payment options

Always include an unconditional guarantee (decide on a time line – 30, 60, 90 days, for example)

Remember, you should have started a notebook after the first steps in Part 1 of this article series. Make sure all of this information is written down for your reference. This is now getting exciting, isn’t it?

In Part 6, we’ll get down to the details of choosing your marketing mediums and how much they’ll cost. Some, however, are free.

Thank you for reading.

I invite you to visit my personal blog, where I write regularly on Tips for Life and Business.