Important Marketing Questions to Ask Yourself
You know the benefit of having a senior marketing resource on your team?
They'll ask you the important questions.
Questions like:
Are our social media posts communicating our values well?
Are our KPI's actually measuring what matters?
Does our messaging mean anything to anyone but ourselves?
How are our videos contributing to the sales funnel?
And many, many more.
But not every company has the budget for a full-time, senior marketing resource. So if that's you, pull up a seat and let's explore how we can go deeper on the questions we DO know to ask, to get to the answers that really matter 💡
Basic Question: Who is my target market?
We all know we need a target market, right? It's about focusing our marketing efforts around the people who are the most likely to buy our product/service.
Some common ways target markets are defined include:
Background / Demographics
Household Income
Decision Making Processes
Product Alignment
Wants, Goals and Desires
Behaviors and Tendencies
Hobbies and Preferences
You've probably heard other ones as well. And companies spend a HUGE amount of time creating these profiles.
AND NEVER USE THEM TO AUDIT THEIR MATERIAL.
So, the better question to ask is:
Once we know our target audience, how are we going to make sure that we take them into account each time we produce content?
Basic Question: How can I reach my target market?
Ok, so once we have a target, we need to create a way to reach them.
Did you catch that?
We need to CREATE a way to reach them. Not FIND a way to reach them.
Finding a way initiates a search for ways to reach people. Ways OTHER businesses have reached OTHER people.
Ways businesses want to SELL you.
So, the better question to ask is:
In which ways are WE going to reach our target market? And how are we going to measure how effectively that way is converting clients?
Basic Question: How can I convince customers to buy my product or service?
Ugh. I hate this one.
Neither marketing (or sales) is actually about convincing. Or persuading. Or any other similar words you can find in the thesaurus.
Marketing is about inviting people into a conversation they've already decided they want to be in.
It's about giving them a place to go when they're looking for a place to go.
If the question you're asking is about convincing, you'll create tactics and strategies that convince. And they won't work.
So, the better question to ask is:
What conversations are people participating in when they need my product/service? And how can I bring that conversation to them?
Basic Question: Who are my competitors?
Now, I love me some competitive analysis. It's important to know who your competitors are. But there are two big gaps that generally happen here.
Firstly, we choose our competitors based on who sells similar products and services. And yes, those are SOME of your competitors. But not all.
Let's use Starbucks as an example. Who would you think their competitors are?
In the Calgary landscape, I'd say Tim Hortons, Second Cup, Phil & Sebastian, DeVille, Café Rosso, and I'm sure there are a bunch more coffee shops. But what about ice cream shops, where people might spend that disposable income instead, especially in the summer? When you start to think like your client, a whole bunch more might pop up, including the grocery store 💡
You need a complete list of competitors to understand how you really compare.
Secondly, the WHO of your competitive landscape is important. But equally so is the WHY. Why would someone compare them directly to you? And what are they comparing?
When we focus just on WHO, we tend to look at things like keywords on websites, social media activities, and prices. But even between your company and one that does the EXACT same thing, there's people who will choose you over them.
You need to know WHY. Or minimally, hypothesize why.
SEO-ing for the exact same things is only going to make you look the same.
So, the better question to ask is:
What makes me different from my competitors? And how can I help my ideal clients experience that?
Basic Question: How can I make my business more visible online?
Another question that service providers are only too happy to answer for you.
In that simple search, Google gives me:
60+ tips for campaign ideas
How to grow your pipeline with marketing automation
How to create high-quality content
Creating an efficient SEO strategy
Taking advantage of Social Media
Cross-Promoting
Collaborating with influencers
Optimizing your website
That's within the TOP 3 HITS.
And a lot of companies read that as, "you need to do ALL these things".
Please DON'T.
Yes. Each of those things, plus more, CAN make your business more visible online. But visibility doesn't necessarily equal more pipeline.
So, the better question to ask is:
What ways will we choose to expand our digital influence? And how will we track it?
In Summary
At the end of the day, asking yourself these basic questions, and other ones you can find on the internet, prompt a minimum viable answer.
You need to go deeper if you're going to create something that REALLY works.
This article provided you with 9 DEEPER questions you can ask yourself; whether you're an entrepreneur or a SMB.
The last question is...ARE YOU GOING TO ASK THEM?
If you don't need any different results from your marketing, you don't have to.
But if you DO need different results, what's stopping you?
Spend your next marketing meeting (or 2 or 3) going through these questions.
And if you'd like some help walking through it, let's chat.
