What does it take to become a great marketer? Have you ever wondered why some people just seem to have a sixth sense about what works in marketing and what doesn’t?
It should go without saying (but that has never stopped me before and it won’t now!), that education is key. Read all you can about your market, about your potential buyers, about the marketplace in which you sell your products or services, and about any and all marketing strategies and tactics which might apply to your business.
I love the feel of an actual, real book – and I find a lot of great reads at even greater prices at Bookcloseouts. Yup, that’s my affiliate link – which means that if you get any deals there, you’ll be helping to supply my book habit at no cost to your wallet.
It should also go without saying that you need to keep a close eye on what your competitors are up to, including what they’re offering, how they market their products or services, and how they are reacting to market trends.
There’s something else you should be doing too. And it’s something that most marketers either don’t do at all, or often enough. It’s simply this: take note of your own buying decisions. What makes you buy something? Why did you choose the car you did? Why do you buy one breakfast cereal over another? What stops you from buying? What are you thinking to yourself as you pay for that impulse purchase?
One of the easiest ways to stay in tune with marketing is to figure out what triggers your own buying decisions. Was it really down to just the price? Unless it’s a simple commodity, I doubt it. What persuaded you to take out your credit card? Was it the guarantee? The product features? The color? Was it something you really needed to buy or did you just want it? If you stopped short, or hesitated, what made you unsure?
What really matters to you when you’re on a shopping spree? If you take regular stock of your own buying behavior, you’ll find yourself developing that sixth sense about what you should be doing to make your own marketing not only good, but great.
Let me know how you get on.
Hi Debbie,
Thanks for a great insight. You’ve identified two free resources that most overlook – your successful competitors and your own behaviour.
You can use these resources in other areas too. For example the email subject lines they use, the ones in your inbox that successfully entice you to open; offers your competitors use, the ones that appeal to you; how they try to guide visitors around their website and how you behave once you’ve reached a landing page.