Originally published in Flourish! Magazine, January/February 2011
Some companies have great marketing from a tactical perspective. Others rely on breakthrough creative to stand out. Unfortunately, a great many still use the ‘try-it and see what happens’ method of marketing.
Regardless of a company’s current state of marketing maturity, the ultimate goal is to become a sophisticated marketer. In this case sophistication is less about being classy or urbane and more about having a deep grasp of this complicated subject.
Sophisticated marketers have five traits or understandings in common. While this list is not all-inclusive, it can be a great starting point for refining a company’s level of marketing sophistication.
Sophisticated marketers are holistic.
We live in an era of choice. Consumers can purchase the simplest of products and services through many, many channels. We can have our news delivered to us on our doorstep or on our desktop, through our ear buds or redirected from our buddies. There is no consumer activity today that doesn’t involve a myriad of choices.
So why do many companies still choose to communicate with their customers through only one channel? Sophisticated marketers understand the necessity of offering choices and look at marketing communications from a very holistic perspective.
Marketing is not just advertising. Marketing is not just a monthly newsletter. Holistic marketing answers the question; Who, What, Why and How for every single message that emanates from an organization.
Sophisticated marketers are visionary.
Not to be confused with being imaginative, a visionary marketer anticipates the future from as many perspectives as possible. Might Starbucks have introduced a low-price coffee alternative earlier had they anticipated a dramatic turn in the economy? And had they done so, could they have prevented McDonald’s strong entry into the low-cost, premium coffee market?
Being a visionary marketer means devoting time and energy predicting the unlikely. When things are going well and sales are strong it can be tempting to keep doing the same things over and over. Visionary marketers never rest on their laurels.
Sophisticated marketers have more than one target audience.
Target markets are volatile. They age, move, change habits, add children, grow wealth and sometimes decline. Having a second and third target audience identified can add confidence that, long-term, there will be ample buyers for a product or service.
Sometimes simply going through the process of defining secondary targets uncovers current market opportunities. Unless you look, you can’t find your next, best customer.
Sophisticated marketers speak with, not to, their customers.
Long before social media became a ubiquitous tool in the marketing arsenal, sophisticated marketers understood that speaking with customers was equally as important as speaking to them.
Customer satisfaction surveys, focus groups, test markets and continuous feedback insured marketers that their products and services were relevant and customer-worthy. Those who never spoke to their customers often paid the price of lost business.
Social media has now opened the door even wider, enabling almost everyone to voice their opinion regarding a product, service or company. Even a company’s social behavior is under the close scrutiny of many eyes and ears.
Social media tools make the process of listening to customers easier and so much more important. Hearing what they say and responding appropriately is an even greater challenge.
Sophisticated marketers frequently soul-search.
Painful questions are a sophisticated marketers guiding light. Are we as good as we once were? Can our customers live without us? Do we bring smiles, joy, comfort or convenience to our customers’ lives? Have we earned the dollars we are paid?
Soul-searching is not synonymous with strategic planning. A SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, Threats) has become as mundane as the Monday morning meeting. Soul-searching pushes the outer limits of planning and should strike an emotional chord with company leaders. Soul-searching is difficult but necessary to become a sophisticated marketer.
Aspiring to add sophistication to one’s marketing is a significant step in the right direction. Recognizing that there is no single, ultimate destination but rather a series of ever far-reaching targets will help any company become a sophisticated marketer.