The 4 Musts of Marketing - Ignore At Your Own Risk

C-19 has totally discombobulated the business environment. In May this year, the CBK estimated that 75% of SMEs risk collapse. This was two months into the government’s C-19 mitigation measures. Given the current economic climate, it would be reason to surmise that over 90% of small businesses have been negatively impacted due to the COVID pandemic.

That said, there is an obvious opportunity for these moribund businesses to reemerge stronger than before or for the current unaffected small businesses to cement their presence and grow their market share. Obviously, SMEs may to be able to afford the 5 Musts of Marketing listed below. Small companies therefore need to choose the tactics that will bring the most impact for the least amount of money.

1. Advertising

This has the broadest reach and creates the greatest awareness. However, it is expensive. Using billboards, radio or print ads or high-traffic websites to get your message out is costly. However, depending on your product, it is affordable to target the mass market by using vernacular radio stations whose rate cards could be more affordable than those within Nairobi.

That said, the advert itself has to:

1. Be distinctive - it has to catch the eye or ear

2. Capture attention with a captivating headline (for print or online)

3. Have creative copy to keep people reading or watching

4. Have a call to action (CTA) - a reason to act now

Different ads aren’t necessary if budget is an issue. Using one advert in all communication reinforces consistency and by extension, credibility.

2. Public Relations

Whenever you have an event for your customers or prospects, you are doing PR. Public Relations also involve press releases, media relations, print article publishing and what have you.

Considering public events and on-ground activations have been largely curtailed, thought leadership is one way a company can stay relevant in the C-19 environment. Having industry articles placed in various publications is critical in ensuring your target audience is experiencing your company’s prowess in its related field. This assumes that your media relations are robust — if it’s not, this is the time to start investing in journalist relationships to ensure your articles get disseminated widely.

In that vein, creating webinars or podcasts that educate and entertain is key. C-19 has forced millions of people to go online for content otherwise provided by networking events and the like. Webinars and podcasts are an inexpensive way to regularly engage with your customers and target audience.

Finally Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is an easy way to get eyeballs on the business. And it doesn’t have to cost a lot of money and more importantly, it can be in kind not cash. Donating your products to an orphanage, or to an economically struggling community is a simple, affordable yet effective avenue to get good PR.

3. Personal Contact

The current worldwide regarding the pandemic situation makes meeting one-on-one inconvenient. However, like any relationship, meeting clients personally and on a regular basis, meeting prospects face-to-face allows trust to built and barriers to be broken. The key is to get around the “We cannot meet in person” blockade. How do you do that? Meet outside the office. Everyone likes meeting for coffee or tea. It also allows for authenticity. More importantly, it allows for you to market the business and product with a captive audience.

4. The Internet

Everyone is online. Everyone. The internet is the most efficient way to get leads, build relationships and ultimately convert traffic to sales. The ROI here is the greatest in comparison with the first 3. More importantly, the internet allows your business to walk with your prospects along the customer journey (Awareness - Familiarity - Consideration - Purchase - Loyalty) as long as you have the right tools and knowledge. This is revolutionary and more productive than other forms of marketing.

Using creative content (including discussed PR approaches) to drive awareness and familiarity of your product/business your current clients and target audience to your pages on social media and your website is critical.

Additionally, the information garnered through online lead generation initiatives is key in ensuring you can market the business with thought leadership, nurture the leads obtained and turn them into paying and happy customers.

In conclusion, the key in marketing is ensuring the weapons listed above are executed well, measured religiously and learned from. The outcomes from your marketing efforts should become predictable, that is, your Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) should be clear outlining X amount of marketing spending resulting in X number of sales.