How to Win with Simple, Cost Efficient Marketing

Let’s get something straight—when most people hear the term “marketing,” they think of flashy ads, catchy slogans, or the latest viral social media trend. But here’s the reality: marketing isn’t just advertising or promotion. In fact, the best marketing strategies barely mention those things upfront. Marketing is the heartbeat of your business strategy—it informs everything from product development to customer service. It’s how you position your brand, speak to your audience, and ultimately, how you drive growth.

Here’s the thing: without a well-thought-out marketing strategy, you’re essentially throwing darts in the dark. You might hit the target sometimes, but you’re wasting resources with every missed shot. With a strategy, however, you reduce costs and increase your Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI) because you’re targeting the right people, with the right message, at the right time.

The Misconception: Marketing is Advertising

One of the biggest misconceptions is that marketing is just a fancy word for advertising. But advertising is just a slice of the pie. Marketing is about understanding your customer’s needs, positioning your product or service to meet those needs, and creating a consistent message that resonates across every touchpoint. It’s about the experience your customer has from the moment they first hear about you to when they become a loyal advocate. A solid marketing strategy is what makes everything—from pricing to promotions—work in harmony.

Case Study: Local Service Business Strategy

I recently met with a couple of business owners to talk about how they plan to bring in new customers and grow a specific segment of their business. They had big social media aspirations. Now, if you recall from a previous article, social media is no longer just a cute little platform to grow your business—it’s the most competitive playing field in the sport. I asked them how they planned to use social media, and their answer? “We’re going to hire a firm.”

So, naturally, I asked, “What’s their strategy?” They couldn’t clearly articulate it, but I got the concept and it's what you would expect a good marketing firm that knows how to sell their own service, but struggles to sell other products and services. Or maybe doesn't care, they get paid either way. And by the way, the cost—astronomical.

I asked why they hadn’t considered something more tailored to their business model, like paid search, content creation, and SEO. Their service is high-ticket, and people ready to spend that kind of money often begin by searching, not scrolling.

I walked them through a simple strategy that would cost no more than $1,000 a month, considering the low competition in their niche for paid search and the ease of drafting SEO-focused content through AI. Even if they outsourced this work, their total monthly spend would be between $2,500 and $3,500—far more reasonable than the $7,200 price tag from the social media marketing firm, which came with no guarantees and no consistent strategy to guide the customer through their buying process.

The goal of marketing is to maximize revenue in as cost effective a manner as possible, right? Or is the goal to be the most creative and win an award for creative social media ad campaign of the year? What's the small business owners goal? What's the marketing firm's goal? Are they aligned? Is the marketing firm willing to simplify the strategy, imagery and messaging to connect with customers more effectively?

Case in point: The “Think Small” campaign by Volkswagen. Back in the 1960s, while car manufacturers were pushing flashy, over-the-top ads promoting big, powerful vehicles, Volkswagen took a different approach. Their ads were simple—showing their small Beetle with straightforward, modest messaging like “Think Small.” The simplicity cut through the noise, offering a refreshing alternative to the overblown promises of their competitors. It didn’t just stand out; it redefined how car ads were made, and sales skyrocketed.

This campaign proved that clarity and consistency are often far more effective than being flashy. Volkswagen’s simple, honest messaging outperformed the complex, glitzy, pricey campaigns of their competitors by speaking directly to their audience's needs and expectations.

Crafting Consistent Communication Through the Customer Journey

Marketing strategy is often treated like a magic trick—wave your wand, say the right words, and poof! Customers appear. But in reality, great marketing is less like pulling a rabbit out of a hat and more like telling a story, one chapter at a time, guiding your customer through a journey where each touchpoint deepens their connection to your brand.

Welcome to Customer Journey Mapping: your secret weapon to understanding where, when, and how to communicate with your audience in a way that makes sense at every stage.

1. What’s the Point of a Customer Journey Map, Anyway?

A Customer Journey Map is basically your customer's life story with your brand. It outlines every interaction, from their first discovery of your product to becoming a loyal advocate (we hope). This map helps you align your messaging with where they are in the decision-making process, ensuring you're saying the right thing at the right time. When you tell your customer why your product is perfect for them, then demonstrate it through trial or first experience, then follow-up with the same value statements, then reward them for being an advocate with the same style, tone, and cadence of message, it reinforces why they love your product or service so much and it will allow you to create more advocates and evangelists for your brand.

Example of a Customer Journey Map

• Awareness: Your customer first hears about you. Maybe it’s through a podcast ad or social media post. They’re just learning you exist.
• Consideration: Now they’re intrigued. They visit your website, read reviews, and compare your product to competitors.
• Purchase: They make the decision! They buy your product.
• Retention: After using the product, you follow up with emails or texts to keep them engaged—maybe even offer a discount for their next purchase.
• Advocacy: They love it, rave about it, and recommend it to friends. Now they’re part of your brand army.

Now, imagine your messaging at each of these stages. Your message to someone just discovering your product should not be that different than the message to a loyal repeat customer. That’s the art of consistency across the customer journey.

2. What’s Your Strategy?

Before you get into crafting that killer message, let’s go back to the basics: what’s your marketing strategy? To figure that out, answer one big question: What are you trying to achieve?

Are you the company that wants to make people laugh and feel good? (Hello, Dollar Shave Club) Or maybe you’re all about establishing trust and authority, like Patagonia with its sustainability message. Whether you want to evoke joy, trust, or a sense of belonging, your strategy impacts the messaging you use.

Simon Sinek’s "Start with Why"

Sinek argues that your “why” drives everything. Why are you in business? Why should customers care? When you lead with this, your messaging becomes crystal clear. Customers don’t just buy what you sell—they buy why you sell it.

3. Apple – A Masterclass in Consistency

Think of Apple. They’re not just selling computers and phones—they’re selling creativity and self-expression. From their “Think Different” campaign to the sleek design of their stores, every interaction with the brand screams innovation. Apple doesn't tell you how fast their processors are; they tell you how their technology will make you more creative, more powerful, more you. That’s marketing strategy turned into consistent messaging at every touchpoint.

Donald Miller’s "Building a StoryBrand"

Miller teaches that businesses succeed when they position the customer as the hero and the brand as the guide. Apple excels at this—they’ve made their customer the creative genius, while Apple’s products are simply the tools to help them achieve greatness.

4. Why Consistency Matters: Crafting the Right Message for Each Stage

When creating your customer journey map, consistency is key. This doesn’t mean you’re delivering the same message over and over again, but that the tone, values, and vibe of your brand stay aligned across all touchpoints.

Here’s where it can go wrong: Imagine a potential customer sees your Facebook ad, and it's quirky and fun. But then, they get to your website and are hit with stiff, formal language that doesn’t match the ad. Instant disconnect, right?

Airbnb – Keeping It Consistent and "Sticky"

Airbnb's core message of “belonging” is not just a tagline; it's embedded in every interaction you have with their brand. Whether it's their website, app, or marketing campaigns, the idea of “belonging anywhere” remains consistent, but what makes it sticky is how they personalize this concept to the user.

For example, when you're browsing Airbnb, you're not just shown places to stay; you're shown homes where you can "live like a local." Their messaging emphasizes experiences, not transactions. They also use real host stories and images of actual homes, which builds emotional connections. You feel like you’re joining a community, not just booking a room.

They make the concept memorable by turning their hosts and guests into heroes of the story. By focusing on unique, emotional experiences, they ensure that their message resonates and sticks with you long after you leave the website. The simplicity and emotional pull of “belonging” is what keeps people coming back, sharing their own Airbnb stories, and spreading the message organically.

"Made to Stick" by Chip and Dan Heath

The Heath brothers explain how certain messages are memorable and impactful because they’re simple, unexpected, and emotional. Airbnb sticks to these principles—keeping their messaging consistent and, more importantly, sticky.

5. Developing Your Own Customer Journey Map

Now that you're sold on the importance of the customer journey map, how do you build one? Here’s a simple way to get started:

1. Identify Touchpoints: What are the key points where your customers interact with your brand? Social media, website, checkout page, customer support?
2. Understand Customer Intentions: What are they looking for at each stage? Are they learning about you, comparing options, or ready to buy?
3. Align Your Messaging: Tailor your message to their mindset. Are they in the discovery phase? Keep it informative and light. Ready to purchase? Push urgency and value.

6. Coca-Cola – Personalization on a Global Scale

Coca-Cola's "Share a Coke" campaign is a prime example of consistent messaging that hits on personalization. They shifted from selling a drink to selling personal moments. The message? Coke isn't just a beverage—it's a part of life’s best moments, shared with the people who matter most.

"Contagious" by Jonah Berger

Berger discusses how emotional resonance and social currency make messages spread like wildfire. Coca-Cola used this brilliantly by letting customers personalize their experience, making them feel connected to the brand in a way that spread organically.

7. Keep it Consistent—Why Messaging Matters

Your customer’s journey doesn’t end with the sale. Every email, every post-sale interaction needs to be aligned with the values and tone that drew them in initially. Imagine you’re building a house. Consistent messaging is like making sure the foundation, walls, and roof all work together to create a strong, reliable structure. It’s no good if the roof doesn’t fit!

Seth Godin’s "Purple Cow"

In Purple Cow, Godin emphasizes the importance of standing out—but not just for the sake of it. You need to be remarkable, but also consistent. Standing out with inconsistent messaging is like a flashy sign with no store to back it up. Your message must be unique and dependable throughout the customer journey.

Consistency is Key

Here’s the takeaway: your marketing strategy is only as strong as your ability to communicate it consistently through the customer journey. From awareness to advocacy, your messaging should be a cohesive story. As Seth Godin would say, make sure your marketing message is a Purple Cow—stand out, be remarkable, and keep your messaging consistent from the first touchpoint to the last.

Because in the end, it's not just about getting a customer—it’s about guiding them through a seamless, consistent journey that keeps them coming back for more.