Marketing methodologies if they were Racing Leagues

There's about a Bazillion ways to market your business these days. Depending on what publication you subscribe to, ad campaign you get sucked into, or your friend that won't shut up about how excited they are about starting their new (insert marketing tactic here), you may be under the impression that if you are not doing THIS PARTICULAR MARKETING THING RIGHT NOW your business is doomed. And because there ARE so many options, odds are you may be exhausted just thinking about how to manage all these things.

I know the only form of exhaustion I want to inhale is that from a Nitro Funny Car (the blueberry fumes are pretty neat), and I'd rather you guys out there not feel pressured to do all the things all the time. So let's break down the typical marketing options you're gonna hear about, and how those translate as racing metaphors. Because that's way more fun to talk about than analytics, KPI's and all the other jargon that's actually making your confusion worse.

Social Media = NASCAR

Everyone has to start with the same basic equipment? Check.

Unless there's a big wreck or shake up, everyone racing is pretty much in a tight pack. Check.

Often, it's more about the driver's style than the car. Check.

Going in circles endlessly? Check.

In order to win, you need to be consistent. Check.

To the casual observer, it's impossible to tell cars apart easily, or figure out who to follow. Things that go viral or get attention are things that are VERY out of the ordinary, and often not repeatable with the same results. Each run is an exercise in getting the most out of that run, and being as consistent as possible with your results while making slow gains up the grid. And, your fans are your biggest boost! Not only are they fiercely loyal, they crave more great content from you at every turn. And if you change up your livery or what they expect they may just abandon you for another team.

Is it racing, or your efforts toward posting on Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, etc? Really Social Media and NASCAR are ALMOST interchangeable...you MUST be committed to playing the long game, finding new ways to work with a given set of rules, and learn how to stand out from the pack with more than just a flashy paint job.

Just like NASCAR, social media benefits those with long term budgets, and often huge successes happen with bigger brands that can throw money and time at it with team managers and mechanics. Here, consistency is key, and you want to build your fan base more than try and win the race everyday.

Pay Per Click = Drag Racing

You spend a buttload of money in preparation, blow your wad, then reset, often coming in second. Or blowing up. Or heaven forbid, crashing. The higher up you get in the series, just plan on quadrupling your spend. Tiny changes in temperature, track conditions, humidity all can derail the best planned run. And it looks like anyone can do this with their own car and win!

Am I talking about PPC or Drag Racing? Does it matter? Great drag racing requires years of prep work, experience, and knowing your engine inside out. Your machine has to be built to measured specifications to get optimal performance or it just sputters and dies. Your monetary investment evaporates in the 2.3 seconds it takes to get down that quarter mile.

Ditto with your small business...you can get out there and do an ad run, but most business owners don't do the prep, haven't studied the conditions for success, and are willing to gamble their brand on just a run or two on an unknown track. Sadly many PPC marketers are happy to tell you you'll get great results doing your own Facebook ads, or hiring them to put you on the Google track with the big boys.

Drag racing doesn't belong on city streets, and most small businesses aren't ready for PPC track day. There are other series you should be exploring, because a one and done boost is just that. And did I mention it's often expensive?!?!?

SEO = F1

It's technical. It's often expensive. The longer you do it, the more established you are and easier it is to stay on top. And the rules are ALWAYS changing. Yup, be it F1 or Search Engine Optimization, you're looking at a big commitment to play the game.

Many teams have come and gone in F1, dabbling for a few years and when they don't have success, they bow out. But Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes, McLaren...these are names that know you have to keep going even when you are having a hard year (seriously Ferrari, please start sucking less, please).

SEO is no different. You can start out like a smaller team, knowing you'll be further back in the pack because you have less to spend. But if you keep working at it, one day you realize the others have all fallen away and you're starting to really gain ground.

Due to the ridiculously complex rules and regulations, you should have a team manager. And a good manager isn't going to be cheap, but also doesn't have to be the most expensive either. They should understand strategy, changing conditions, and be able to evaluate your competition for opportunities vs. egregious spend to keep up. Your driver (biz owner) shouldn't also be your strategist, but they should work together. And like NASCAR, consistency is key.

Content Strategy can also look a lot like F1, but for this exercise we'll say it's more like the IndyCar series. Less heard of, but similar approach.

Organic Marketing = Rally Racing

It's fun. It goes to interesting and unexplored locations. Endurance, speed, and driver skill are paramount to win. And you can choose to participate in locations you excel at to gain more wins. Welcome to the most small business friendly series... Rally Racing. OOPS, I mean Organic Marketing.

While other options look like anyone can do it, Organic Marketing is actually within reach and offers great success for smaller brands. It involves building your internet presence using non-paid tactics such as blog posts, guest posts, video content, email marketing, and more. It's participating in Podcasts, and writing guest articles for a magazine that you otherwise wouldn't afford to purchase an ad in. Adding SEO and Social Media can help, but you can go far on things that are on a course that works well with the engine you have built with your brand. And, you can have fun with it!!!

If you can afford a team manager or a mechanic to forward your results, do it. But if you can't, there are so many free or inexpensive options to get you on track and covering ground! You are in the driver's seat, and you get to choose your terrain. Nice.

Brand Experience Strategy - 24 hours of LeMans

LeMans is also a series, but here I'm going to talk specifically about the 24 hour race. Your team does research. They innovate. They look at data, but they also know they need context regarding weather, driving style, and changing conditions from day to night to day. There are short and long term strategies. The team makes changes and adjustments on the fly. And it's about getting through all 24 hours even more than winning (but winning is a big deal too).

There's a drag race at the beginning, there's going in circles in the middle, and there's technical stuff to consider, just like our first 3 series...but all rolled into 24 hours. It is a race, but it's not racing in the same sense of the rest. You're on track with those bigger and faster than you, and also smaller and slower than you, and you have to manage all of it!

Brand Experience Strategy is similar...it's not marketing, but marketing is a part of it. You need to do research. Finding opportunities and innovating is key. There are changing conditions and you are planning for these conditions over the long course of the race - all while making adjustments on the fly. And while there are bigger players on track, you can win in your class through endurance and strategy.

LeMans is also a race where there are often surprises and the "Big Boys" don't have the advantages the usually do, because the conditions even the score. Small Businesses who choose Brand Experience Strategy have these same advantages and opportunities even with smaller budgets.

Bonus Mention - 24 hours of LeMons = Public Relations

The 24 hours of LeMons (yes lemons, as in the fruit) is a series of races involving using a car that is $500 or less, and racing it with all you got. It's most noteworthy for attracting a LOT of attention in local communities, and though it's helpful if you are mechanically able that's not a barrier to entry. Most folks don't consider this "real" racing, but it is actually the most pure form of racing as it was "back in the day"...everyday people bringing out the best they can afford to play on track.

Often overlooked as "outdated" and "too old school", Public Relations doesn't get the love it deserves, much like LeMons. And just like a great LeMons car, when you invest in PR in the right ways, it will gain you attention in all the other series listed above. Like taking an old Mazda and turning into a pork soda, you can piggyback (see what I did there?) onto big publications and media to give yourself a long lasting boost in your community - even nationally. It just depends on what your budget is, and how you want to compete.

I could have also used SCCA racing in this example, but for comparing to PR, fun and quirky cars are common in LeMons, and less so in SCCA.

No matter the series, it comes down to how you want to race.

The problem with most marketers out there is they are married to their tactic of choice, and they have blinders when it comes to other options that can build business. Like how NASCAR fans think F1 is snobby, Drag Race followers think NASCAR is for hicks, Rally Racers don't understand why pavement is important, and all the series have respect for LeMans. But really, it's about understanding your driving style, your resources, and knowing when you can go it alone or you need a team to reach success.

If you're unsure what track is right for you, let's talk racing. Um, I mean brand growth strategies. Yeah, that.