What Does a Marketing Consultant Do?

Lately, I have had several prospective clients ask me a simple question. What is it you do?

They knew they need help with their business so they started a conversation with me to learn how my experiences could be helpful to them. I used the following simple example.

If you want to sell golf equipment, you might have an incredible story to tell with a clever, creative ad. You might have a technical advantage that is superior to every other club made today. But, if you deliver your key message to me, you would be swinging in the wind.

I don’t play golf or buy golf equipment.

I don’t even know anyone who does so I’m not an influencer.

A marketing consultant should help you tell your story to the right audience with as much precision as possible. And, it helps if you have a powerful point of differentiation that matters to your prospective customers. 

What Does a Marketing Consultant Do?

 I help you tell your story.

Every business has a story that they tell in different ways to their clients or customers. In person, they may talk, they may show slides or brochures explaining what they do. Marketers like me help you tell your story through a range of tactics that begin by understanding who you are trying to reach and how you can help them achieve their goals. Marketing consultants are storytelling experts.

I help you simplify your story.

Almost every business I have worked at in my career had a tendency to make things complicated. They had difficulty getting to the essence of a message. They had a challenge understanding that most customers aren’t that interested in complex stories. You can publish deeply technical white papers or complex materials – but most of your audience needs the short version – just the headlines. If they want to go deeper, give them an option, but 98% of your audience tends to stay at the topline. Marketing consultants are experts at simplifying a message.

I help you identify the right audience.

There is nothing worse than delivering an original message to the wrong audience. Sometimes companies have dual fans when they think it is just one. Often companies have complex selling environments that involve different people who influence decision making. It isn’t unusual for consumer packaged goods companies to need to please both technical decisions makers and non-technical folks like marketing teams.Marketing consultants are experts at identifying audiences.

I help you determine where to tell your story.

A great message delivered to the right audience needs to happen at the right place. Whether your story should be on Facebook or an email can influence the ability for it to convert. Converting means it works, and you generate a lead or get a sale. The environment where you deliver a message can have a powerful impact on its success. Whether you market to consumers or business, where you tell your story matters. Marketing consultants are experts at identifying where to deliver your story to the right audience.

I help customers determine the right tone to give a story.

Often a message can come off as too harsh, or too serious or frankly, just boring. Messages need to be entertaining and enjoyable to break through the clutter. What is the right sensibility for your storytelling practice? What happens if your story reflects your personality but not the way your targeted audience likes to receive information. Businesses, particularly in B2B, quickly forget that they are talking to human beings who want to be entertained, educated and inform. And, it has to happen in that order. Without a little sizzle, it can be heard to breakthrough. Marketing consultants are experts at setting the right tone for your story.

The essence of marketing is telling a story, with the right tone, to the right audience at the right place.The tactics can vary, but the strategic framework for the communication needs to be clear, especially if your goal is a hole in one.

What to learn how I can help you grow your business, target your message and tell your story? Let’s talk. Email me at [email protected] or text me at 919 720 0995. 

Photo Credit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storytelling