What are you saying?

Seriously. I know that we all love to be creative. I get it. And it’s tempting to want to sound a certain way in our marketing. We want to appear smart, cutting edge, witty, or whatever it is that turns you on. It’s also tempting to limit ourselves to a certain number of words or insist that things have to rhyme. But, what is it exactly that you are trying to say?

I understand that there are principals involved in marketing. Each venue has a different set of guidelines. Each marketing piece has a specific set of guidelines. We need to consider our target market and where we are placing the piece. BUT…

It is equally important if not more important to convey the information that we are wanting to convey to the people we are wanting to convey it to.

I find too often that people will come to me to help them with their marketing and they will have a set of beliefs based on “rules of marketing” that they have read or have been told. They are so obsessed with their “image” and the “rules” that they forget that the primary purpose of marketing is to convey information and get a positive reaction in the direction they intended.

 So let’s use an example. I have a client and they are trying to tell their clients these basic truths:

• I bought products for my store
• For the most part they sold well
• But there is a particular product we have a surplus of
• I want to make room for more new products (next model or next year etc.)
• Therefore I am willing to sell these excess products at a discount
• That discount is 20% if you purchase one and 50% if you purchase two
• I get a discount on the new products if I order in four weeks so I have four weeks to get rid of the old products

 These are the facts. Now, I am not suggesting that you bullet point a social media or professional post or create an ad with nothing but copy. But, I am more than suggesting that buyers are intelligent people who understand this process. This is particularly true where they buyer is very familiar with an industry and know when new models or great ideas are being launched.

 So, don’t insult them. Don’t wrap up that information in a splashy ad that says it’s best for them to purchase last year’s model but don’t tell them why. Don’t act like you are doing them a favor.

 I am also not suggesting that you do not use marketing principles. But, if you are hung up on the jingle without thinking about whether or not it conveys the information you intended then you are wasting your time and money.

It is different if your intention is specifically to brand or gain brand recognition. Then by all means be catchy, work it through, make sure you are picking something you can live with for a long time to come. We’ll deal with that in a different article.

But for our purposes here today we are concerned with (yes of course branded) but marketing intended to inform our customers of the products we are selling, at a discounted rate, and motivate them to purchase by a specific time.

So how do you decide what to say? I’ll go back to my stand by and assert that the most important point is to tell the truth. There is always a reason why the purchase will benefit your client. You do not have to make it up. You don’t have to act like you are doing them a favor by offering them discounted rates or ignore the fact that they understand the situation you are in. You can tell the truth about why you are selling, what you are selling, etc.

There are plenty of people who are in your target market that would love to buy the newest, fastest, strongest product but do not have the resources to do so. These people still want to purchase your product and this discount on last year’s model will allow them to do so. This is an opportunity for you both. Don’t insult them - respectfully sell to them like you would to any other client. And the client who can afford to purchase the newest, fastest, strongest product isn’t listening to you anyway. They are looking for your marketing about what’s coming up. Just like the client buying last year’s model is looking for your sale.

So, remember when you are sitting down to work your marketing or when you are reviewing what your marketing person is presenting to you, don’t look at it as the owner of your company. Look at it as if you are the person you are trying to talk to. Who are you writing this letter to? What are you trying to say? If you are in their shoes how does this sound to you? Do you understand what is for sale, for how much? Do you understand when and how you have to act to take advantage of this price reduction? Do you think this company is honestly trying to offer you something AND clear space or do you think they are just trying to clear space and couldn’t care less about whether it helps you or not?

When you are sure you are communicating effectively then, by all means, make sure your font is right, your white space is correct, your branding is present and all of the other things on a good marketing checklist.

Communicate well and honestly with your customers and they will do the same for you and that way everyone can Start the Day with...No Worries!?