Many business owners treat their marketing as if they’re gambling. They spend money on advertising and hope to get some new business back in return.
Guess what, real marketing isn’t gambling. It’s not a slot machine. It’s a direct investment. It’s like a vending machine. Put money in, you know what you’ll get out.
When you stick a dollar in a vending machine, you know you’ll get a soda back in return (with the rare exception of a broken machine, of course). It’s not a guessing game, it’s a sure thing.
In a slot machine, you put money in with the hope that you’ll get something back in return (but seldom do).
Which one of these examples is your marketing most like? Are you simply hoping the money you spend will bring in results? Or do you have it down to such a system that you know for every $1.00 you spend marketing your business, you’ll get $5.00 back in return?
If your advertising is only a slot machine, you’re wasting money. Stop spending and go to Vegas instead. You’ll have more fun, and won’t have to worry if the money spent is going to bring in more, ’cause you’re only there to have a good time. Not to make money.
If on the other hand you know that when you spend X amount of dollars marketing/promoting/advertising your business you’ll get Y dollars in return, spend as much money as you possibly can! And next month, spend more!
Too many business owners look at marketing as a necessary evil, or a sunk cost, something that money must be spent on, but they do so begrudgingly. It’s time to take control of your marketing! Start tracking. Learn what’s working and what’s not.
Quite spending on select media just because your competitors are. Find out what works and stick with it. Marketing isn’t about awareness, it’s about response.
Test, track, measure. Wash, rinse, repeat. This is the secret to effective vending machine marketing.
