I love the phrase "right place, right time." It makes me feel lucky because an opportunity is usually involved. However, when it comes to marketing, is being in the right place at the right time enough? I refer to this phrase in many of my marketing plans and campaigns with a couple of key additions ... right product, right audience and right message.
Whenever I start strategizing on a marketing approach, I always begin at the very beginning with who, what, when, where and why.
Who are you selling to?
What are you selling?
Where is your market?
When is the best time to reach your market?
Why should they buy from you?
I can get to the right place at the right time whenever these defining elements are in place. With this, I can create opportunity that turns into profitability.
Who Are You Selling To: Right Audience
Almost as basic as peanut butter and jelly, identifying your target audience is at the core of any good marketing plan. There are many people who forget this core element in a hurry to talk about how great their new fangled product is. But getting to the needs and desires of what your target audience TRULY values is essential to being successful. How do you do this? Listen. Research. Learn. Never assume you know this audience (your buyers) because just as you change each day, so do they. Get to the heart of what is meaningful and authentic to them. Understanding at this level helps to align your messages and stay consistent (which builds trust.)
What Are You Selling: Right Product
Ok now you can talk about your product. But let's not simply default to the features and benefits that make it great. Tie what it does to what your audience truly values. Organized thought around product messaging and its alignment to the needs of your audience tells them you've listened to them. Again, you're building trust.
Where Is Your Market: Right Place
Would you run a billboard ad in Garry, Indiana for a niche technology that only large enterprises buy? You might if the CEO of your top prospect lives or works in this area. However, if it were anything else, you'd be wasting marketing dollars. Being in the right place where your target audience lives and works is essential to reaching them. To know the right place, you must make a study of the behaviors of your audience. Budweiser knows their target demographic will be watching the Superbowl each year, which is why we're constantly amazed by high-impact commercials by Budweiser each year. This is why you need to know your target audience well. What they do. What they read. Where they live and work. What gets their attention. From trade magazines and digital ads to large scale metro area mass transit takeovers and national campaigns, being at the right place is essential.
When Is The Best Time to Reach Your Audience: Right Time
This is especially appropriate for social media campaigning. Some of your marketing may be more 'evergreen' and have longevity that will last the span of weeks and months. Others, however, may need to capitalize on news, trends, events or other time bound experiences. Its essential to stay on top of current events that matter to your audience and be there with the right press release, tweet, blog post or other content to get in on the conversation at the right time.
Why Should They Buy From You: Right Message
Outside of your audience, this is one of the most important questions you need to ask yourself. Why. Why do you do what you do as a company and why should your buyer buy from you. Most of all, how is your 'why' different from others? Companies who clearly know why they are doing what they do often experience significant longevity. I will go more into the why in another post where I can get into detail. However, if you're aching to know more, watch Simon Sinek talk about Why, How, What in his well known Ted Talk.
The 'logistics' of marketing are more than a good idea - they're essential. Its no longer feasible to simply be in the right place at the right time any more than it is to win the lottery. Blind luck is no match for solid strategy. Be sure to do your homework and never stop listening to your customers.
