“I” of the Consumer Week in Review

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I had lunch with an ad sales friend of mine the other day and we started talking about how the relationship between marketer and ad seller has changed in the last couple decades. It’s not all about measurement. I have the tools to measure performance of every advertisement, every campaign that I run. So I’m now the one telling him what works and what the ads are worth to me. I have all the power in the relationship. It’s just a matter of whether or not I use it. Do you use the power you have as a marketer to measure everything you do? If you don’t, you’re in the wrong decade.

In case you missed them, here are links to last week’s posts:

  1. Recommended Reading for Marketers – Part 10
  2. Getting Started with Google Adwords
  3. Getting Started with Mobile Marketing

Happy Saturday!

3 Ways to Boost Your Marketing Knowledge:

  1. Subscribe to the monthly newsletter to get answers to all your marketing questions
  2. Ask a marketing question that you’d like me to answer for you
  3. Subscribe to the blog and never miss another marketing post

What is Social Proof?

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What is social proof and why does it matter for your business?

To explain, let’s look at two examples. Let’s say there are two, nearly identical companies that make and ship nutritious, homemade granola bars. To set themselves apart in such a crowded market, both champion their unique ingredients, freshness, and specific health benefits.

The prices are the same. And without knowing anything else about them, you’d not be able to distinguish one company from the other.

Here’s where they differ:

The first company has a Facebook pages with thousands of fans talking about how much they love the product. They have written and video testimonials featured prominently on their website. They feature a counter on their website that shows how many bars they are selling in real time, and the number is ticking up constantly.

The second company has none of that. Their website just shows the product and the price, and lets you checkout. They offer their own backstory, and provide detailed descriptions of each bar, but it all comes from the company.

The first company is using social proof. The second is not.

And if you’re like most people, given the option between the two, you will choose to purchase from the first company.

Why? Because human beings will conform to the actions of others under the assumption that those actions are reflective of the correct behavior. That’s social proof.

When we see others are doing something, and more than that, they’re excited or happy or satisfied in those actions, we’ll follow. And companies can take advantage of that psychology in order to help marketing their products and services.

Positive reviews, social media activity, proof of popularity or demand are all ways to employ social proof for your business. Show prospective customers that your offerings are popular among others, and you will help to convince them that buying from you is the right decision.

“I” of the Consumer Week in Review

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Marketing is an arena where things are in constant flux. While the fundamentals of successful marketing are time-tested and rarely change, the way we deploy them have to keep up with the times. New technologies, platforms, and capabilities mean that marketers who want to succeed need to stay up to date on all that’s new and trending. If you don’t have what it takes to keep up with a fast-changing environment, maybe marketing is no longer for you.

Here are our posts from the last week:

  1. Recommended Reading for Marketers – Part 2
  2. How to Develop Content – Who
  3. How to Develop Content – Why

Happy Saturday!

3 Ways to Boost Your Marketing Knowledge:

  1. Subscribe to the monthly newsletter to get answers to all your marketing questions
  2. Ask a marketing question that you’d like me to answer for you
  3. Subscribe to the blog and never miss another marketing post

“I” of the Consumer Week in Review

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Kirstin Zhivago once wrote, “Branding are the promises you make, your brand is the promises you keep.” This is important for marketers to remember. Just because we write something in an email, on our website, or in an ad, doesn’t make it true. Marketers need to make sure they are not OVER-promising. That will lead to unhappy customers, and distrust in the marketplace.

Let’s review our posts from last week:

  1. Market To Mondays – Part 5
  2. 3 Tips for Better Search Ads
  3. 3 Tips for Better Readability

Happy Saturday!

3 Ways to Boost Your Marketing Knowledge:

  1. Subscribe to the monthly newsletter to get answers to all your marketing questions
  2. Ask a marketing question that you’d like me to answer for you
  3. Subscribe to the blog and never miss another marketing post

“I” of the Consumer Week in Review

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How can we tell the difference between trends and fads? As marketers, we are constantly on the lookout for anything new. How are consumers’ habits changing? What new technologies are out there? But not all trends are worth our effort. By the time we catch up, we’re already behind, and we’re missing the next “big thing”. So we need a way to distinguish between the trends that matter and those that don’t. What’s your trick?

Here is a review of our posts from last week:

  1. Market To Mondays – Part 4
  2. 3 Tips for Quicker Conversions
  3. 3 Tips for Higher-Value Conversions

Happy Saturday!

3 Ways to Boost Your Marketing Knowledge:

  1. Subscribe to the monthly newsletter to get answers to all your marketing questions
  2. Ask a marketing question that you’d like me to answer for you
  3. Subscribe to the blog and never miss another marketing post