Prepare Marketing Carefully Like An Important Meal
Continued from Part 1 here.
Proper preparation is as important for marketing as it is in preparing good food.
6. When it is prepared too quickly or by skipping important steps it may be unappealing or even repugnant, therefore avoided, and resulting in it being ignored or tossed.
You pay one price at a fast-food restaurant and much more at a fine dining establishment for a good reason. They take the time to prepare food so it tastes and looks better. Best summary for this one is to do your due diligence and avoid waste by preparing your marketing way ahead of time, using the right tools step-by-step, and presented at the right time to do its best job. Bad marketing is any marketing where the money gets wasted, and often occurs in businesses where decision-makers don’t really understand the value of targeted marketing.
7. Too much of it and you may saturate the system leading to future costly problems symptomatic of excess.
Consistency is a good thing in marketing; playing the same tiresome tune is not. In human psychology, we will believe a message told to us if we’re told often enough. That is how politics works. It is also true that when we hear the same message too much we tire of it or begin to question its veracity. If a product says it has “no side effects” 5 times on the label I begin to wonder why they are stressing that. Were their dangerous side effects before? I’m not referring to proper cautions which may be repeated, I’m referring to actual marketing copy that is repetitive. Bad marketing like bad food creates bloating, gas, a bad feeling in your gut and eventually it gets really stinky. Money wasted on bad marketing, like flatulence, makes no friends.
8. Use too many cooks in preparation and you often end up with an unappetizing mishmash that no one really likes or wants even if it is served on time.
Marketing by committee gives graphic designers and other media professionals grave headaches. Having too many people involved in planning or delivery delays projects and usually increases costs and the honing of egos. Marketing pros know to not be too emotionally attached to their own ideas and to put the egos away and work together as a team, usually with each team member focusing on the part of the marketing that is their specialty. In other words, graphic artists design, writers compose copy, photographers take pictures, and the marketing manager manages. Best to assign prep work to those most experienced at that portion of pulling it all together and let the executives responsible be accountable. Like a chef does, but don’t holler and yell; it’s not nice.
9. Use the right measure of proper ingredients and cooks and you may get a delicious masterpiece or event.
Yes, that means hiring a chef is really the best way to ensure a spectacular dinner, but sometimes you can get it just right all by yourself. Do a little research and learn what is best for your client’s needs and within your capabilities. Whatever marketing you know you can’t do, like graphic design e.g., then hire a professional to do it, just as you would to cater any part of an important dinner in which you are not skilled, like whipping up soufflé’s. Unless you are good at that, then wow!
10. When you try something new or foreign you’re often surprised at how good it is.
If there is one constant in life it is that it’s ever changing. What was hot last year is passé this year and that is very true in marketing and cuisine. If you prepare meals for your family what happens if you don’t change it up enough? You get complaints. In marketing, customers rarely complain, they go elsewhere. So, keep things fresh by committing to trying something new from time-to-time and you may be surprised to see your customers will love it as much as the kids loved ham and cheeseburger pizza for Saturday dinner.
Preparing marketing doesn’t have to be complex, and you can lessen the potential for it to fall flat by ensuring you know your audience. Do a customer survey and get to know them. Do not present your brand poorly or amateurishly as this can have a negative effect on how your brand is perceived and is costly to recover brand trust.
Do you go back to restaurants where you’ve had a bad meal or experience? Make your marketing so good your customers are hungry for more.