You’re not sure why you did it. Sometimes, you promise things that you regret later, and this is one of them. You told your kids back in March that you would kick off summer with a big cookout. Now the time is closer and your schedule is packed, you are tired and you aren’t really sure when you’ll plan the cookout.
Staring at the cookout date on the calendar, you might be reminded of marketing. Oh, not really? Read ahead and find out why planning your marketing strategy is a bit like planning a cookout. Bottom line: neither is overwhelming with a plan, and a whole lot of fun in the end.
The Guest List
The key to any good gathering is starting with the right people. You want the fun types, sure. But more important might be the ones you don’t invite. Like that neighbor who corners people to talk about his large bunion growing on his foot. Or that couple who always stays hours past the end time of the party.
There are also a few friends who you’d never leave off the list. Like the neighbors who are great at navigating a gathering and introducing themselves, or your cousin who loves to get a game of volleyball going with the kids. And there’s your college friend who always volunteers to go get ice or walks around with a trash bag as the event winds down.
In marketing, the guest list is your target audience. You want to be sure to include contacts and potential leads who are most likely to purchase from your company. Everyone else, like those unpleasant guests, is just draining your resources without adding to the fun.
The Menu and Entertainment
Think about your guests, and tailor your food and fun to match what they might enjoy. And don’t worry about trying to please everyone; if you make bland burgers to avoid offending anyone, you may be making burgers that nobody in particular enjoys.
It’s the same with your fun. Sure, you included your book club pals, but your basketball buddies are also coming, and so is your friend from the gym. So, there’s no question that you should plan some yard games and make sure the cookout includes a lot of play. Not everyone will jump in on ladder ball or capture the flag, and that’s okay.
In marketing, the equivalent is your content and messaging. If you write too broad a blog piece or create social posts that attempt to capture the attention of everyone, you’ll probably miss the mark altogether.
Your content will resemble the buffet table at your cookout. Some things, like your famous peppercorn ranch burgers, are going to fly off the buffet. That’s your go-to content, like the funny videos you make every month or the Instagram contest that always stirs up engagement.
You also offer the old standbys that aren’t all that exciting, but it’s hard to imagine a cookout without them. It’s the potato salad, the baked beans and chips. In marketing, these are your blogs and regular social media posts. People know they can count on them, and they reliably perform, even if you don’t ever expect them to go viral.
The Paper Products
Nobody thinks much about paper plates until their pulled pork sandwich lands in the grass. A flimsy paper plate is a barbecue tragedy.
Your audience isn’t thinking much about the marketing equivalent: your distribution strategy. Like a sturdy paper plate lets you load up before heading to your lawn chair, the channels you select ensure the content and messaging reach their destination.
Developing your distribution strategy is critical; you need to know where your audience spends its time and how to allocate your marketing budget to make the most of your content.
Marinated, Smoked or Simply Tossed on the Grill
It’s hard to get into barbecue without going bananas. Grilling is one of those black hole hobbies that draws you in and convinces you that perfection is something you not only can pursue, but you must!
People tend to fall into categories when it comes to grilling. They may just toss some pre-formed burgers and a few hot dogs onto the grill and call it good. Then you have the marinades, mixed in the morning and brushed onto the meat before refrigerating for a few hours.
Then, there are the smoked meats. Whether it’s turkey, pork or brisket, preparation is a matter of days, not minutes or even hours. This pitmaster has put in some time, and they are ready to savor the satisfaction of watching their guests enjoy the result.
Let’s put this in marketing terms.
Burgers and Hot Dogs: These are your paid ads, your quick hits that get the job done quickly and achieve precise targeting among your audience.
Marinades: You might consider aligning your video content, social media engagement and other mid-range efforts with a marinade mindset. It is intended to be good, inspire engagement, but not in a rushed way.
Smoked Meats: These are the marketing investments you make that pay off over time. It’s your search engine optimization, your investment in accessibility. It’s harder to see the immediate payoff, but it will deliver better traffic and growth over time.
The best barbecue and the best marketing will create a strategic mix of these three elements. Sure, you can make a few things happen and fill up a crowd with a hot dog menu. But if you want long-lasting, reliable growth, you need that slow-smoked marketing element.
The Post-Mortem
No party is complete without a few minutes of “that was a good party,” and “next time, we should get out the bocce ball set.” You need to recap the fun, share a few anecdotes and congratulate one another on a fantastic event. Highs, lows and even-better-for-next-time.
The same is true for your marketing strategy. Unlike a party, you’re not going to wait until it’s over to do a little assessing and figure out where you are on track and where you need to make some adjustments. You might have an old mailer campaign you need to finally discontinue or you’ve found that you don’t get much engagement from a particular social media platform.
It’s critical that you step back and allow your team to refine your strategy.
Let’s Get This Party Started. You probably won’t outsource your cookout planning, but this is one place where the comparison to marketing ends. It’s easy to outsource your marketing, and at SJC Marketing, we’ve got the experience and expertise to launch your company into the growth you’ve always wanted. Contact us today to get started.