Once in a while, I come across someone who makes the assertion that there is “no marketing required” for the business that they are in. This always gets my attention. Where is this utopia? So I listen carefully with both ears to try to discern how their alchemy works. The result is always made up of half-truths, and unfortunately, the person is treating them as absolute truths. So let’s take a run through what causes some business people to think this way.
All of my customers know me.
That is quite an enviable position to be in. But your business is not an episode of Cheers “where everybody knows your name”. Just because they know who you are, respect you fully, and may even be loyal customers, it doesn’t translate to a permanent commitment to continue to buy from you.
Are these the type of customers who just love the status quo? Who are not going to invest any effort into seeking out new solutions to existing problems? Who do not come across any new problems? Or look for better ways to do things? Unlikely. Customers are always on the lookout for alternatives to improve. If you do not market new and different ideas to them in some form, you are putting yourself in an excellent position to miss the turn when their thinking changes.
I know all the potential customers.
Quite an impressive feat. But how well do you know them? Are you sitting with them continually? Is it an absolute direct line, from dealing with their issues, to having a mechanism to inform you of how they are addressing these issues? Do you have a defacto perma-presence among them? Unlikely.
You only have a limited time with your existing and potential customers. Even in the same industry segment, your customers are all trying to differentiate themselves in some way. Hence, they all have uniqueness which is a culmination of all their distinctive characteristics. Bringing out that distinction requires you to shape your marketing to elicit a response. And by this process you will get to better know your customers. It would be nice if you could just get them to diligently fill out questionnaires. But, even if they utterly respect you, you have to fulfill the ever pressing question that hangs over them, “What’s in it for me?”.
The product/service markets itself.
I would agree that the customer experience garnered from the use of your product or service has incredible power to secure an excellent standing in the eyes of your customer. This implies that it would be completely intuitive for the customer to seek you out for any issue that is within the realm of the issue that you are currently helping to address. Unlikely.
Customers have their own way of looking at things, and create their own perceptions. Somehow all of this marketing messaging that is flowing all around them, in all its various forms, adds to those perceptions. And one of their behaviors is pigeon holing. Supplier A for issue X. Supplier B for issue Y. If you are going to be pigeon holed, it is you who need to drive that marketing message to ensure that you are put in the right set of pigeon holes. You current product/service has already been assigned.
On whatever scale you operate, marketing is a key connection to your customers. It is a key process, not only in servicing and evolving with the needs of your targeted marketplace; but also in helping you define what business you are in. Whether it is direct marketing or targeted marketing, or any one of a number of different models that may be best suited to your business, it will help you drive your business in the right direction.