Effective Marketing Secret #4: You MUST Join The Conversation

Marketing has changed dramatically in the past few years from what it used to be. It used to be that marketers controlled the marketing conversation and as a result, they were able to dictate the terms and conditions of when, where, and how consumers received a sales message.

As so many ‘brand builders’ have done, companies would buy up as much advertising space as they could afford and simply blast out their message as often as possible. Sadly, the consumer was at their mercy because there really wasn’t anyway to turn it off.

Well, as technology has progressed, the control of this marketing conversation has shifted back so that it’s now squarely in the hands of the consumer. Thanks to things like spam blockers, pop-up blockers, caller ID, DVR, the national Do Not Call list, and other means of ‘blocking’ out advertisers, the consumers is now in control of how, when, and where they receive a marketing message.

And it’s because of this shift in control that as marketers, we must find a way to engage our target market on their terms.  When it comes to marketing, it’s our job to figure out what they want, where they want it, and how they want it, otherwise we’ll be left out in the cold.

Given the popularity of things like social media, sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and to some extent MySpace, have given the savvy business an opportunity to do just that, engage and interact with prospective customers in an environment in which they feel comfortable.

However, simply being there isn’t enough. If all you’re doing is ‘lurking’ in the background and jumping out on occasion with a blatent sales pitch, chances are they’ll recognize your communication for what it is and you’ll still be out in the cold.

To truly be successful using all of the social media tools available today, you’ve got to engage your target market in conversation and interactions that are meaningful.  And that doesn’t mean meaningful to you, but meaningful as they would define it.

Also, keep in mind that business has ALWAYS been about people doing business with people.  No matter if you work for a large, multi-national corporation or a small mom-and-pop shop on the corner of Smalltown USA, you must find a way to connect with your customers person to person.

Again, there are many social media tools that allow you to do so, no matter how big or small your company may be.  But they key is joining the conversation and interacting with your target market.

Figure out what they want, how they want it, and where they want it, and you’ll be a long way towards building a very profitable business.