A good marketing plan can help launch a new business or grow an existing one. Below are a few to
common marketing mistakes to avoid:
1. Untargeted Marketing
You need to have a clear long-term strategy for your marketing campaign to be successful. Find your
target audience and gear your marketing plan to that audience. Too make companies advertise once
in a while and without a targeted message. Customers tend not to react the first time they hear an
advertisement, so it is very important to have a clear and consistent marketing strategy.
2. Leaving advertising too late
This is a very common mistake among start-ups and small businesses. There is a delay between
advertising and clients reacting, so it’s important to keep on advertising at all times. You should also
plan your marketing campaigns to coincide with new products, new services, upcoming events, etc.
3. Copying your competitors
Don’t feel you always need to follow your competitors lead, because there is no guarantee that their
forms of advertising are any more successful than yours. It is often more effective to differentiate
yourself, rather than follow the competition. It is obviously important to keep an eye on the
competition’s advertising strategies, but don’t just copy them without thinking about it.
4. Not tracking results
It is massively important to track the success of your advertising. You can obviously save yourself
money by cutting out the less effective methods, and you can increase your conversion rates by
concentrating on the more successful ones. If you advertise online, you can use tools such as Google
Analytics and by monitoring the Cost per Conversion of your keywords. Another alternative is to
simply ask your clients how they heard about you.
5. Trying to save in areas where you should be spending
Everything the customer sees will give them an impression of your business and first impressions are
very important. This is why it is so important to make sure your website, brochures, adverts, etc.
always look up-to-date and eye-catching.
6. Relying on one advertising medium
Marketing on television, in print or on the Internet alone will reach only a portion of your potential
customers. For example, if you advertise on the internet alone you are more likely to attract a
younger audience, so you might have to think of an alternative strategy to attract the older
generation.
7. Inconsistency in your marketing campaigns
The most common and most costly mistake is changing the theme, format, or media used in your
marketing campaign. Don’t give up if an advertisement doesn’t work the first time, as most of the
time you have to repeat advertising for the message to get across and attract clients. You should
also try and be consistent in terms of look and feel of your various advertising campaigns, so that
potential clients start to remember and recognise your business.
8. Lack of follow up
Sometimes making a sale requires sending a note or picking up the phone and calling your prospects.
If you have an effective lead generation strategy, prospects will provide you with their contact
information and the problem they want solved. Use the web, email, and the phone to follow up and
close the sale.
9. Lack of Customer Feedback
Follow up every sale or potential sale to make sure the customer is satisfied. If you ask them how
you could improve your service and then follow their advice, you can’t fail.
10. Not putting enough emphasis on existing clients
Don’t just focus on bringing in new clients. Always remember to try and hang onto previous and
existing clients, as they make up to 80% of the customer volume in most businesses
