OK, I need to vent for a minute. I’m so tired of all the social media ads from so called “marketing experts” and “business coaches” who have found the magic bullet for business marketing. You know what I’m talking about….all you have to do is buy their course, create their sales funnel or sign up for their coaching call, and your business will magically transform into a money making machine. 

I call BS!!!

Now, there are obviously people who can help grow your business….no doubt about it. But I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about people who claim to have created the “secret sauce” of marketing. These aren’t reputable marketers. They’re just preying off of entrepreneurs who are desperate to make money. 

So here’s the hard truth. THERE IS NO SILVER BULLET!!! There is no one magic way to market your business. Every business is different so these cookie cutter approaches don’t work. 

Successful marketing needs a strategy, a plan and execution with clear goals and measurable results. It also needs to be customized to your specific business. A good marketing plan doesn’t rely on one tactic to generate all the leads. 

You most likely have different clients who buy different products right? If so, you need to target those people very specifically. For example, I work with a group of shoe stores. One of their largest product lines is targeted to senior citizens so we use TV to reach them. For other products like Birkenstock, we use digital ads and social media posts to target younger customers. We also use email marketing to remind existing customers of special sales. 

Marketing campaigns need to be done thoughtfully and with strategy. Putting all your effort into one tactic can lead to disastrous results for many businesses. 

The next time you see an ad for the newest get quick marketing scheme, don’t get sucked in. If you see something that interests you, wait a few days and see if it still makes sense. Talk it over with other people to get their thoughts before you invest lots of time and money into something that will actually only make someone else rich.

About the author: Meg Huwar is an award winning Marketing & Brand Strategist and Founder of Brand Accelerator. She and her team work with companies who want to market their business but don’t have the time, experience or staff to do it themselves. Meg can be reached at mhuwar@thebrandaccelerator.com.