Common mistakes in business marketing

If you are a business owner who is focusing on setting up marketing for their new business or improving the marketing for their existing business then it is just as important to know what not to do as it is to know what to do. Avoiding making certain business marketing mistakes can help you to insure that your marketing strategy will be much more effective. Because the marketing of your business is literally its lifeblood savvy business owners will learn all that they can about marketing including some common mistakes in business marketing. Once you know what not to do you are much more likely to be successful with your marketing plan for the long term.

- Not writing a marketing plan-Just like you would plan out anything else for your business you need to have a written marketing plan. A written marketing plan will allow you to set marketing goals, chart your progress, and help you to stay on budget with what you spend for your marketing. Keep in mind that most lenders and investors will want to see a written marketing plan as part of your overall business plan.
- Forgetting about your current customers-Business owners are often so focused on expanding their customer base they often forget about marketing to their current customers. It is important to keep in mind that up to 80% of your sales come from your current customers. This makes it crucial that you not lose sight of the customers that you already have. Continuing to establish a personal connection with your customers as well as learning about their wants and needs will help your marketing to be much more effective while you work on acquiring new customers, as well. Finally, it is important to not overlook the fact that your current customers can help with your marketing by letting their family and friends know of the quality of customer service that you provide.
- Choosing the wrong way to market online-Many times' business owners assume that if they are marketing online then they will be successful regardless of what they are doing online. It is important to keep in mind that the internet is a big place and just because you are on there it doesn't mean that you are where your target market is surfing. Business owners who are looking to market online need to understand that it is crucial to use online marketing the right way or you could end up doing serious damage to your business. You want to take the time to carefully research all of the internet marketing methods and then determine which ones will be the most effective in reaching your customers. It is only after this research is done that you can be fairly sure that you are using internet marketing in the most effective way for your business.
- Trying to market to everyone-This is the most common mistake that new business owners make. Many business owners make the mistake of thinking that just because they have a great product or service then everyone will want to buy it. In response to this belief they try to market to everyone, everywhere. This is rarely effective and is known as the "shotgun" approach to marketing. While you may get some feedback from this type of marketing it generally does not justify the expense and time that you have committed to this type of marketing. Rather then trying to be everything to everyone it is much more effective to find the segment of the population who is most likely to want to buy your product or service and market to them. Once you have done the market research to find these people the chances are much better that your marketing will be effective and successful for a long time to come.