I’m going to let you into a secret that the marketing gurus don’t want you to know. Content marketing, community marketing, movement marketing, relationship marketing, tribes, insert latest marketing buzz word here…
They are all pretty much the same thing.
I’m going to let that sink in for a little bit. How can they be the same? I hear you ask. And if they are the same why are they all called different things?
Easy.
To sell more books.
No-one wants you to know the truth, so they can keep selling you the same techniques but in a different package.
All these “different” types of marketing all focus on people. They all basically advise that building communities and relationships with like minded people can make great things happen. It’s true. It’s powerful stuff but like I said all the different terms basically boil down to the same thing.
Business is about people. Marketing is also about people. It’s people that buy things and it’s people who sell things. It has been this way for hundreds of years long before the word tribes (in the marketing sense) was thought up. The average person does not give a hoot about being a part of your tribe, that’s even if they know what it is.
They just want to know that you understand their needs as a person.
A few ways you can do this:
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If you have a decent product or service and a clear target market- just talk to them. Communicate. In any way you know how.
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If you can create great content that connects with your target market you will start to build a community of people interested in what you do.
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If you can talk openly and passionately about things you and others are interested in, those people will be inspired.
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If you can be helpful, personable, honest and real, the word will spread and more people will buy your stuff.
Make sense?
Marketing has not changed much over the years. The way we reach people has. Social media has allowed us to talk and connect with more people than ever before. So use it to help grow your business and make people the focus of your marketing efforts.
Your target market, your suppliers, your delivery person, your local post office, your family, your friends, your potential customers, your past customers, your competitors, your colleagues, your collaborators and your industry experts.
The way you conduct business impacts on all these relationships. All these people are part of your business story. Treat them all with respect and watch your business soar.
So save yourself some valuable time and instead of focusing on the latest fad; focus on the people.
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There are so many great business books that can educate us on how to run a business or show us how best to use the tools available to reach our target markets. If you have the time to read these then go for it! These books can be very beneficial to small business owners. Just beware of wasting time on marketing books that profess to the latest, new and improved, amazingly brilliant marketing movements that will make you a millionaire. Like I said they all pretty much say the same thing.