Massive Marketing Mistakes – Number Two: No Business Goals

This is the second blog in a series looking at the biggest marketing mistakes people make when trying to run their own business. The first mistake is not knowing how your business is different to that of your competitors. You can read it again here.

Massive Marketing Mistake Number Two – No Business Goals

Avoid the first Massive Marketing Mistake by working out what really makes your business stand out from the crowd. This is your starting point, or where you are now. The second Massive Marketing Mistake that too many business owners make is not having clear goals for their business. They don’t know where they want to go.

How often do you get into your car and just drive? Where do you end up? Do you get to where you wanted to go, or do you just go for a nice drive in the countryside? If your business is just about having a ‘nice drive’ then it’s fine to meander along without following a map. However, if you want to build a business that earns you the sort of income that you deserve to earn, without working seven days a week and more hours than is good for you, then you need a goal – a destination.

How do you avoid the second Massive Marketing Mistake?

Decide where you want to go! This could be the number of clients you want to work with. It could be the amount of turnover or profit margin that you want to achieve. It could be the number of staff you employ. Whatever your goal, if you run your own business, then the goal needs to inspire you. Don’t let someone else dictate your goal – it has to be relevant to you. Knowing your goals will help you plan the most appropriate, cost effective marketing to help you reach them. Here’s an example:

One of our clients would like to retire in a few years’ time. His wife is already retired and is enjoying spending time with their grandchildren – and he’d like to do the same. He’s not looking for vast numbers of new clients, as his business is ticking over nicely. This means that he doesn’t need to spend a huge amount of money on marketing that will attract new business. Instead, his marketing is focussed on keeping in touch with his existing clients and looking after them.

What are you goals for your business, for the next month, six months, year and five years? Spend some time thinking about your long term goals (e.g. 5-10 years) and then break them down into more manageable, short term goals (e.g. 1, 6 or 12 months.) Click here if you’d like to share your goals with us.

The third Massive Marketing Mistake is spending too much time chasing after new clients, instead of looking after your existing ones. We’ll show you how to avoid this Massive Mistake in the next blog in the series.

Showing you how to avoid these Massive Marketing Mistakes is something we work with our Marketing Mentoring clients.  To find out more about the current offer, click here.