To many people, particularly in mid-size businesses, the role of marketing is to create leads and then get out of the way!
The article below proves that this simply isn't the case. If SME businesses shop around to look for better value, your marketing and your operational performance has to continue to show to your clients that your business provides real value to them.
Marketing, in fact, should never stop. The communication methods and the information being provided in a personalised way has to change (never try to sell someone something they've just bought, simply because you haven't segmented your data).
As your prospects move through the pipeline, the information changes. After they've signed, the information changes again and when they move towards being an advocate for your business, the story changes again.
You have a real opportunity with your current clients to build your business around them and with their help, so if anyone suggests marketing should stop at lead generation, send them my way and we'll have a coffee and discuss it.
It turns out that SMEs are leading the way on cost cutting, according to new research. Applegate PRO’s survey, which questioned 726 SME senior decision makers, revealed that they are in fact savvier shoppers than larger businesses. In fact, SMEs are between 50% and 100% more likely to shop around and compare prices on everyday items than their larger counterparts. The research suggests the savvy-buying, cost-conscious nature of very small businesses seems to get lost as businesses grow – even though the challenge of managing fixed costs becomes a bigger issue.
