Marketing Your Consulting Services.pdf - epiheirimatikotita.gr

What’s the Minimum I Need to Know About Marketing?
There must be more volumes written about marketing than about any other business
topic. At times marketing appears to be glitzy and glamorous. On the other
hand marketing can be complicated and mysterious. You may find yourself reading
about marketing goals, objectives, strategies, tactics, promotional mix, segmentation,
targeted audiences, niche, product lifecycles, and media scheduling.
Some marketing experts discuss the four Ps of the marketing mix: product, price,
place, and promotion. Other experts discuss the eight Ps and an S: product, price,
place, promotion, positioning, people, profits, politics, and service. In addition you
will read about advertising, public relations, and media. Then there are discussions
about personal versus impersonal promotion or direct versus indirect marketing.
You can read about personal selling, client-centered marketing, leveraging your
clients—well, you get the idea. There are lots of words published about marketing.
But what do you really need to know?
At this point you don’t need a degree in marketing. You need to know how to
get the word out that you have consulting services to offer. This may seem like a
daunting task, and one you’d rather skip. But don’t be tempted. Developing a marketing
plan is critical if you are to stay in business. You can make it as useful and
as simple as you like.
Your marketing plan will convert your ideas and intentions into commitment
and action. Your marketing plan will guide you through the year so that the important
task of marketing is never pushed to the back burner. Putting your plan
in writing puts discipline into your ideas, enables you to measure success, and provides
data for future use. Implementing your marketing plan will keep you in front
of your clients. Done correctly, it helps you plan your most efficient and effective
networking activities.
All of the time you spent in the first five chapters comes to fruition now. As you
begin to think about your marketing plan, recognize that it should be a very natural
part of your business. Let’s look at how natural marketing can be.
Marketing Naturally
Phone clients regularly. When I telephone clients, I am amazed again and again by
those who say, “I was just thinking about you” or “We have a situation and perhaps
you’re the one who . . .” or “I just got out of a meeting in which I was tasked to . . .”
Your Marketing Plan: Can You Market on a Shoestring Budget? 111