Seattle Brand Strategy: Marketing As A Value-Added Service

Marketing has historically been a series of actions that are undertaken to exert influence over consumer preference and choice.  However, the trap is to think about marketing as a means to talk about your company versus solving a prospect’s unmet need.  Solving this unmet need can start before a single purchase has ever been made.  Marketing itself can deliver against your brand promise. An emerging model is to think of marketing not as a force of influence, but a valued resource that is utilized at the discretion of the customer. Can marketing be a source of value itself? More than 50% of business-to-business marketing professionals in a recent survey planned on using webinars as a lead generation tool in 2008.  Biznik is a great example of valued collaboration within efforts to market your company. Other ideas include blogs, networking sites, newsletters, tips, alerts, seminars, education, bundled services and more as areas of great opportunity for marketing to extend value. Here are some specific examples: 1.     A world-class rodeo roper and instructor just added a yahoo community to his site to help novice ropers collaborate (with his help) as a means to promote his schools. 2.     While attending a women’s expo, a marriage counselor handed out a pamphlet with 10 great exercises for couples to explore over dinner. 3.     A bed & breakfast mailed out CDs with the sounds of nature to attract more vacationers to their Napa Valley location. 4.     A dog trainer hired teens to hand out branded baggies to pet owners at parks, trails and events. 5.     A local gym emailed out a simple calorie counter to all existing members that quickly spread to friends and family. 6.     A local band offered one of their latest songs as a free download off their website. 7.     A local bakery offered a recipe for a gourmet cookie or pastry every month. This doesn’t mean that we are doing away with advertising, direct mail or websites. But it does mean that we have to start thinking differently about how we create value for customers beyond the product or service itself.  As business owners, we need to think in terms of creating long-term value that leads to satisfaction and referrals.  Large or small, if companies need to support a value proposition over the long term, then what is marketing’s role in that value creation?  What value can marketing provide in addition to the product or service itself?  The Internet has enabled value-based marketing in tremendously scalable and affordable ways.  Knowledge is value if packaged correctly and assembled for your customers.  Google is a shining example of the value of information, aggregated into relevant, consumable portions.  Value-based marketing has the potential to change the way that consumers perceive your company, more as an advocate than marketer.  The definition of an advocate is “A person who speaks or writes in support or defense of a person, cause, etc.”  An advocate is seen as an ally, a helper, a resource and is usually in a better position to gain trust. The end result is a translation into increased sales and loyalty. 2008-06-12T10:13:50Z

2008-06-12T13:30:58Z

-21.5711

905 1115

true

13447

seattle-brand-strategy-marketing-as-a-value-added-service

2008-06-12T13:30:15Z

Your product or service is not the only way that you can create value for your customers. Marketing is emerging with an expanded role to include value creation itself. Seattle, this is a great new brand strategy for your business.

Seattle Brand Strategy: Marketing As A Value-Added Service

2009-02-24T09:44:46Z