With so many marketing techniques to choose from, there are often times when we wonder which technique we should choose when it comes to our business. The truth is that there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to marketing, but rather, we should choose according to what works for our specific industry. From content marketing to running ads, there are many concepts that we’re able to eliminate or include in our marketing technique.
How can we know what works best for our business? In my opinion, trial and error is the best way to find out. This is one of the only ways one can determine which technique works best! For me, ads didn’t work; and although I achieved many likes and follows, they did not convert to sales, which is still the lifeline of every business. I posted a lot of content on social media but still didn’t achieve the results I had hoped to gain.
So, what worked for me? Contact marketing! I came to realize that as a ghostwriter servicing high-end clients, my target market did not hang out on social media. The market I needed to tap into wasn’t seeing my ads and content. Most busy executives, CEOs, speakers, and industry leaders are busy in their offices or busy dominating their domains. They don’t have time to scroll social media the way most people do. They’re usually pinned down and locked into a schedule that enables them to achieve the excellence that they strive for daily. They’re far too occupied chasing the extraordinary results they pursue. Contact marketing works best for this market because it enables direct contact, it is more intimate, and it demands a response—even if the response is no.
Direct contact is forced when contact marketing is enabled. The first time I used this method, I discovered just how brilliant taking my brochure and placing it in the hands of the person I was targeting. It forces the individual into my presence and gives me a chance to guarantee that they receive my brochure. Even if the brochure makes it into the hands of the assistant, they will ensure that the targeted individual receives it.
Not to mention, this method is a lot more intimate than an ad or random online flyer. Contact marketing gives me the chance to show my personality. Doing things digitally is good, but nothing compares to in-person energy, especially when it includes some of the five senses. The smell of another’s cologne or the firm handshake of another person is still compelling. A warm and friendly smile is still beyond powerful. Feeling the warmth of another’s personality is still a great way to draw in the opposite party. I’m not saying to flirt, I’m simply saying not to underestimate the power of human energy. Humans still feed off this and crave this. There is still power in human in-person energy.
I recall taking one of my brochures to the church of a pastor one Sunday afternoon. I was so happy that I had caught him. He had not answered my original email nor my follow-up email. I soon learned why. First, he told me that he had received my emails. Then, he gave me a chance to tell him more about myself and what I did. Moments into our conversation, he admitted that he had already begun a project with someone else. I was a bit disappointed, but I was happy to know that I could cross him off my pitch list and move on to someone else. You see, contact marketing demands a response even if the answer is “no.”
Contact marketing works in my industry because it is bold, loud, intentional, and direct. I have learned this through trial and error. Where does your target market hang? Are they in their office? Are they on the golf course? Are they scrolling social media? Are they in schools, colleges, or universities? Are they listening to the radio? Are they watching television? Which style of marketing works for your business? No matter which industry you’re in, there is a specific marketing technique that works for you. What works for you? Which technique demands excellent results and achieves them?
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