Bold moves for marketing

Kooweerup Community Bank Manager Andrea Vincent, Lang Lang Community Bank Executive Manager Laura McBride and Star News Group Advertising Account Executive Diane O'Hehir. 169678_01 Pictures: STEWART CHAMBERS

By Rebecca Skilton

It’s been said that Albert Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.
And according to a Brisbane marketing expert, it’s this exact insanity that too many businesses apply to their strategic marketing plan.
Marketing strategist, creative writer and inspiring conference speaker Damian Morgan encouraged local business owners to be bold, precise and informed at a business excellence seminar held by Star News Group on Thursday 22 July.
He walked business owners through a marketing crash course covering the whos, the whats, the whens, the wheres and the whys of strategic marketing at the Cardinia Cultural Centre.
And the overriding theme?
Marketing isn’t optional when seeking business success.
Using examples of brands such as Tradie underwear and Workwear, Adidas, Nike and Lorna Jane, he stressed the importance of brand positioning, strongly encouraging businesses to have a firm understanding of their target audience.
He said that a good advertisement doesn’t appeal to everyone, but instead charms and hooks people that the products and services are aimed at.
“A bad ad costs the same as a good ad but the difference is bad ads don’t work,” he said.
“We think that advertising is telling people what we’re capable of which can be our biggest mistake but great advertising actually appeals to people’s hearts as well as their minds.
“Good ads don’t hook everyone, but they get far more than they would if they were watered down (to tailor for everyone).”
He encouraged business owners to target specific marketing seasons such as tax time, Christmas, sports seasons and seasons of the year and to tailor their advertising to the current market – or risk losing potential customers.
“At Christmas time, you’re competing with every present under the tree – if you don’t promote whatever it is you’ve got that could be a gift at Christmas you’re losing sales to everyone that is,” he said.
“You’ve got to make your product or service giftable. So many small businesses roll over and die in their off seasons but when you promote during the off season, you’re going to win where others won’t.
“And when you don’t have seasons, make them up.”
When it came to marketing and advertising platforms, he highlighted that the importance of local media outlets should never be overlooked and encouraged business owners to use their local newspapers to tap into the market in which they exist.
“If you want to know local news, politics and sports and about what’s happening in the local area, there isn’t many other sources than the local newspaper,” he said.
“The people reading those papers – they’re local. From a commercial point of view, that should be music to your ears.
“Local newspapers should be the first cab off the rank, your base layer.
“You need to saturate the market in which you sit. If you do that, you’re much more likely to get a return from the people more likely to buy from you.”
Within local advertisements he encouraged businesses to use content space wisely, emphasising that ads work best when focused on one ‘hook’ and are tailored to suit the changing needs of individual seasons.
“You’re not going to fill the ad with the business’s whole story,” he said.
“Use the content space to say one thing – one compelling reason why somebody should give you a go.
“And try to scratch different itches once a month.”