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THEY TELL ME I HAVE TO DO MARKETING

Skip Heydt

As the president of my own marketing communications firm, [HEH Associates], I often hear, "They tell me I have to do marketing" from a lot of company presidents, ranging from technology-driven start-ups to global corporations.

Marketing. This single word strikes fear in many a business person's heart. It just plain causes a whole lot of worry and stress.

So many choices, so many mediums to choose from to get your message across. While it's great to have choices, it can be overwhelming to have to deal with it. The result? Companies frequently do nothing, and suffer the loss of opportunities.

As a 'marketing man' with over 35 year's experience, I can tell you that there is no easy solution, but there is a process. I'll explain it to you in what I call, "A Marketing Continuum." It can help you navigate through the sea of options and decisions you'll need to make while crafting the plan that is right for your company.

Planning

Accept that marketing is a process. First you'll need to ask yourself a few questions. This is a test of sorts. Do you want to A. market your company strategically? Will your focus be on long-term planning and building a brand? Or, do you choose to B. market tactically, where the objective is to get business in the door? The answer is that neither A nor B is correct. Good as it sounds; there should never be a purely tactical effort. You need both to succeed. The winning combination is best stated as "Everything done tactically should be strategically driven."

Choose the medium. There are both traditional and new media to choose from to reach your target market: T.V., radio, direct mail, Internet, trade publications, to name just a few. You can't really choose until you have completed the very critical step of defining your target market and identifying how they prefer to get their information.

Addressing the budget. Okay, if we all had unlimited budgets, we'd inundate the market and hit every marketing venue on the menu. The reality is that very few companies [if any] have the luxury of an unlimited budget. What then? Take your answers to all of the questions up until this point and now relate them to your budget. You've arrived at the point where you need to decide where the proverbial "biggest bang for your buck" really lies.

I've tried to make the planning phase sound simple, but the reality is that this phase requires much more time and energy than most companies are willing or able to devote. Without planning, something that many companies "don't have time for", success is truly jeopardized. You're in business because you're passionate about what you do, not because you wanted to become a marketing expert. We live in an era of specialization, one in which professionals are valued for the unique services they provide. A talented hair colorist doesn't usually cut hair. He or she will leave that to someone who specializes in cutting. It's really much the same for every business. The planning process is only the beginning. Once that's in place, you'll need to decide on the creative, layouts, copy, and finally, which marketing materials you will need to carry out your strategy.

Marketing is a full-time job that will take you away from what you love to do and what you specialize in. After many years in the game, I can say with confidence that to develop and execute highly effective marketing, you need a professional marketing agency. Once you've made that decision, keep in mind that it's always best to have only one agency deal with your company's marketing to ensure that your message stays clear, consistent and continual.

At HEH Associates, we're passionate about marketing, because that's our specialty. Marketing, not cutting hair, not accounting, not selling printing services. We have more than 25 years of experience in the communications business, and like you, we're passionate about what we do. There's a name for what we do. It's called 'marketing communications'. We've fulfilled the communications requirements of small B-to-Bs all the way up to Fortune 500s. I can't stress the word "communications" enough. Clients love us because we listen. We won't recommend more than you need or can afford, because more is not always better. In fact, we won't accept an assignment unless we believe we can be useful. We have the tools, experience and in-depth knowledge to deliver a strategy that most compellingly showcases your company's product or service. Together, we work with you to develop a fresh creative vision married to persuasive copy that delivers results. Your success is our success; our goal is to exceed your expectations in all aspects of the project. Every project - regardless of size - receives the same exceptional service we've built our reputation on.

Remember: It is not enough to be first or have a superior product. You must create an understanding of the benefits that your product or service delivers.

So, let's get started. Call us for a complimentary exploratory meeting.

Published in the Fairfield County Business Journal