A couple of days ago I wrote a blog “Do your sales happen by accident? How much do you actually know about your clients?” which generated a great series of thoughts, comments and suggestions.
One particular comment triggered me to think about how some of us see the different areas within our business and the team of people who may work in those areas. As a marketing specialist I believe that this is especially true when thinking of the relationships we build with our network, raise awareness of our values and the way in which we sell our products and services as well as serve the needs of our customers.
Many consultants will see their role in isolation – i.e. according to their specialism and will sometimes not think of how their offerings will integrate into the whole picture. Conversely as individual sole traders we often do not make enough of a distinction between the different hats we need to wear to succeed in getting the bits of our business to work cohesively so consequently everything merges into a conglomerate mass.
The results of a lack of understanding of the components of a marketing strategy within the bigger picture of the whole business and the people who work in it will always lead to a disconnect. Getting sales involves every other part of the enterprise from the moment we first attract someone’s attention to the moment that the products are delivered to their door. It is about providing great value, ensuring customer satisfaction and being so stonkingly good that your clients can’t wait to tell everyone else about you and what you have done for them. As we talked about in the previous blog, none of this has to happen by accident.
Creating a great business – and a successful marketing strategy we have to get everyone singing from the same hymn sheet and ensure that the communication between departments/roles/stages are very clear. This is true even if we are a sole trader working in isolation. This to me is the real art of collaboration – many people working together focused on one goal.
Being in a band is an incredible way to experience the art of collaboration in terms of working as a team, understanding the goals, focusing on promoting a great product and working together to deliver something that the customers enjoy.
Thanks to Robert Craven who found this video – this got me thinking….. What about if all the musicians break the rules and really get up close and personal by not only singing from the same hymn sheet but playing just one instrument?
So how do your social media, PR, marketing and sales fit in with the rest of the business?
Is everyone involved with raising brand awareness or do you leave that to the brand guys?
Do you get everyone ‘selling’ as in talking about the business, its products and services or is that just left to the sales guys?
Does everyone in your team, outsourced, employed or contracted understand your business objectives and what you are trying to achieve?