Strategic Marketing Services

In practically any industry, strategic marketing services can provide vital information and specialized assistance to those businesses that want to stand out from the competition. Many advertising companies offer a variety of packages that can be customized to a particular business's specific goals and objectives for promoting their products. An increasingly popular and effective trend is for an advertising firm to design a niche marketing strategy for a client. Such a strategy is one response to the overwhelming advertisement clutter that consumers are exposed to every day. The excessiveness of commercials and ads creates a visual overload that most people tend to ignore. That's not good for business -- advertisements cost money and savvy business owners want to know that they will receive a return on the money spent on promoting their goods and services. This return most often comes in the form of sales which leads to profits, though sometimes a company may have a different objective. Even then, the outcome must be measurable so that management knows whether or not the objective has been achieved.

Businesses may hire strategic marketing services to perform a variety of specialized tasks. Perhaps the business needs assistance in assessing its objectives or analyzing its pricing structure. The firm may offer recommendations on such fundamentals as distribution channels or analyze the cost-effectiveness of the business's media buys. Product research is an important service offered by many advertising firms. By conducting surveys and utilizing focus groups, the firm can determine how a particular product or service is viewed by consumers, what new products or services appeal to consumers, and even such important information as what needs potential customers may have that are not being met. This last element can be vital for innovative companies seeking to design and develop new products. Whatever the goal of the required research, a competent firm will devise appropriate means for obtaining relevant data that they can then assess and analyze. Then the firm presents the client with the results of the research and a proposal for implementing the recommendations. The firm may even be hired to assist in the implementation process and to support the business throughout a product launch or a new advertising campaign.

A niche marketing strategy will focus on a specialized target audience instead of the general population. Though many entrepreneurs may be so excited about their new products that they see a new customer in every person they meet, the reality is that most goods and services appeal to segments of the consumer population. To some extent, the smaller the segment, the more profitable the new business venture may be. By targeting a niche in an industry instead of the industry as a whole, the entrepreneur may avoid competing against the major players who have the means to advertise and deliver goods to a broader customer base. For example, people who buy books can easily go to the giants. An individual who wants to open a bookstore is going to find it difficult to compete against the big guys who already have overwhelming name recognition and positive reputations for service. An advertising campaign to reach potential customers would be prohibitively expensive and not at all cost-effective. Besides, think about what wise King Solomon said: "And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh" (Ecclesiastes 12:12). Solomon was certainly right about the making of books -- and avid readers throughout the ages are thankful.

But back to the book-loving entrepreneur: what if she decided to sell only books about pets? The segment of the population has narrowed to people who have pets, want to have pets, and perhaps those who work with pets, such as veterinarians and kennel owners. But even this is a broad market. A savvy entrepreneur, in developing a niche marketing strategy, may choose to narrow this population even more until she ends up with an online store selling books, videos, and DVDs to owners of the giant breeds, such as the Irish Wolfhound and Great Danes. Her website may include articles on the specialized nutrition requirements of puppies that grow so big so quickly and helpful training techniques for handling a dog that's bigger than the trainer. Her company's narrow focus requires an advertising campaign geared to people who own, train, or work with giant breeds of dogs. This is a much smaller segment than the entire population of dog owners. The strategic marketing services required by this entrepreneur will target this specific audience instead of all dog owners. The niche marketing strategy may include designing an advertisement campaign that includes banner ads on websites frequented by owners of large breeds.

Business owners and entrepreneurs may also retain strategic marketing services for assistance in branding and product positioning. Marketing consultants stress that branding, whether of a good or service, is much more than a company name, logo, and trademark. Appropriate branding goes beyond these particular details to the creation of a relationship with current and prospective customers. Some companies work diligently to promote a reputation for outstanding customer service and find that, because they live up to the expectations of their reputation, they can charge higher prices than their competitors. Other companies may promote lower pricing structures and advertise bargain prices to appeal to budget-minded consumers. All these strategies can be analyzed and assessed by marketing professionals so that business owners can make cost-effective advertising decisions.

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