HighTech Women: Marketing - It’s Not Just for the Big Guys

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Pat Billingham's article on Going Global
Natasha Binar's article on
Thinking Straight in the Era of Increased Redundancies/Layoffs
Gail Cargill's article Will your savings survive the slump?
Fiona Thompson's article on Growing up with New Media
Frances Cairncross's article on What’s left after the bubble bursts...
Amber Rudd's article on Conferences -- When to attend and when to pass
Emily Stoner's article on Venture Philanthropy
Lucy Marcus's article on Building a Better Business Plan
Sue Blackburn's article Community, Trust and Good Service.com
Janet Morrison & Angela Lyons' article on Data Protection and the Internet
Tracey Shirtcliff's article on Web Content
Lisa Modisette's article on Mobile Commerce: Location Services
Sally Edwards's article Look Who’s Talking... understanding that phone bill
Lucy Marcus's article on Building Better Beta Sites
Janice Caplan's article HighTech Human Resources in 2001
Virginia Begg's article on The Art of Recruitment
Lesley Nash's article on Truly HighTech Recruitment
Agnes Foy's article on B2B Electronic Marketplaces
Jane Renton's article on What Makes a Good Corporate Website?
Janet Morrison & Angela Lyons' article on Distance Selling Regulations
Read about your Personal Investment Goals and Strategies
Read your views on Leadership
Read about your Goals for 2001
Read your predictions for 2001

Be Focused

If the Internet boom taught us anything about marketing, it has to be that marketing for marketing’s sake is worthless. We saw companies burn through vast amounts of venture capital by throwing lavish launch parties, producing slick advertisements and betting the farm on tenuous business concepts. This carefree time mistakenly gave some entrepreneurs the notion that unless you spend millions, you can’t effectively market a company, which is simply not true. Marketing is essential for companies of all sizes, but is especially critical during a company’s early stages, when it must be not just tactical but also strategic. But, for marketing to work at this stage, it must be rooted firmly in the goals of the business, with the objective of bringing about results that build the company’s image and credibility and drive sales revenue. The key to this is achieving focus.

However, in the chaos that often defines the start-up experience, company executives are pulled in many directions and often lack this focus. It is precisely during this time that marketing can play a key role in bringing some strategic focus into the mix. This is the time to figure out what it is the company is really good at and why — what’s the unique selling proposition — and who will buy it. Many early stage companies are trying to be all things to all people. Good strategic marketing begins with understanding what the company is really good at and staying focused on developing and selling that message to a real target audience. Part and parcel of this is creating a clear brand and brand personality; remember, a brand is essentially a promise to your customers and stakeholders. And don’t overlook the effect that developing a clear mission and vision for the company can have on focus — both for the management team and for the rest of the staff.

Be Memorable

Not every company is a household brand. Indeed, not every company is trying to be as well known as Persil or Orange — but one thing you can have in common with these big brands is that in your own way and in your own niche, you can become memorable.

What does this mean? Put something extra into every contact you have with clients or partners or other stakeholders. If you’re selling business services, for example, when you get a new client on board, don’t just send them a contract, send them a welcome letter from the managing director with a copy of a topical book that relates to your business and theirs. They’ll be impressed with the personal touch, and most importantly, they’ll remember you. Strive to make every stakeholder interaction memorable in some way, by adding a personal touch, a thank you or a feedback loop. Even being the company that has a full candy jar in reception can create a memorable and lasting impression.

Guerrilla marketing tactics are also valuable here, such as clever public relations programs that genuinely create ‘news’, having an on-hold message that informs callers about your latest offering or printing branded pens or other give-aways, so that your prospects and customers will have a constant reminder of your company. (Don’t forget to include your Web address on these!) Again, such tactics are not expensive or difficult—but they are often overlooked. What simple actions can you take to make your company and brand experience stand out in the consumers’ minds and rise above the fray?

Always Look Bigger Than You Are

Perception is reality. It sounds cliché, but if your business looks like a smart, polished and professional entity, rather than like a fly-by-night operation, customers and prospects will view it as such. But how do you achieve this grand aim without a major monetary investment in marketing?

Looking bigger than you are begins internally and works its way out. Every employee is an ambassador for your company. One could argue, for example, that a company’s receptionist is its most important employee. Why? This person is the customer’s gateway into your company. How do they greet visitors and callers, do they remember the voices and names of key clients, are they presenting an appropriate image of your company? What about your office space and décor? It doesn’t need to be ultra-posh, but it’s worth considering what kind of impression of your business will customers or partners will take away after visiting your office. It is often these subtleties that impact brand perception and even future business.

Going beyond these more esoteric elements, looking big is also about cultivating internal evangelists who all share a consistent story and vision for the company. As you build your company, creating and engendering buy-in from all employees and equipping them to talk knowledgably and consistently will help present a unified vision of the company to the outside world. After all, if a company’s own employees can’t consistently describe what a company does, this will undoubtedly create the impression of disjointedness and disorganisation that can impact client perception. If you happened to be in the lift with a major potential client, for example, how would you describe your company in the three minutes it takes to ascend from the ground floor to the 5^th floor? Each employee must know the ‘lift pitch’— and it must be consistent. It is essential for employees to know this mantra and be comfortable relating the story to a prospect in the lift, a friend at the local pub or even to the company’s MD (if she or he happens to ask).

This level of consistency should also carry over in to the company’s materials. Every letter, proposal, work product and presentation should carry a unified style, look and feel, from the paper used to the fonts and formats. It typically only costs just a bit extra to have a custom PowerPoint template designed, but the impact can be significant. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. With some creative thinking and perhaps a good look at the practices of companies you admire, you can develop some tactics of your own to help project an image of stability, credibility and confidence.

Conclusion

With the deliberate implementation of good strategy and smart, common sense tactics, early stage marketing and the creation of a memorable brand don’t have to break the bank, but they can break through the clutter in the prospect’s mind. Being focused, memorable and looking ‘bigger than you are’ can provide a solid platform that will help a company transition from being perceived as a small start-up into a more substantial entity in the minds of the customers.

Diane Perlman (dianeperlman@yahoo.co.uk) is an independent marketing consultant, specialising in marketing, branding and PR for early stage companies and those going through a transition or change.

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