Valentine’s Day reminds us of the power of the “sweet spot.” In romance when human beings aim for that sweet spot and hit it, there can be breakthroughs in relationships, ranging from healing to engagements to marry. However, those who operate businesses often find that what they aimed at in their promotions doesn’t turn out to be the sweet spot. The results of the campaign are disappointing.
Why does this happen? We at Image Marketing Consultants find there are three major reasons why promotions fail. Here they are:
Not enough research into customer needs. The cardinal rule of sales is to invest the most time in finding out what the customer needs. At a car dealership it might be high gas mileage because of a long commute, not so much price. The salesperson who keeps pitching price will not get that sale.
Not enough choice. If you read those credit cards offers coming in snail mail you will notice the proliferation of choices. You can choose a shorter period for a balance transfer at no interest rate or a longer period for a low interest rate. Reward points can be “spent” in a growing number of ways, including applying them back to pay off part of the monthly balance. Without these choices, prospects might just toss the sales literature in the trash.
Wrong tone. As lovers know, how something is said is everything. The tone of business communications keeps shifting, sometimes in subtle ways. After the wild west days of the rhetoric used in social media, communications have become more subdued. Morever, there has to be a different tone for diverse target markets. That’s why some companies have separate Facebook brand pages for diverse products and demographics.
Kate Sirignano, founder of Image Marketing Consultants, invites you to a complimentary consultation for your marketing, public relations, partnership, special events, and social media needs kate@imagemarketingconsultants.com 203-404-4868.