Istvan Szurop CEU lecture Marketing for Startups and Small Businesses 03-05-2011

Marketing for startups and small businesses

István Szurop

Applied

Marketing Strategy

Course (BUSI 591M)

CEU

Business School

Budapest, May 3, 2011

Marketing success criteria

•  Focus •  Difference •  Process •  Content

Today’s agenda

Strategy •  Why and how to find and focus on your Ideal

Customers? •  Why and how to differentiate your business?

Tactics •  Why and how to think in process? •  Which marketing tools to use? •  Content marketing: how David can beat Goliath?

Putting it all together •  Planning and executing your marketing

Find and focus on your Ideal Customers!

The 80-20 rule

Defining the Ideal Customers

BUYERS

REFERRER

most

most least

How to generate insights?

Lab setting Natural Re

ques

ted

Volunt

ary

At homes, in stores…

Focus group, online survey, copy test…

Customer service calls, emails…

Word of mouth Buzz monitoring

Source: Bob Gilbreath / Possible Worldwide

Most important questions to ask

•  Who are they? What motivates them (socio-‐demographics, psychographics)?

•  How to reach them? How they get and process buying information? How they buy? Who influences them?

•  From existing customers: What do they think what our difference is? What is their opinion about our business? Would they recommend us?

Why and how to listen?

Sons of Maxwell: United broke my guitar (10M times)

The one question you should ask

The Net Promoter Score

How likely are you to recommend to a colleague or friend?

Research tips

•  First qualitative , then quantitative •  Mind the sampling (size, representation) •  First ask the generals, then the specifics •  Interview secondary sources (e.g. non-‐competitive industry experts) as well

•  People watching for deeper insights (e.g. brand and media consumption, social and leisure time activities)

Research tips 2

•  Choose expandable online survey tools (e.g. Google Docs, SurveyMonkey vs. Infusionsoft, VerticalResponse, MailMaster)

•  Use auxiliary forces (e.g. university stat labs for segmentation, smaller agencies for focus group facilities, fieldworkers, screening

•  MillwardBrown TGI database in 60+ countries: fast-‐track research

Create personas!

Personifying your research insights helps understand how your target audience thinks and feels

Update your targeting from time to time!

The startup killer chasm

INNOVATORS

LATE MAJORITY EARLY MAJORITY

EARLY ADOPTERS LAGGARDS

Differentiate your business!

93% of advertisements are similar

The strategic sweet spot

Competitors Customers

You

COST OF ENTRY FEATURES AND BENEFITS

DIFFERENTIATING BENEFITS

EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE

The Brand Pyramid

Source: Paul Garrison / The Garrison Group

Differentiated, therefore we are

SAFETY DRIVING EXPERIENCE

LUXURY

What could make a difference?

Recipe, component, patent, product feature, benefit, packaging, delivery, service, customer experience, story,

heritage, shared lifestyle, belief or value, target group, operating model…

increase, create terminate, decrease

THIS DIGITAL WORLD WANTS

BRAND CONSISTENCY

Branding is not just a logo!

Use the following simple technique to collect, asses and group features and

benefits that are related to your small business brand and competitors

How to construct your positioning?

Source: Paul Garrison / The Garrison Group

Step 1: Brainstorm all the associations

Step 2: Look for patterns

Step 3: Transform the areas into features and customer benefits

FEATURE / BENEFIT 1 FEATURE / BENEFIT 2 FEATURE / BENEFIT 3

FEATURE / BENEFIT 4 FEATURE / BENEFIT 5 FEATURE / BENEFIT…

Step 4: Prioritize the features and benefits

COST OF ENTRY FEATURES AND BENEFITS

DIFFERENTIATING BENEFITS

EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE

Step 5: Repeat for competitors

Now it’s your turn!

Group work Create and present the simplified brand pyramids (positioning) for the following 2 competing brands: •  Group A: Coke vs. Pepsi •  Group B: Dell vs. Apple •  Group C: Ford vs. Volkswagen •  Group D: Budapest vs. Prague 20 minutes preparation + 4 x 2.5 minutes presentations

Let’s have a 10-minute break!

Think in process!

Love at first sight?

The customer journey

The Marketing Hourglass

Based on the Marketing Hourglass Concept by John Jantsch / Duct Tape Marketing

Marketing toolkit

Internet marketing

•  Own website (hub) •  Email marketing (newsletter, ezine, eDM) •  Search engine marketing (search engine optimization – SEO, PPC – e.g. Google AdWords) •  Social media (blogging, micro blogging – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, forums, wikis etc.)

What makes a great website

•  Have customers in mind when planning •  Contact details everywhere •  Fast downloading (hosting, coding) •  No Flash, no jargon – please •  Lots of content (search engines) •  Prioritize information •  Structured, visible links •  Fixed, ergonomic navigation •  Search function •  Platform independent (smartphones too)

Advertising

•  Print (dailies, weeklies, magazines) • Radio •  TV (local, national), teletext • Outdoor media (billboard, citylight, vehicle advertising) • Ambient media (disruptive, creative, interactive)

2-step direct response advertising

Useful information, free sample, demo, trial version, unique discount, opinion survey…

”Nobody wants to be sold to, but everyone likes shopping”

Ambient

Direct marketing

• Direct mail •  Postcard •  Small package, lumpy mail •  Coupon •  Leaflet, brochure •  Catalogue + Telemarketing

DM tips

•  Personalization •  Winning formula: headline, problem, solution, answer objections, offer, call to action, PS

•  Repetition, follow up •  Swipe file (collection of tested and proven pieces)

•  Test, test, test (targeting, offer, timing, creative)!

Referral marketing, word of mouth

• Deserve it •  Be interesting •  Target and time •  Educate, make it an expectation • Make it convenient •  Follow up! + Referral by different name

Earned media attention (PR)

•  Be newsworthy •  Target your sources •  First read and listen •  Start small •  Be consistent and patient •  Become an expert source

Event marketing

•  Seminar, webinar • Workshop, lecture •  Public speaking •  Trade show, roadshow •  Conference, exhibition…

Content marketing

Forgotten tactics

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

PHYSIOLOGICAL, SAFETY

LOVE BELONGING

SELF-‐ ACTUALIZATION

The hierarchy of content

SOLUTION

CONNECTION

ACHIEVEMENT

Provide valuable information, incentives and services

Create entertaining, sharable experience

Help me improve myself, my family and the world

Source: Bob Gilbreath / Possible Worldwide

Content marketing tools and examples

•  Tools: article, white paper, testimonial, case study, book (digital, print, audio), newsletter, magazine, magalog, podcast, mobile or Facebook application, widget, industry ranking, wiki, community site… endless!

•  Examples – Funny favorites: Will it blend? by Blendtec, Elf Yourself by OfficeMax

– Check for more at: http://www.marketingwithmeaning.com/blog/

The Marketing Hourglass

Based on the Marketing Hourglass Concept by John Jantsch / Duct Tape Marketing

Planning and executing your marketing

Sandwich method

Bottom-‐up: goal-‐ and activity-‐based planning and budgeting

Top-‐down: industry benchmarks, company life stage, profitability, competitors

Marketing budget as % of gross revenue

Source: MarketingSherpa, 2009, n = 1 147 Hungary < 5% (53%: <1%), own research, 2010, n = 400

MARKETING CALENDAR

WHOM TO TARGET?

WHAT TO ACHIEVE?

HOW? WHEN? HOW MUCH?

GAP (goal and ac@vity based planning)

Managing your marketing

•  Not just set, but communicate your goals •  Time management (appointments with yourself)

•  Create a monthly theme •  Use modern technology (RSS, sales-‐marketing automation)

•  Involve and train your team (everyone’s job) •  Marketing Committee •  When hiring, check writing skills as well

Final buzzwords

•  Strategy first •  Use guesswork •  Trial and error • Measure! •  System and process

Home assignment

Home assignment

Group work Based on the startup idea you had elaborated as a team, please prepare a maximum 5-‐page document which explains

•  The Ideal Customer Profile(s) of your business, describing and illustrating it as expressively as you can, e.g. using life style collage, psychographic descriptions

•  Your differentiating proposition (using the Brand Pyramid and comparing it to some possible competitors)

•  A detailed marketing calendar for you first year (per customer type, defining measurable goals, activities etc.)

Deadline: May 10, 2011 EOD (please forward your assignments , in doc, docx or pdf format, to the following email address: [email protected])

Questions

Books to read / sources

•  David Meerman Scott: Real-‐time Marketing and PR •  Fred Reichheld : The Ultimate Question •  Geoffrey A. Moore: Crossing the Chasm •  Paul Garrison: Exponential Marketing •  Seth Godin: Permission Marketing / Meatball

Sundae / Purple Cow •  John Jantsch: Duct Tape Marketing •  Bob Gilbreath: The Next Evolution of Marketing •  Steven Gary Blank: Four Steps to the Epiphany

Downloadables

Q:\Instructors\Szurop Istvan OR

http://tkon.li/szuropCEU

István Szurop [email protected]

m: +36 30 281 7302

Istvan Szurop CEU lecture Marketing for Startups and Small Businesses 03-05-2011

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