4 Steps to Elevate Your Marketing and Reel in Results 

Marketing evolved at an unprecedented speed during the pandemic. Technology created a massive digital transformation. Messaging shifted to emphasize authenticity and human connection. 

Yet by focusing on what’s most important to connect with customers and improve their experience, we create better results. These cost-effective strategies will help lift your marketing:   

1. Refine your promise to your ideal client A thoughtful organization knows its ideal clients so well it can identify what they need before they know what they need. That was the case for many of the businesses that survived the pandemic. They moved quickly to identify new pain points and launch solutions. They were rewarded with their clients’ loyalty.  

When you know your clients’ needs, you can make powerful marketing promises that inspire people to lean in rather than tune out.

2. Create an exceptional experience Marketing becomes cohesive when you connect sales and the customer experience. We can’t stop engaging with prospects once they become clients. We must nurture relationships and create an exceptional customer experience so they will repeat and refer.

As a certified specialist with the Duct Tape Marketing system, we focus on the hourglass and its seven stages. For prospects to buy and become brand ambassadors (active referral makers), they must move sequentially through these stages: know, like, trust, try, buy, repeat and refer. Content should drive awareness, lead generation, lead conversion and customer experience. 

Side note: Learn more about the hourglass philosophy from my mentor John Jantsch, author of "The Ultimate Marketing Engine: 5 Steps to Ridiculously Consistent Growth," which was named by Forbes one of the top 20 must-read marketing books in 2022.   

3. Think total online presence Marketing in 2022 must be digitally integrated and include social media and influencer marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, website and email marketing.  

For our clients, we use a spreadsheet to track marketing that breaks down tasks by the seven stages. The spreadsheet feeds a calendar with monthly, weekly and daily tasks. 

4. Measure each step Full disclosure: I purposely left out marketing strategy as a first step because so many people find it overwhelming. At Hook, our motto is Strategy First. Once you’ve gone through Steps 1, 2 and 3, you’re almost there. The bottom line: Plan your marketing and identify key results that further your bigger goals. 

Categories to measure could include sales, social, content, conversion metrics, growth and more. One of the hardest tasks is determining what to measure and why.  

If you launched the year without a marketing strategy, it’s not too late to chart a course to reel in clients. Enjoy the voyage! 

Patricia V. Rivera is a marketing consultant and founder of Hook PR & Marketing, which focuses on helping changemakers build their brands – in print, digital and multiple languages. Visit www.hookpr.com or call 302 858 5055.