MARKETING PRINCIPLES 

These Marketing Principles Will Give You the Foundation Required for Success.  Failure to Learn These Will Set You Back.  Way Back.

Unlike 80's big hair, 90's grunge, and other silly fads, marketing principles apply across generations and eras. Only the application of the principles changes as the culture shifts. So, learn these marketing principles and then practice the application of them according to the times in which we live.

Marketing Principles: The Primacy of Integrity

There are three rules you must follow if you are to run a business with integrity.  If you do not follow them, you will not do well.  And, you shouldn't do well.  All other marketing principles mean nothing if you don't follow these three rules:

1.  Do what you say you will do.

2.  Do it by the deadline you agreed to meet (without being hassled or nagged)

3.  Do it for the price you agreed upon.

Following these three rules are evidence that you can be trusted.  Trust can be hard to build and is easily lost.  When you manage your website or blog, don't let the somewhat impersonal nature of the internet tempt you into violating any of these rules.  You must make integrity your number one policy.

Marketing Principles: Develop Your U.S.P.

One of the marketing principles that guides a successful buisiness is the development and use of their Unique Selling (or Service) Proposition (USP). It is important to develop and use a USP to differentiate you from everyone else in your niche. M&Ms developed a great one to separate itself from all other chocolate candies: "The milk chocolate melts in your mouth, not in your hand."

Why are you doing what you do? What benefits can you provide for others? Is there a common thread to what you do that you can specify? By developing a USP, you are forced to nail down the specifics of what you are doing. It is from this platform that you can then dive more successfully into using the rest of these marketing principles.

My USP is based on the biblical reference to the sons of Issachar as recorded in 1 Chronicles 12:32. My USP is, "Giving people knowledge so that they can understand the times and take action." This entire website is a derivative of my USP. I want people to see the benefits they can have by starting a website, blog, or other online venture. Then, I want to help them gain the knowledge and understanding required to take action!

If you are stuck, you may want to use 15 Second Pitch to help develop your own. You will end up having to pay for things by the end if you use them, but developing a USP will help implement all the other marketing principles that you will use.

Marketing Principles: You Gotta Serve Someone

The superiority of service as a business model was talked about on the Business Philosophy page.  Marketing principles are only put to good use when you have a legitimate service to offer.  If you just trick people into buying things from you, you'll end up penniless and friendless.

Some people say, "The customer is always right."  Of course that isn't literally true.  But, you'd be wise to always give your customers the benefit of the doubt.  Do not be a doormat, but seek to serve the best interests of your patrons.  If you don't believe in a product, don't sell it.  Be there to serve, and profit will likely come.  Be there for profit, and you may find it hard to find customers to serve.

And, remember that unparalleled service makes happy people.  Seek to make people happy, and they'll like giving you business.

Marketing Principles: Positive Positioning

This is a markekting principle that does not come naturally for many people.  Positive positioning happens when the benefits of a product or service are perceived by a buyer as vital to his interests.

Most people develop a strategy to sell a product or service.  Positive positioning would suggest that your strategy shouldn't be a thrust to sell the product itself, but to show a buyer how he or his group will benefit from the product.  You sell the idea of your product as a resource for benefits.  Then, in order to get the benefits, they buy your product.  

Marketing Principles: Sell to the Ready

Sell to people who are ready to buy. Marketing principles won't work on someone with no money and/or no interest whatsoever in your product.

Spend your time trying to sell to people who are almost ready to buy. If you try to convince people who aren't yet ready as to the value of your product, you will jsut end up wasting time (and money). Instead, give those people who are ready to buy reasons why buying from you will confirm the course of action that they are already favoring.

Sell to people whose emotions are already ready to buy but whose minds aren't there yet logically. Then, give them logical reasons why they should buy from you. Your USP can help you at this point!

Marketing Principles: Plan Your Back End

A back end is a product that you sell after your initial sale is made. If you sold manual doggie doo bags, you could have an automated system as a back end product. Back ends are products that you sell to existing customers. Having effective back end products to sell can escalate your business success rapidly.

They work because you offer them to someone who has demonstrated that they trust you enough to buy, are ready to buy, and have the resources to buy.  Before.

Of course, the products should be related.  You can't sell a book on the dangers of baby toys to someone looking to buy the aforementioned bags.  Planning a back end product to be presented following an initial sale is one of the marketing principles that can really boost a business if implemented successfully.

Marketing Principles: Exposure

People can't be helped by you and can't buy from you if they don't know what you have to offer them. You need exposure. There is an entire industry devoted to gaining exposure for businesses: the advertising industry.

In essence, applying marketing principles is advertising. You have to do it to be successful. So, adopt this strategy: "Every piece of paper sells another piece of paper" (or product or service). Or, in the virtual world, "every webpage sells another webpage."

Don't make individual webpages on your website dead ends. Encourage continuation on your website by linking to other pages within your site. This not only is part of a good SEO Strategy, it is also a good application of marketing principles.

Think about ways to put your website in front of others. Include a link at the bottom of every email that you send out. Put your URL on a business card and use Business Card Marketing. If you can gain exposure in a reputable way, do it!

Marketing Principles: Build Trust

Trust is critical in any relationship. The process of building trust with your website's visitors begins as soon as they hit your website. You should make them a promise right away. Then you should back it up with the details. Your content should validate you as an authority on the topic.

You should also create low, medium, and higher-priced products. Many people will want to test your material before buying the expensive, deluxe, high-powered product. Give them that opportunity. This is why Starting a Newsletter can be one of the Website Improvements that vaults your venture to the next level.

You can apply marketing principles within a newsletter while building trust with individuals! 

Marketing Principles: Add Value

Value is always determined by the opinion of the buyer or user. Try selling a rare antique chest to a sixteen year-old kid. He probably perceives it as being valueless. For him, this is accurate. Offer it to an antique hobbyist, and you'll likely get a different response.

Seek to add value to whatever you offer as part of your business. This doesn't have to cost much money (or any money at all). But, the buyer has to perceive that you have sweetened the deal. And, for him, you have. Give your customers something to increase the perceived value in a transaction, and you will increase your customer retention rate.

Marketing Principles: Risk Reversal

Risk reversal is just what it sounds like. It is where the seller assumes 100% of the risk that is normally involved in purchasing something. By assuming all the risk, you lower the barriers that are in place and keeping people from buying.

Risk reversal is the opposite of "all sales are final." Take the risk away from the buyer and place it on yourself, if at all possible. Give them a money-back guarantee. Give them a free trial period. Give them a risk-free experience with your product, and they are much more likely to use it, appreciate it, and make more purchases.

And, remember the three rules above. If you offer it, make good. Interestingly, only a tiny fraction ever ask for a refund as long as you are not defrauding them. So, the expenses you incur by offering guarantees are minimal. The benefits can be quite substantial.

Marketing Principles: Preeminence

Do you know your stuff? Position yourself accordingly. If you can do what you do better than your competition, make it known that you are the best. Do this by focusing on your unique abilities (not by talking negatively about specific competitors). You should work hard to be the best. Then, you don't have to apologize for not being top-of-the-line.

When you become the recognized leader, you can price your services accordingly. In fact, pricing your services accordingly will often make the point for you. People who want the best will search you out and pay what you charge.

Marketing Principles: Referrals

One of the most overlooked marketing principles is the power of referrals. You should make it easy for people to refer you to others. In the world of SEO Strategy, a backlink is essentially a referral. You need these to rank well in the search engines. Ranking well in the engines results in more traffic. Traffic drives everything and makes your website successful.

So, how do you get referrals? You ask for them. Give people the opportunity to use social bookmarking websites to share your content with others (see How to Use Social Networking). When people benefit from your website, ask them to share it with their friends. Encourage people to forward your newsletters to their friends. Ask people for names of people they think would benefit from your website and then send them a personal email.

Especially, ask them to link to pages on your website that they find interesting.  Links are the gifts that keep on giving.  They drive traffic to your website and help your authority and PageRank to increase.

People are much more likely to respond positively to a personal referral than they are an advertisement. Seek and actively encourage referrals, especially in the form of links pointing to your website.

Marketing Principles: Conclusion

When you apply these marketing principles, you will see results. Think about them. Think about how to apply them in your situation to your business. Do what you say you'll do, focus on serving, and never stop learning.

You can keep learning now by reading about Business Card Marketing.

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