5 ways to maximize your message and engage your network
Let’s face it; Sales and Marketing are driven by different numbers. Sales is driven by dollars. Marketing is driven (today) by data. Sales is looking for the close. Marketing nurtures the relationship. Sales is focused on leads. Marketing is focused on … well … leads. But we also focus on reach. And awareness. Because marketers know that increased awareness and messaging reach help to drive leads. Which, in turn, drives sales.
To better understand the importance of reach in a digital world, Facebook Marketing Science conducted research to determine how efficient reach is in driving impact to more people and real business. They found: The lower reach may have had a more precise audience, which has more response per person, but the top reach quartile drove more people to buy. This shows that, for marketers, focusing on reach drives more buyers and ultimately more incremental sales. (source: insights.fb.com)
At the beginning of the week I launched a new website. For those of you who have ever been through this process before, you know what I mean when I say it comes pretty close to childbirth. Now, in the “good ‘ol days”, you would issue a press release and perhaps even throw a party. Today…not so much.
As a marketer, my job is to get folks to visit the website in the hopes of generating leads. And, while new visitors won’t know that they are looking at a brand new site, prospects and customers who have been on the site many times before, WILL. And while it is now standard practice to include a url in print, advertising, promotional items, etc., what isn’t standard is how to get folks to know that it’s NEW.
This doesn’t just apply to websites. This applies to anything we want to drive awareness towards, whether it’s a new service, solution or product; or whether it’s something a bit more subtle, like an award, a press release, or article.
Today, I updated “my mood” on Skype. (Yes…you can do that). I changed it to: NEW joannegorecommunications.com. Why would I do that? Because every one of my contacts has the potential to see it. And because many are business colleagues, it’s an unobtrusive way of sharing the information. And the more who see it, the more likely someone will visit the site.
It made me realize how many opportunities are being “left on the table” because we’re so focused on the big things. So I put together my Top 5 underused opportunities to maximize your message. These are opportunities to get a message into the hands of almost everyone you interact with. And they are simply… overlooked:
5 ways to maximize your message and engage your audience
1 – Skype’s “in the mood” setting: ‘nuf said
2 – Email signature (on ALL your devices): Add a link to your newsletter, or video, or press release. Don’t forget about your Reply signature too.
3 – Voice mail (both corporate/auto-attendant and personal): Let your outbound message drive awareness
4 – Social Media profile status: Shout it out to your network
5 – Out of Office notification: Use this wisely…and sparingly. Remember to turn the notification off after no more than 2 business days.
When you start thinking of all the ways you interact with people, you begin to recognize opportunities to share information. Which could lead to a conversation. Which could lead to a sale. So, before you discount the value of reach, consider how doing a few simple tweaks, and maximizing every opportunity to use a message, can truly benefit your bottom line.
