A Seven Layer Marketing Cake
Once upon a time, I went to Ohio. After a big steak dinner, I ordered a Seven Layer Carrot Cake (I am a fiend for cream cheese frosting). What arrived was a skyscraper of a dessert. Seven delicious layers of naughtiness, the scale of which I’d never seen in a UK restaurant. In good old US fashion, I took a to-go box and that cake delivered for four more days, with stolen spoonfuls each time I passed the fridge. Happy memories.
I always preach approaching marketing with that cake in mind. You need all those layers for maximum reward. Your customers need to see your message numerous times - seven (just like my cake) is the classically imparted wisdom - before they will react/act on it. This is nothing new. Getting technical, this multi channel approach is now enhanced and increasingly referred to as omni-channel marketing (ensuring every touch point delivers a seamless customer experience) but let’s not get caught up on semantics, it’s simply about communication.
Digital marketing, especially using retargeting, makes this a relatively easier number to aim for. A clever social media strategy supporting a campaign can be shouting daily to your audience on various platforms, quickly racking up the magic number of views.
However, a word of caution. It’s easy to sink all your cash into digital. And absolutely, that should be your first port of call. Any campaign today starts online. But don’t lose sight of the softer marketing tools that can support these digital efforts.
Your sales & operations teams are like gold dust for face to face (or virtual face to virtual face) interaction. Whatever you are promoting, your teams need to be fully behind, spreading the word. Even simple initiatives like the sign off on all emails promoting the campaign are effective at reinforcing messages. Keeping your teams informed of marketing efforts buys their support and encouragement.
Don’t get so caught up chasing the bright new shiny things that you forget your loyal, trusted clients. Don’t stress if you aren’t state of the art in your e-blasts. We can’t all be Mail Chimp gods but we can keep talking. Remind those that know you that you are still here and you’d love to get their business again.
In the same way, if you have other brands or outlets in your business portfolio, don’t forget to cross market to your other easily reachable audiences. Speak with partner companies who would be willing to share your messages. Everyone today is looking for content and your campaign message could be the additional filler your partner needed for their next e-blast.
If your message is unique enough, PR can be so helpful to add another layer. Local journalists are always on the hunt for stories and even a short piece in a small publication is another way for customers to see your message. If budgets are tight, outsourced PR may not be an option. But don’t be afraid to contact your local publications yourself - most journalists don’t actually bite.
In a world saturated with noise, communication is king. A little extra time taken to nurture some of these forgotten, easy to use layers can be the frosting on your cake. Deliciously rewarding (but hopefully without the calorific naughtiness).