Let’s face it. Not all businesses are as flashy and exciting as manufacturing high-end sports cars, groundbreaking technology or exquisite luxury items. The marketing for some products is as simple as letting people know the product exists. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for most companies, and this means they may need to work extra hard or be extra creative in making sales. As Ryan Holiday writes for The Huffington Post, “The problem with a lot of marketing advice is that the examples they use are not exactly typical. It’s hard for businesses, particularly smaller businesses, to relate to the bold innovations of companies like Apple or Tesla. Not everyone is an American Apparel.”
But just because a company is boring, that doesn’t mean its products or services can’t be marketed effectively. Here are some tips to do just that.
Know Your Audience
Some brands only seem boring because most people aren’t interested in the product or service. Most people will simply ignore an ad for a personal injury lawyer or a carpet cleaner until they are in a car accident or need to deep clean their home. We’ve written multiple blogs on niche marketing. The key is clearing defining your audience. Don’t cast too broad a net if your market is truly much narrower. Once you’ve identified that niche, target them as precisely as you can. You’ll be avoiding those people who really do find you boring, but you’ll be connecting with those that are interested in what you have to offer.
Tell Your Story
People love stories. They catch our attention, help us relate and humanize businesses. Even for boring businesses, Holiday points out, “There has to be something about your business that gets you excited. Otherwise, you probably wouldn’t have spent your precious — irreplaceable — time on it.” If you can find a way to communicate that passion to your target audience, you might be surprised by the results.
Beware Over-the-Top Marketing and Gimmicks
Holiday writes, “Go Daddy is a domain name registrar. It doesn’t get more boring than that. But they have always been so over the top with everything they do — from the name itself to their Super Bowl ads — that it’s turned the company into a spectacle. You can say that this is cheap or tacky, but the business was sold for a reported $2.25 BILLION dollars (meaning they don’t care what you think).” Go Daddy certainly is a sensational story of a boring brand that made it big with an over-the top marketing strategy, but it’s sensational because that doesn’t typically work.
If you’re feeling anxious about your marketing efforts because you have a boring business, don’t. Most businesses revolve around products or services we all think are boring — until we need them.
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Tags: Customer Communication, Marketing, marketing practices, marketing strategy