“Marketing’s job is never done. It’s about perpetual motion. We must continue to innovate every day.” – Beth Comstock, Former CMO & Vice Chair, GE
As Beth Comstock stated, marketing is in constant motion. It’s in a constant state of adaptation and innovation with new marketing strategies developing regularly. Even though marketing is an ever-changing industry, some very common misconceptions about it don’t seem to disappear.
Digital marketing myths are (unfortunately) plentiful. These myths can range from thinking that a product or service can sell itself to believing that marketing is easy and can be done by anyone. The fact is, these myths are all too common, and it’s time to bust them.
Here are the top 10 marketing myths.
Marketing Myth 1: Inbound marketing is a fad.
One of the most recent digital marketing myths has to do with inbound marketing. Since it is relatively new (it started taking off in 2012), there is a cloud of uncertainty around it. When in reality, inbound marketing is used by countless marketing experts and has proven to be successful.
According to HubSpot, “3 out of 4 marketers across the globe prioritize an inbound approach to marketing.” So, more marketers use inbound marketing than we think! It looks like inbound marketing is here to stay.
Still not convinced? We break down the importance of inbound marketing in another one of our blog posts.
Marketing Myth 2: Social media can replace a website’s value.
While marketing on social media to expand brand recognition and engagement has proven to be successful, businesses should also utilize a website and not solely rely on social media. Not only does a website help to establish the professionalism of your brand, it also allows for more various forms of content to be shared and posted.
For example, having a website with a blog is a great way to show that your business is knowledgeable when it comes to the product or service that you offer. Having a website also allows you to more fully dive into the value of your products and services. On social media, users may not understand the full extent of your offerings. Plus, your website is crucial in your search engine rankings.
Finding a healthy balance between social media marketing and developing your website is a great idea as both platforms can help promote the other.
Marketing Myth 3: Websites can replace social media’s value.
This is the reverse of the previous myth. While we can’t stress website development enough, social media marketing is extremely important to any business or brand.
Social media is a great tool to promote brand awareness and can also be used as a way for your potential customers to connect with you. Your social media presence allows you to have personalized conversations with your audience and get to know their wants, needs, and pain points more accurately. Trust us, it’s worth your time to invest in your social media presence.
Marketing Myth 4: Case studies aren’t valuable.
First of all, what is a case study? It’s the analysis of a specific action or set of actions your business took to achieve a desired quantifiable result. Case studies use true data to show your business’s value.
When many people search for reviews of a product or service that is being advertised, they often look at what other people think about it. Case studies provide proof from the brand that their product or service actually works. 13% of marketers say that they use case studies as one of the primary forms of media for their content strategy.
Marketing Myth 5: Marketing isn’t needed with a steady client base.
While a company might have a steady client base, it does not mean that they should stop marketing efforts or strategizing how to improve them. In fact, we’ve found the opposite to be true. Having a steady client base is good, but having marketing strategies in place to grow, nurture, and retain your client base is essential. Companies go to great lengths and spend millions of dollars to gain new customers. Once you’ve gained a customer, it costs five times more to get a new customer than to retain an existing one. Your marketing efforts shouldn’t end at the close of the deal.
Marketing Myth 6: With great products or services, marketing isn’t needed.
Marketing’s #1 purpose is to create brand awareness in order to sell the product or service your company is selling. By cutting marketing out of the equation, product or service exposure is lost. Exposure helps a brand grow, both in awareness and financially.
Also, every company has competition. It’s a marketer’s job to show consumers why their brand rises above other brands marketing the same product or service. If there is no marketing involved, exposure will disappear and therefore, competitors who have marketed their product or service will grab the attention of customers in place of the companies who choose to put marketing on the back burner.
Marketing Myth 7: Small businesses shouldn’t waste their time on marketing.
Marketing is vital to business growth—regardless of the size of the business. In fact, when businesses are small or just starting out, it’s more important than ever to market their product or service in order to create brand awareness. The more brand awareness a company receives, the more the business will grow.
Marketing impacts the bottom line of any business, whether it be from something as small simple as flyer creation for an event, or something as complex as a months-long email nurture campaign to a niche customer base. Marketing is worth the time and effort you invest in it.
Marketing Myth 8: Marketing is easy and can be done by anyone.
Efficient and effective marketing is no easy task. Since it is constantly changing and evolving, marketers are forced to adapt their marketing efforts to fit trends or platforms. Once they successfully shift their marketing tactics and strategies, they then must monitor the performance of campaigns on various platforms. From there, they must adapt again to enhance the campaign’s performance on any given platform.
While many view marketing as a fun, creative, and experimental field, marketers can’t afford for their efforts to be, as we like to say, “like throwing spaghetti at a wall and seeing what sticks.” Every business has specific budget and revenue goals they need to achieve. Without a strong overall marketing plan and strategies in place, a large quantity of money can be wasted. It is tremendously important to have qualified experts handling your marketing efforts.
Want to see what Uncommon Marketing Works can do for your business? Make sure to contact us or schedule a 30-minute strategy call.
