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Marketing Mistakes Too Many Businesses Make

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Today, due to social media and technology, you have more exposure and access to your audience than ever, but that opportunity comes with many risks. Even though you’re a business owner or work in marketing, you’re still human and will make mistakes. But, the good news is that you can learn from the ones that other people have made.

Get to know the marketing mistakes too many businesses have made and how you can avoid them.

Renew Your Domain Name Promptly

Getting your business’s website, directory listings, and social media profiles set up is a part of a long, involved process, but what’s even more draining is making sure each of them stays current. It’s timely takes to check on everything, but one your business cannot skip. One account you cannot afford to ignore is your domain name. It’s something you purchase once and renew the license in your name every year (or longer), but if you forget to renew it, it will go back onto the market.

A major brand you can learn from is Heinz. That’s right, Heinz forgot to renew a domain they were using for a QR code promotion back in 2014, and someone swooped in and bought it from them. Anytime someone scanned in this code, they were lead to a website that was nothing related to ketchup (you can learn more about this here).

Don’t drop the ball like Heinz and renew all of your domain name licenses promptly.

Never Delete Negative Social Comments

Like we mentioned earlier, you’re human and are capable of making mistakes, but know that your customers know that about you too. Social media serves as the outlet for you to personify your brand and engage with your audience, and you may have learned one way or another that not every engagement with your followers is going to be positive.

Social media is shifting into a place where consumers turn for customer services and are more likely to share their negative thoughts publically on your page. A social media mistake too many businesses make is deleting these public comments to hide any negativity around the brand. Not only does this interfere with their freedom of speech, but it can quickly spark a wildfire from other followers who are quick to spot this.

That being said, we’re not saying you shouldn’t delete profanity or threats on your Facebook page. A rule of thumb to determine what’s worth deleting can be referenced by the rules and regulations for every social media platform. For many of them, they’ll remove comments or posts if they include threats, dangerous activity, or crude profanity. Everything else, you’ll have to deal with and handle professionally (which you can learn more about here).

Proofread Everything, Period.

This point seems so simple, but you’d be surprised about how many businesses still skip proofreading their emails, marketing collateral, blogs, and everything in between. Companies who don’t take the time to fine-tune their content will say a lot of negative things about how you handle yourself. If you don’t care about crossing your T’s and dotting your I’s, how can you prove you care about your customers? It may sound silly, but that’s how people can think when they see your spelling errors.

Ask a coworker or colleague to take a second look at the content to make sure it’s clean. Do something else and come back to it later with a fresh set of eyes. Get Read Aloud and hear what you wrote read back to you. Whatever you do, you cannot afford to create sloppy content with grammatical errors.

Know Your Audience Well

Marketing is all about presenting yourself accurately and in a relevant way to your target audience. To do this, you need to know them well. If you don’t, your efforts will go wasted, and your audience will not connect with you the way they should.

Don’t Underestimate Your Competition

No matter how different you are in your space, your competitors are trying to take over your niche and do it better. Never assume they’re comfortable with where they are, which means you need to stay on your toes. It’s okay to look at your competition for inspiration, as this will help you explore new ideas and understand what’s currently going on in the industry. Because, more likely than not, they’re looking at you for the same thing.

Marketing is constantly shifting, and trial and error is always the best way to learn. But, by remembering these tips while going through your strategies, you’ll be able to stay ahead of the game.

To learn more about marketing mistakes, let’s get a cup of coffee and share our experiences.

About the Author

Brooke Desmond

Communications Manager
With a passion for all things digital marketing, Brooke aims to give a unique perspective on the latest trends and ideas in this ever-changing space.

View Brooke's Profile

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