Marketing Plans

Marketing plans are part of an overall business plan, but focus on the strategic moves you will be making in order to market your business or product.
The marketing plan for your business will also help you stay focused. It shows the goals and actions you will take to achieve those goals. Writing out your goals and strategies with the marketing plan helps you stay focused and helps show you where you need to go/what you need to do in order to achieve those goals. It helps you stay on track so you don't fall behind in your business.

What Consumers Want pt. 2

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a short post of what is important to consumers, and my main point was to have a good relationship with the customer.

Today, I went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch. As I was eating, I thought of what makes Chick-Fil-A so amazing. Of course, their food is great. But I can get a chicken sandwich at McDonald's, right? So why do I keep going to Chick-Fil-A?
(Okay, I agree, their food is so much better than Mickey D's, but that's not the point here...)
I like CFA because their customer service is awesome! They are polite workers and are genuinely ready to serve you. They are personable and see you as more as just someone that's giving you money. I like that in a restaurant, or in any place of business really.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and Marketing

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs can relate to various marketing strategies. 

At the bottom are Physiological needs. Physiological needs are things needed for survival, such as food, water, clothes, shelter, etc. If your goal of your product/service is to provide a sort of comfort to these physiological needs, then that is how you need to bring attention to your customers. 

Then there's Safety, such as health, security, protection, law, employment and so on. I think of this as a physiological need also.

Above safety is Love/Belonging. I don't know anyone that doesn't want to feel like they're loved and that they belong. One way to integrate that into your marketing campaign could be to get on your customer's level, communicate with them and be personal with them. Using social media can help with this.

Self Esteem is the desire to be recognized and rewarded for your achievements either internally, externally or both. Again, I think relationships with the customer are important for this factor.

Lastly, Self-Actualization. This pertains to one's desire and potential to achieve a degree of mastery and accomplishment in life. Once again, social media is a helpful tool to engage your customers with.

What Do Consumers Want?

As a consumer, I am pretty familiar with what we want. As an 18 year old female in college, I may have different wants than my uncle for example. But there is always the same central idea in what we want. Here are some examples:

I think the number one thing that we want is for businesses to listen to us. We want to be heard! We want our wants and needs to be heard and taken into consideration.
We want new ideas! Whether it be a new product to make life easier or a new company, we want something new. We(or maybe it's just me?) are tired of the norm. I love to see new things pop out on the market.
We also love it when the business gets on a personal level with us. I go to a local coffee shop, Berkeley Bob's, every Friday on my way to work. The baristas there are so nice, very personal and always ready to start a conversation with you. That is one of the reasons why I go there(also because of their great coffee!!). I love it when workers are nice to the customer. It shows that they care about the customer and their business.
Probably last, but definitely not least on my list of what a consumer wants, is having a good price that is superior to other competitors. I love getting a good deal on the stuff I buy and while the store/business may have good service, nice people, and great things I'm willing to buy, I won't think for another second if that stuff is too expensive for what it's worth...or if I can get a better deal down the road.

That's just my list of what I want as a consumer and of what I find important in the consumer relations with a business.

Focus Groups

Focus groups are made of a group of people being asked questions about their opinions, attitudes and perceptions towards a product, service, advertisement, idea or concept. During the process of the focus group, the researcher takes notes or records the important points that have been made by the members of the group. 

In a marketing sense, focus groups are especially helpful when coming up with an advertisement or various products. Focus groups are held usually at the beginning of the product or concept development and they allow questions to be asked in order to further the product/concept's creation. Focus groups are a non-traditional alternative to formal marketing research. 

I believe that using a focus group is a great idea. It allows people to state their opinion and allows the researcher to listen and take in all the different opinions about their product/concept. 

Ideas

When I have an idea, whether for a product, business, dinner or outfit, I normally use the notepad app on my iPhone to keep up with it. I usually type it out and save it so I can look back at it later.

Turns out, there are many apps in the app store that help with ideas and idea structuring.

One app in particular that I've come across is Mindly by the developer Dripgrind Oy. This app uses the same concept as a mind map, with the main idea in the center and other tidbits of information to go with it circling around the main idea. Not a bad thing to use, actually.

I know others that use a voice recorder to save their ideas. Usually they're saving song ideas or they're too lazy to write it out on paper or type it in their phone.
I for one prefer to use my notepad.

History of Marketing

In the very early years of business, marketing consisted of "outbound marketing," which is marketing that interrupts the consumer by talking at them. Very recently though, different marketing techniques have been used. 

The late 18th century into the 19th century introduced printed advertising, such as magazines, posters and even billboards. 

In the 1920s radio advertising begins, and 20 years later television and telephone adverts come into the household. Once technology evolved, with mobile phones and computers, people were exposed to more and more advertisements everyday. 

The change in the different uses of marketing has changed how businesses get customers and how they make it in the competitive business environments.