Effective B2C Marketing

posted by Ted on November 3, 2011

Effectively marketing to consumers is vital to the success of many businesses, and it’s a skill that can take some time to master.  Building a sustainable base of consumer buyers requires more than an intuitive approach to getting attention – it’s about putting yourself in front of the buyer at as many opportunities as possible and hitting them with sure-fire marketing that pushes all the right buttons.  Of course, this can be done in a myriad different ways, and there are a variety of strategies that can be put to good effect when it comes to winning new B2C customers.

Marketing to consumers online is possibly the strongest single channel of communication your business can implement within its marketing.  If you’re not already heavily revolved around online marketing it’s of the utmost importance that you get to it…and fast.

While not everyone uses the Internet to buy, many people do, and increasingly those that turn to the Internet to research buying decisions seldom go back to the old fashioned way. This means that with each day that passes, you’re losing out on potential sales and potential customers if you’re not effectively marketing online.  No matter which way you look at it, this is probably affecting your overall bottom line.

There is, of course, still more than enough scope to build a successful business from marketing to consumers ‘offline’, which is basically using methods that don’t revolve around the Internet.  Direct mail is still one of the most effective of these tactics, but it doesn’t necessarily suit every type of business.

Direct mailing is suggested to deliver an average conversion rate of between 0.5% and 1%, with the rate eventually increasing over multiple mailings and for well- branded products.  These are sensible numbers to work with, and it’s easy to see why on even a small scale direct mailings can deliver good results for business owners.  Particularly for businesses with a local focus, direct mailing can be a cost-effective and quick way to get the message out to all those that might be interested in what you have to offer.  It can also help to slowly introduce your business and brand to the community.

Print advertising is also a popular form of offline marketing to consumers, but falls behind direct mail in the sense that it is much less accountable and much more expensive.  When utilizing direct mail, it’s possible to build in components of tracking to help you keep tabs on how your campaign is working, whereas print advertising blurs the lines to a much greater extent.  It’s still a good idea to attempt to track return from your print advertising. The competition in this field often allows for better negotiating options when it comes to pricing, which means there is scope for a bargain or two (particularly as print deadlines are fast approaching).

As long as your offline advertising reaches prospects, grabs their attention and lets them know you exist, the process of getting sales is simply a numbers game.  There is still a lot you can do to improve the rate at which prospects turn into sales, but establishing a successful B2C marketing campaign requires both effective sales processes and volume to get customers through the door.

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