Advertising & Promotion vs. Marketing

I've been struck by the glut of advertising coming my way. Spam and junk mail are full of it, television is full of it, even magazines seem to have more. And, I don't buy it.

I've often written that businesses cannot 'advertise their way to success'. Of course there is a time and place for advertising. You have to let people know you exist, and you need to make a splash with new products or new services. Advertising is a good thing. But you probably can't buy enough to build a business on it.

And promotion, particularly self-promotion, has a similar limitation. Obviously, if you believe in a product or service, you MUST tell people about it and invite them to buy. You owe that to yourself as a business person, and to customers who need and want your service. Promotion has it's place -- I've certainly promoted my new Ask the Expert calls and the World Class Life Conference. Would you sign up if I refused to tell you about them? Well, like, duh!

But in the end, marketing is a different animal. Marketing is about your reputation. It's about customer satisfaction and retention. It's about your relationships. Marketing is about letting people know who you are, what you do and what you offer. (Never keep yourself a secret! There is no advantage in being shy!) Marketing is about YOU more than your product or service. It's about your reputation, your level of responsibility and your follow-through.

In the end, most marketing is 'free', in that it comes from being who you are and doing what you do, to the best of your ability.

Many small businesses would be far ahead to scrap their advertising budget entirely and invest the money in themselves, their quality, and their relationships.

Copyright (c) 2002, all rights reserved. U.S. Library of Congress ISSN: 1529-059X From The Innovative Professional's (TIP's) Letter Sunday, February 9, 2003 Written & Published by Philip E. Humbert, PhD Contact him at: www.philiphumbert.com or email Coach@philiphumbert.com