I can’t believe that we are almost halfway through the year. Time seems to be flying by and we’re already thinking of much needed holidays and sunshine especially after the last few years.
Wearing my hat as a Marketing Mentor I would highly recommend that you do take some time out before the end of the month to carry out a mid-year marketing review.
At the beginning of the year, we happily sit down and write our goals and what we want to achieve for the year ahead but then get drawn into the busy daily tasks of the business and we forget what we were aiming for.
The end of June is a good chance to look back over the last 6 months to see what you have learnt, what went well and not so, allowing you to springboard back in the summer for the remainder of the year.
Many of you have product-based businesses and the final quarter of the year is where you make most of your sales, so this mid-year marketing review is even more important to learn, plan and implement your marketing ready for peak.
So where do you start…
Block out time in your diary
The hardest bit for a small business is to take time out, but we all need the headspace away from our normal working area to really think and reflect. Maybe block out 2 sessions in your diary of an hour each and plan what you are going to do with each session to look at how and where the business is going. Even better if you can find a quiet space where you won’t get disturbed by distractions. And yes, switch your notifications off.
Review your goals and plans
I know working with small business owners that not everyone does this but having your goals laid down, helps you focus on a Marketing strategy and plan to achieve them. Maybe one of your goals at the beginning of the year was to grow sales of a particular product or service by x% or to have x no of extra followers on your social media or email list.
Without having goals your marketing lacks direction and focus so look back and see how your business has performed over the last 6 months and what you want to achieve for the next 6 months. Remember to make them SMART goals too.
Carry out a data audit on your Marketing channels
Don’t be put off by this, it’s just a simple spreadsheet or page in your journal/notebook that you can log the stats behind your marketing and see how they have performed. This could cover.
- Website traffic and page views
- Bounce rates on your key pages
- Social media stats – followers, page likes, connections
- Best performing posts/engagement/shares
- Email subscribers and unsubscribes
- Blog followers
- Etsy page followers
If you haven’t already been collecting them, then now is a good time to set a baseline to see how they grow over the year. Especially key if growing your numbers is a goal and seeing which activity triggered more responses.
What’s going on in the world that is impacting your business now and in the future?
We all know the cost-of-living crisis, the cost of fuel and generally the extra cautious buyers in the marketplace. Being realistic things will continue to be tough over the next 12 months so how does this impact on your business and plans going forward.
Do you need to review your products or service to reflect the change in spending patterns?
Are there any products or services that you have run previously that are more relevant to the current climate? A strong business owner plans their business to evolve with the needs of the market so be open to making changes if needs be
Talk to your customers or clients
We may have an avatar or persona for our ideal customer, but their circumstances may have changed over the last year as well as their plans for the future.
If you have a good relationship with your customers touch base with them again and see how they are feeling, understand what their pain points are, their needs for the future and then sit back and plan how your business may need to change to keep in line with them.
Review your tone of voice and communications
With the changing nature of the markets now it’s important that you review not only their needs but the way your brand is pitched and the words and tone of voice that you use. Consistency is important but using the right language that shows that you understand them, and you can help them is also super important too. So, take time when you are creating content to make sure that your copy still resonates with your customers.
Need more of a helping hand with your mid-year marketing review?
I know it can be daunting but if you do need more of a structure to follow then I’ve created a handy checklist to help as a reminder for the things you need to keep on track with. Here’s the link to my FREE DOWNLOAD “Spring Clean your Marketing checklist”
September Workshops
Finally our next face to face workshop programme start on 9th September for 4 weeks so if you live close to Milton Keynes and are struggling with your Marketing strategy and planning then take a look at our Pathway programme. Perfect for small biz owners who need a Marketing mentor to help bring a fresh pair of eyes on their business at an affordable price and just the right timing ahead of the busy final period of the year.
With practical tools and workbooks, we will go back and revisit the Marketing foundations, home in on your customer needs and wants, identify your USP and set out your goals and objectives for your Marketing.
Once these are in place we can work on your strategy and planning, opening your eyes to opportunities in the offline world as well as the online world. It’s not all about social media!
We’re not talking about “silly” numbers that you often see in these marketing programmes online. This is face to face, expertise and support allowing you the time and headspace to refocus on your business again.
Join my Free Facebook group for bite size Marketing tips
If you fancy joining my FREE Facebook group for bite size Marketing tips each week to help you with your planning and implementation then please come and join the Facebook group here.
