This year our economy has a new playing field. The old advertising rules no longer work. So for today’s economy, you have to change your game!
How are you doing with your marketing? Rate your company’s efforts and effectiveness from today’s viewpoint using our Marketing Scorecard below and see how you’re really doing in each of the Five P’s of Service Business Marketing.
The only real way to know if your marketing needs a new game plan is to score yourself as objectively as possible. This Marketing ScoreCard is designed to help you understand exactly what’s working or not working with your current marketing strategies. It will give you a fresh perspective on what areas need the most attention to improve your marketing success in today’s economy.
Marketing ScoreCard……………………………………………………………………….
Score yourself from 0 to 5 for each statement below. Just put your score in the area to the right and then add up each of your totals.
A Note About the ScoreCard. The areas on the ScoreCard are all action-oriented items. They are the things you need to be, do and have for powerful marketing. My experience has proven that improving any of these areas can have a major impact on your marketing effectiveness. The trick is knowing what to improve and how to improve it.
Area of Marketing – Positioning:
Target/Problem. I know who my clients are, where they are and what problems, issues and challenges they are facing. (Audio Logo or elevator pitch) Score_____
Ultimate Outcome. I have a clearly articulated outcome statement for my business that tells what my clients get when they use my services. Score_____
Value. I have outlined a number of specific client-centered benefits that my clients receive when they use my services and that answer the question, “What’s in it for me?” Score_____
Uniqueness. I have a Unique Competitive Advantage that explains why I am different than my competition and what that means to my clients. Score_____
Proof. I have a number of client success stories, both written and verbal, that I can employ to prove that I am able to deliver the outcomes and value that I promise. Score_____
Sub Total Score = _____ A low score in this area indicates that you are not communicating clearly about your value. People are likely not showing interest in your services when you talk about what you do. If you ask your friends what you do, most of them won’t be able to communicate it clearly.
Area of Marketing – Packaging:
Web Site. I have a professionally designed, content-rich web site that provides detailed information on my services and includes plenty of valuable free information such as articles and reports. Score_____
Clients Issues. I have information on my web site that clearly outlines the problems, issues and challenges my clients are dealing with. I show that I understand who my clients are and what they want to accomplish. Score_____
Services – What You get. My services, what I do and how I do it, are clearly presented in my web site. It’s no mystery what my clients get, how I work or what my approach is to solving clients problems. Score_____
Pricing and Proposals. I have a well-defined pricing strategy and proposal outline that explains what my clients get from me, not just what I do. Score_____
Business Presentation. Everything about my business, including my personal presentation, marketing materials, etc. are presented in a way that truly represents who I am. Score_____
Sub Total Score = _____ With a low score in this area you may have gotten initial attention, but now interest is dropping off. People are not really clear about what you can do for them and why your services are a solution to their problems. There are more questions than answers.
Area of Marketing – Promotion:
Relationship. Through all my promotional vehicles people get a sense of who I am and what my services are really about. Score_____
Referrals Systems. I have several ways to actively generate referrals from existing clients. Referrals are one of my strongest sources of new clients. Score_____
Visibility Systems. I stay visible to my target market and expand my credibility through networking and a web site. Score_____
Expertise. I communicate my expertise to my target market through speaking to groups and writing/publishing articles. Score_____
Keep-In-Touch Systems. I send information to clients and prospects on a regular basis through a newsletter, eZine or other mailings. Score_____
Sub Total Score =______ With a low score in this area you simply don’t have enough visibility and credibility to make much of an impact. Essentially you are an unknown quantity and you haven’t built enough trust for people to respond to you.
Area of Marketing – Persuasion:
Focus. Whenever I speak to someone about my services and their needs, I am totally focused on what I can do for them – how I can help. Score_____
Needs. I am skilled at building rapport by learning the past and present situation of my prospects through a series of well-thought-out questions. Score_____
Objectives. I am skilled at motivating my clients to use my services by discovering what future objectives are the most important to them. Score_____
Presentation. I have a well-structured and well-organized presentation designed to inform my prospects about exactly how I can solve their problems and meet their objectives. Score_____
Recommendation. I am successful in asking for the business. I know what to say and do to win a prospect’s commitment to my services. Score_____
Sub Total Score =______ With a low score in this area you are having real problems converting prospects into clients (if you can get them into appointments in the first place). Too many prospects put off buying your services and follow-up doesn’t help much.
Area of Marketing – Performance:
Communication. I understand that the key to successful client engagements is clear communication. I work constantly at improving this skill. Score_____
Promises. I make clear, unambiguous promises for what I will deliver and what results clients can expect when I undertake an assignment or project. I keep my word. Score_____
Requests. I make crystal-clear requests of my clients so they know what I expect of them in a client engagement. They understand that we are partners. Score_____
Extra Mile. I don’t just offer good service. I do everything in my power to deliver service that consistently exceeds clients’ expectations. Score_____
Personal Performance. I stay motivated and true to my personal vision of my business. I get the things done not only for my clients but for myself to make my business successful. Score_____
Sub Total Score =______ With a low score in this area you are not getting much repeat or referral business, even if you’ve done well in the top five areas. You need to realized that performance is just as much about marketing as all the other areas above.
Grand Total Score = _______(out of a total possible 125)
With a low overall score (under 60) you are having a real struggle finding clients. People don’t understand what you are offering, aren’t responding to your messages, are not willing to meet with you, are reluctant to work with you and avoid sending referrals your way. In short, your marketing is in real trouble.
If your score is high, congratulations! If it’s not, the good news is that I can help you improve your marketing dramatically and increase your marketing score in all of the areas above. It’s a matter of know-how, practice and implementation. I have the tools and resources to help you.
If you need more assistance to clarify your marketing strategies and actually get into action around those strategies, I’ve got two ways to help!
Check out the one day workshop: Power Marketing Secrets for Today’s Economy. This will be an action packed day with 5 marketing experts from the Bay Area speaking on a variety of marketing topics to give you a variety of tools and ideas that you can immediately put to use. You’ll hear from Thomas Petty from the Bay Area Search Engine Academy, Chip Doyle from Sandler Training, Stu Carty from Constant Contact, Elaine Betts with Go Far Consulting, and Michele Molitor from Nectar Consulting, Inc.
And if you’d like some one-on-one customized marketing consulting and coaching, contact us to see how we can expand your thinking and help you to develop new marketing strategies to meet today’s economic challenges.
To Your Success!
Michele
