Marketing Life

Top 5 Myths about Marketing

Marketing is more important than ever, especially since the global economic crisis.  No country in the world has escaped the effects.  However certain myths about marketing get in the way, and it’s time to dispel these:

Myth 1 – Marketing is advertising

If you ask a business about their marketing, they usually reply – “Sure, we have advertising”.  The most common myth in the market place, is that marketing is just advertising, but what a lot of small businesses don’t realise, is how multi-faceted marketing REALLY is.  It is almost an art form.  Advertising should be a part of your Marketing Plan, but not the only section.

The difference between marketing and advertising is this – Advertising is about showing your business to your clients, and Marketing is about – Getting the clients to come to you!

Myth 2 – Marketing is expensive

No matter what your budget may be, there are marketing options for your business.  Not every business has $100,000 a year to spend on marketing.  Sometimes your budget may only be $5,000 or even less.  Marketing is a creative exercise, and if done properly, you can target your clients for less than you think.

Sure it would be nice to have a fulltime marketing manager on staff, or an experienced consultant helping you manage your efforts, but with a little advice, and a good plan, you should be able to manage on your own.   And still see good results.

Myth 3 – Marketing is complicated

People always find what they don’t know or understand complicated or hard.  After a little education and advice, once your small business develops the correct marketing habits, you will find that marketing is easy.

Overall, Marketing just involves following a plan, and a series of steps, to get it to achieve what you want it to do.  But the main point it, that you need to keep doing it, over an extended period of time.  It does get easier as you go along, as you learn what works and what doesn’t.

Myth 4 – Marketing is only for big business

Even more than ever, marketing is especially for small business.  In the past, the old accepted idea was that a business needed a lot of money to make a big impression.  The system involved big newspaper ads, or radio ads, or television ads.  And these outlets were, and still are, very expensive.

Marketing now involves so much more, and there are new and creative ways to attract the right kind of clients.  Small business needs to embrace marketing more than ever.  It’s no longer – Who has the biggest business – but who has the biggest ideas.

Myth 5 – Marketing should deliver immediate results

Well, some marketing should deliver immediate results.  If you launch a new campaign, you really don’t want to sit back for a few months before you see the results come in.  You want the highest response, as soon as possible.

Overall, Marketing should and needs to be a long-term strategy.  There are many facets of marketing which all need to work together for the long-term.  The good news is, if done correctly and effectively, marketing results can be cumulative and build on each other – like the “snowball” effect.  You need to invest quality time and money into your marketing, and that is the only way to see guaranteed results.

Other Myths?

Do you have any other ideas about marketing which may be a myth?  Feel free to comment below…

Marketing Manager, Content Strategist and Writer driving Engagement and ROI. On weekends I'm a Property Investor, Traveler & Coffee Snob