While “measure and iterate” is a term most often used with tech teams, it’s a concept any business should consider when getting strategic with its marketing strategy – especially its budget. Measure and iterate means exactly that – you kick off your marketing strategy, regularly measure how different tactics are doing and repeatedly use what you learn to improve what’s underperforming, put more time, energy and/or budget behind your homeruns. Whatever your strategy, most businesses don’t quickly realize success. It takes time – and plenty of failure! – to figure out what works and what doesn’t.
That being said, there is no “magic number” when it comes to building your lead pool and closing deals.. But your marketing budget can be optimized by getting strategic from the beginning.
Here are some tips to get started:
It is vital for your business’ stakeholders to agree on a marketing budget that specifies dollar amounts and time periods you can work with to get leads. Using the measure/iterate approach, you can map out what your budget needs to achieve, by what deadlines – and adjust your spend accordingly.
Without strategy in mind, some businesses spend too much of their budgets at once on a brand new tactic, but don’t start getting leads fast enough to meet their needs. This approach will leave your team defeated and unwilling to try new things. Other businesses put all their eggs in one basket – investing heavily in a single avenue and can only afford to do it one time. This approach often doesn’t lead to deals because they aren’t consistently marketing to potential leads.
Consistency is important when it comes to brand recognition. Even if people don’t need your services at that time, they will be more likely to come to you when they do if they’ve seen your marketing materials consistently over a period of time. When you measure your tactics, you’ll see and understand what resonates and be able to respond – with marketing materials and budget – to real potential customer needs.
Realizing some deals come faster and easier than others is crucial, too. Sometimes you’ll see in your metrics that marketing budget dollars are working to attract leads, but they just aren’t ready to convert. Making sure you consider every stage of the sales funnel when planning your marketing budget is key to long-term success.
When it comes to building your strategy, BiggerPockets.com suggests sticking to one marketing strategy at a time, measuring your progress and staying patient when waiting for deals. Measuring your progress helps with the patience piece! It helps determine what actually works and what doesn’t, keeping you from trying a bunch of things at once and not knowing what is actually a hit. It will also keep you from spending unnecessary money on marketing tactics that don’t work and allow you to focus on the ones that yield greater results.
If you would like more information about optimizing your marketing strategy – and its budget – to build your business leads, contact Mutual Title Agency now.