The Best Marketing Habits to Get Into

Every day we are faced with choices, and every day we make decisions based on those choices. Many of the decisions that we make are menial, but even those could change our situations drastically. While they may not have an immediate effect, over time they certainly have an immense impact.

Example: Let’s say you are a five year old child. Every week your mother gives you one dollar if you put your clothes away and make your bed each morning of that week. You are a good kid, so you do it without fail. (Way to go!) Your mother continues to do this until you are ten. Now, every week you have a choice of what you want to do with that one dollar. If you choose to spend it every week, that is fine. You have the money, and you have the choice. It is only one dollar, so spending it doesn’t seem like such a big deal. If you decided to save each dollar, though, you would have saved $260 (not counting the .00003 cents of interest if you decided to put it in the bank).

Decisions often seem small at the time, but decisions, when made repetitively — no matter the size, can become habits. Habits can be really good things, but, naturally, they can also have a dark side.

If you have ever read “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey, you know the power of habits. He has a really powerful quote (well lots, actually — but let’s focus!) that we want you to keep in mind as you read through the rest of this post. He states, “But until a person can say deeply and honestly, ‘I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday,’ that person cannot say, ‘I choose otherwise’.”

Every days decisions, no matter how small, are powerful and can affect change. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the best marketing habits that you can get yourself into.

8 Best Marketing Habits to Get Into

 

1. Build Deep, Meaningful Relationships.

There are so many reasons this is an important habit to get into! We even wrote a blog on how to Make People Your Business because it is just that important.

2. Learn to Prioritize.

Sometimes we get too focused on our own business or the little details of our daily work lives that we forget to think big picture. Let’s whip out another Stephen Covey quote, shall we? He wrote, “Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.” We need to prioritize what it is that we feel is important, and then act upon those priorities. If we believe that client relationships are important, then every single day we should be doing something to boost our relationships with our clients. It is just that simple.

Practical Application

• Make a list of all the things that are important to you and your business. These things should be in your mission statement. If they are not, you may want to write a strong mission statement.
• Fit each of those things into your day in some way. It can be big or small, but, if those things are truly important, they should be a priority.

See, we often say that things are important to us, but, when push comes to shove, we let them go in the winds of time… (cue violin music) Need proof? How many New Year’s resolutions have you made and not kept? OK, moving on!

3. Be a Sponge.

There is a plethora of knowledge and new findings floating around in the universe, and it is there for our taking. For whatever reason, we often get too deep into our own heads, and we run the same ideas over and over again. Sometimes we are able to come up with new, creative ideas even through this repetition, but other times we are not. We fall into creative dry spells and lose motivation when routine gets too, well, routine. It is time to see life as a big, grand opportunity to soak up as much knowledge as possible.

Being a lifelong learner has like a gajillion benefits, but reenergizing creative energies is one of the best. So, before you get stuck in your head and lose your creative motivation, build the habit of reading a book, listening to a podcast or meeting up with influential, successful business people you one day hope to be like.

4. Share and collaborate.

You are a pretty fabulous person, and, chances are, you have a lot of knowledge in that head of yours. If you have expertise, be willing to share that knowledge with others. You can bounce ideas off people, and again, replenish that creativity. Hey, there is a reason your parents/grandparents/teachers were so adamant about you sharing as a child.

Practical application

• If you are stumped for an idea, call up your office mates and sit down together to brainstorm. Get out of your head, and see how other people feel about the things you have been working on.
• Work in an open room where you can talk to one another at any point. This arrangement is becoming much more popular in the business world, and there is a reason. We (RedMoxy) use it ourselves!

5. Don’t be all about you.

This point goes along with sharing and being a lifelong learner, but it deserves its own heading, so here we go.

If you have ever gone on a date with someone who only talks about herself/himself, you know the pain. If you wouldn’t want to sit down and talk with someone like that, don’t be like that in your business. See your business as a resource for others. Use that mindset for all your endeavors (especially when writing your About Us page). Talk more about ideas than about what you have to offer. People will better understand your expertise by the information you share than by you telling them that you really are the biggest expert ever. Let’s face it, we are skeptical of people who talk the talk without walking the walk. Bottom line: show, don’t tell.

6. Write now.

A strong blogging presence is a must right now, so start working on your writing skills. Find meaningful, creative content to share with your audience that is going to make an impact on them. In the words of Stephen King, “If you want to write a lot, you need to write a lot.” If you don’t have time to dedicate to writing, find a creative writer in your business.

Here are some RESOURCES to help you get started. (See what we did there?)

• Key components to a great blog.
• Top 10 marketing blogs.
• Writing content that reflects your company’s values.
• The worst writing advice we’ve heard.

7. Remember money.

Yes, your grandma always told you that money doesn’t make happiness. We agree with you, Grandma! No worries. We would like to posit that you need to keep remembering that you are working for money, though. In marketing, it is tempting to try to make every single detail perfect, but that often takes too much time and money to do with every single project. Sometimes you have to do the best that you can with the time that you have. Remember that you are getting paid for the work that you accomplish – not for the busyness that you experience.

8. Analyze all that data.

You cannot grow if you don’t see that you need to grow. Reviewing feedback and Internet impressions is a must when it comes to marketing. Go back and find ways that you can improve your content so you can get more likes, shares, comments, etc. Make data a priority in your business.

And, there you have it, folks. These habits can truly change the way that your business operates and can give you that competitive edge that every company needs.

If you have any questions, contact us here.