What’s the difference between a successful professional and an unsuccessful professional? Several things certainly, but we do know that successful marketers have practiced habits that shape their craft. Just like a pro ball player, musician or accountant spends hours fine-tuning their forte, we too have to practice at being professional marketers. Marketing habits can reveal what an individual and/or company does well and where they can improve. So, after a little examination of our own default patterns, here are seven habits we consistently practice in order to remain successful marketers.
1. Goal Setting
Identifying goals for any initiative helps marketers (1) evaluate whether that initiative truly supports their business and (2) stay focused on what they’re trying to accomplish throughout the process. Whether you’re launching a social media promotion or a new website, make sure your goals are SMART goals and if you need help, try this Marketing Goals Template.
2. Measurement. Measurement. Measurement.
Numbers tell stories. Successful marketers identify key metrics that will give them insights on past, present and future marketing endeavors. Did your website traffic increase by 46% over the last two months? What was the cost per click of your most recent advertising campaign? Make a habit of measuring on a consistent basis and make sure you know what they mean.
3. Gleaning from Other Resources
Just like it benefits a young professional to observe a seasoned mentor, it benefits a marketer to validate, sharpen and/or challenge their own approaches with the perspectives of others, especially in the same field. Some of our favorite marketing resources that we regularly follow include the Hubspot Blog, MarketingProfs, socialfresh and Seth Godin.
4. Blogging and Social Media
What better way to communicate with an audience than to meet them wherever they are in the virtual realm and have a conversation with them? Committing to both regular blog posting and having an active presence on social media not only boosts SEO, but it allows marketers to share their expertise, humanize their brand and hone their writing skills.
5. Content Creation
A successful marketer often looks for ways to offer their audience something of value in exchange for specific information. Publishing valuable content and creating offers positions a company as a valuable resource and keeps their audience coming back for more, which ultimately earns them as customers. Many companies already have great resources that can be repurposed into shared content. See our list of offers here!
6. Knowing Their Audience
Seek to connect beyond a like, follow or pin. Where does your audience live? Which of your products is most popular among your targets? How are your products most commonly used? Whether it’s asking a question in social media posts or on an inbound landing page, successful marketers learn all they can about their audience and adapt their strategies based on that information. The more appeal you have to your audience, the more likely you are to convert them into qualified leads and customers.
7. Integration
From social media and websites to packaging and tradeshows, marketing tools and tactics should be integrated, or aligned to reinforce key messages and promotions. Integration is not necessarily a new strategy; rather, it is the tactical execution of existing strategies. Successful marketers implement practices that support other practices.
Keep in mind that it’s important for marketers not to become set in their ways. A successful marketer remains committed to their best practices while leaving room for new practices that come with the ever changing landscape of marketing.
