The Future of Marketing Part 1

It used to be if you were a small business, you were at a distinct disadvantage with your marketing compared to the bigger companies.

No more. Small business owners will actually have an edge over bigger companies thanks to the emerging marketing model.

Yes, you heard right. Emerging marketing model. The old ways of marketing are dying. And a new regime is coming of age.

To understand how marketing is changing, it's important to start with a bit of history. The image most of us have of marketing is based on an old communications model, one that was popular in, say, the 1970s. That was when we had three broadcast networks (ABC, CBS and NBC -- no FOX either) a public station, one newspaper and a handful of magazines and radio stations. Trade magazines and newsletters were few and far between, we had no Internet and no e-mail.

Because consumers had so few choices, it was fairly easy to market to them. Chances were pretty good they were watching, reading or listening to one of a handful of mass media sources.

In fact, to be successful in this marketing model, all you really needed was money.

Here's how it worked. A business created a good product. The business hired an advertising agency. The agency spent thousands of dollars placing ads on the three network television stations and national magazines. Perhaps it also bought a few spots on local radio stations and newspapers. And if the ad budget was big enough, success was practically guaranteed.

There was no mystery to marketing. Mostly it was a numbers game. Spend the money and get a return. Businesses were selling products. Mass media businesses were selling advertising space. Advertising agencies were buying space. Everyone was making money. And everyone was happy.

Fast forward to 2004. Now, instead of three television channels we have hundreds. Instead of a handful of magazines we have dozens, including about a million trade publications. On top of that, we have the Internet and e-mail just begging for a piece of our time.

Never before in the history of communications have audiences been so fragmented. Just finding your customers has turned into that old adage of finding a needle in a haystack. But that's not the only challenge -- even if you do locate your customers that's no guarantee they'll listen to you.

Wherever we go, we are confronted by marketing message after marketing message. It's been estimated that we're bombarded with over 3,000 messages a day...and that number keeps going up. How have we responded? By learning to shut most of those messages out (which of course makes it even harder for marketers to get us to act upon their message).

But the woes of the traditional marketing model don't end there. The Internet has also introduced a little thing called accountability

When you market online, you can track what people are looking at and, even more importantly, where you lost them in selling process. For instance, you can check your Web site stats and see which pages people entered your site and which pages made them leave. You can track what people clicked on in your e-mail campaign or if they clicked at all.

With traditional or offline marketing, you only know if it worked (a customer bought something) or didn't (a customer didn't buy something). You don't know if they saw the ad, read the ad or what happened.

All of this is bad news for those who have built their business on the traditional marketing model. But, it could be good news for you. How? Find out in part two.

Michele Pariza Wacek owns Creative Concepts and Copywriting, a writing, marketing and creativity agency. She offers two free e-newsletters that help subscribers combine their creativity with hard-hitting marketing and copywriting principles to become more successful at attracting new clients, selling products and services and boosting business. She can be reached at http://www.writingusa.com

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Google News Updated : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 08:05:30 GMT Data on defective genes make tailored remedies possible - Baltimore Sun Voice of America Data on defective genes make tailored remedies possible Baltimore Sun - 41 minutes ago By Frank D. Roylance Researchers cataloging the genetic codes of deadly human brain and pancreatic cancers say they have found several dozen defective genes that appear to work in concert to set off the tumor growth that eventually kills their victims. In Long-Awaited Maps of Cancer, The Breakthrough Is the Problem Wall Street Journal What You Need to Know About Mapping the Cancer Genome U.S. News & World Report Reuters - The Associated Press - Bloomberg - Science Daily (press release) all 209 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:24:12 GMT Wal-Mart acting on shifts in consumer spending - BusinessWeek Los Angeles Times Wal-Mart acting on shifts in consumer spending BusinessWeek - 3 hours ago By CHUCK BARTELS If the mood on Wall Street is grim, then consumers must be feeling even more bleak, right? Fuel prices remain high, inflation has hit food prices hard and consumer confidence is down. August another disappointing month for retailers Los Angeles Times Lower-cost stores gain from US shoppers' thriftiness Financial Times Forbes - The Associated Press - Wall Street Journal all 673 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 04:48:39 GMT Schwarzenegger: Palin delivered 'fantastic' speech - San Jose Mercury News KGET 17 Schwarzenegger: Palin delivered 'fantastic' speech San Jose Mercury News - 1 hour ago AP SACRAMENTO—Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday said Sarah Palin hit a home run with her acceptance speech for the Republican vice presidential nomination. Video: Governor To Californians: Bug Lawmakers About Budget kcratv California nears record in spending plan stalemate Sacramento Bee San Gabriel Valley Tribune - Los Angeles Times - New York Times - City Watch all 302 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 06:14:17 GMT Rice set for historic Libya visit - BBC News RTE.ie Rice set for historic Libya visit BBC News - 3 hours ago US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is set to begin a historic visit to Libya as part of a North African tour. She is expected to meet Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi as part of the trip, which will also include visits to Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. Rice set to begin historic Libya visit AFP Rice set to make history in Libya The Associated Press Aljazeera.net - International Herald Tribune - WZTV - Bloomberg all 425 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 04:41:55 GMT '1967 lines not up for discussion' - Jerusalem Post Sydney Morning Herald '1967 lines not up for discussion' Jerusalem Post - 32 minutes ago By JPOST.COM STAFF The July 4, 1967 lines are not up for discussion and are the very foundations from which direct talks between Israel and Syria will start, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said Friday. Video: Sarkozy in Syria : the press is divided france24english Syrian sets terms of role on peace Philadelphia Inquirer New York Times - Boston Globe - International Herald Tribune - Voice of America all 1,039 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:32:39 GMT McCain takes stage, turns down heat - Boston Globe The Gazette (Montreal) McCain takes stage, turns down heat Boston Globe - 1 hour ago By Joanna Weiss For a man at the top of a presidential ticket, John McCain had an unusual task last night: to remind the nation that he was the star of his own show. Palin Assails Critics and Electrifies Party New York Times GOP welcomes McCain with enthusiasm Milwaukee Journal Sentinel CBS News - Kansas City Star - ABC News - TIME all 1,387 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 06:20:31 GMT Boeing Workers Are on the Brink - BusinessWeek Wall Street Journal Boeing Workers Are on the Brink BusinessWeek - 1 hour ago Despite being offered a relatively generous package by management, Boeing machinists are ready to go on strike. Here's why by Joseph Weber When a stunning 87% of Boeing machinists voted on Sept. Motown Blues for Boeing? Wall Street Journal Boeing, machinists union meet with mediator The Associated Press Seattle Times - Bloomberg - Reuters - Chicago Tribune all 1,406 news articles Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 06:54:59 GMT Create Blog RSS Parser

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