I like to think that if there is a marketing tool or tactic that can be implemented with measurable results for better interaction and lead conversion, then I will likely explore it. I have indicated in the past that I appreciate the "wide-open cookie jar of marketing possibilities" as a benefit of working for a small business. Admittedly, with the copious number of tools available, I do get pretty excited about quite a few things.
As a result, I periodically evaluate existing marketing tools and potential tactics against my overall marketing strategy to make sure that I’m not sacrificing effectiveness by not spending as much time with each that I should.
The large quantity of marketing tactics I have chosen to employ usually means that I just work more, much to the chagrin of the boss, and for which I receive regular chastising. But if I take the time to successfully implement a new tool, or do something like completely restructure our adwords program complete with vertical-specific, keyword silo-ed, tiered campaigns with multi-variate landing pages for each, and the results are very positive, I want to continue utilizing such plans.
The problem as a one-man marketer for a small software shop, is that I found myself spread pretty thin in the attempt to maximize effectiveness of so many tools and ideas.
This, along with my decision before the first of the year to migrate to a new marketing automation platform as well as a new CRM whilst preparing for a new product launch, led the boss to ask me a very pointed question, “Do you need some help?”
My Initial reaction was, “Certainly not, I should definitely be able to handle effective marketing for a software shop our size.” But the more I thought about it, I realized that I really only had two options - Cut back on the number of individual endeavors so I wouldn’t be working as much, or hire an assistant.
Stubborn pride was never an issue, I always focus on what is most beneficial for the company. But I tend to be the driven sort, and had already invested so much time establishing successful campaigns, and had so many things I still wanted to dive into, that justifying the extra cost for additional sales was kind of a no-brainer.
I think it is important to understand that there definitely can be too much marketing, the key is how you most effectively manage your time to maximize the success of each tool you use.
I’m very grateful that right about the time I should have reined myself in, not only was the boss already on top of it, but the company was in a position to bring on an extra employee.
Bonus is that we just need to find a replacement for my new marketing assistant, Tish, who is moving over from our sales department. Turns out she has an MBA in Marketing – who knew?