Build awareness with smart advertising and content.

So now that you’ve read about the Customer Journey and have mapped out your customer journey (you’ve done all that right 😜?), you can start building out each step.

Today we’re going to give you everything you need to map out your first step, awareness.

Getting the word out.

Awareness is just like it sounds. It’s when a potential customer or client finds out about you, becomes aware you exist. It can happen through word of mouth, but in the long-term it often grows around advertising and marketing.

Many businesses have a “build it and they will come” mentality that relies heavily on word of mouth. Or they know they’re going to advertise but don’t really have a clue where or how to do that. Maybe they’ll try a little here or a little there and see what happens. And, unfortunately, neither of these will bring the sustained growth they need.

However, it’s absolutely possible to build awareness of your brand and product in a smart, strategic way that seeks out those customers who are waiting around, looking for your exact product to cross their path.

So how exactly do you advertise and build awareness like this?

The secret is knowing your customer.

Advertising or marketing without knowing your customer is like trying to get to Milwaukee without a map or GPS. You might find it right away, but most likely, you’ll lose a lot of time and money in the process of getting there.

So, sketch out the map of your customer. Think about who buys your product right now and consider the hard facts like:

• Age
• Gender
• Income
• Where they live
• Where they work
• Etc

But then consider the soft facts like:

• Do they eat fast food or sit down at restaurants?
• Are they margarita or wine or Natty Light people?
• Do they camp for vacations or stay at boutique hotels?
• Are they reading Forbes for their news or Facebook headlines?
• What causes do they get behind?
• Do they have kids?
• What do they do on the weekends?
• What problems are they trying to solve?
• What makes them happy?
• What are their pain points?
• Etc.

Knowing where your people hang out, what they read, who they listen to, how they spend their free time will help you put your product in front of them in a meaningful way.

What if my customers are a mystery?

One word: ASK.

Every business has at least one or two committed believers who will happily answer a few questions. And to sweeten the deal, you could offer an incentive to fill out a survey that will help you understand who it is that you’re serving.

If you genuinely have no one to ask, experiment. Some methods that have worked for other businesses are:

• Attend an industry trade show, either as a vendor or just as a visitor. Make a list of things you want to know and then start asking people.
• Run some digital ads on Facebook, Instagram, Google, Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc to see who and how people respond to them.
• Interview someone in the industry you have a connection with.

The point is, this is super important. You’ll find that the answers to these questions will affect every single aspect of your business. Because consider: if in your questions, you somehow discover that a majority of your customers use Venmo for everything, you could allow a Venmo payment option. Suddenly the door opens to other Venmo lovers out there.

How to build awareness.

Now that you know your customers in-depth, you can make your plan about where and how to build your awareness.

There are a ton of different ways to advertise and spread the word and it’s your job to choose the ones that match your product and your customers.

This isn’t a comprehensive list of advertising and marketing options, but it’s close.

• Facebook, Instagram, Google, Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc. advertising
• Direct mailers
• Content marketing – blogging, youtube videos, social media posting, TikTok et. al.
• Trade shows
• Search engine optimization
• Traditional avenues such as billboards, newspapers, TV
• Direct emails (similar to cold calling)

An example: An awareness strategy for a service company.

To help you imagine what this could look like, pretend I offer a personal shopper service where I help new moms pick out the right baby products for their home and lifestyle.

My clients are on the wealthier side, have a career and very little time, are health conscious, prefer rosé on a late summer afternoon, like to travel, and read their books primarily on an e-reader.

Here’s how I would set up my awareness strategy:

• Blog. Not only would I have my own blog, but I’d also reach out to be a guest blogger on mom blog sites (strategically chosen, of course). This would build up my SEO, trust, and position me as an authority. Also, this is free.
• Facebook and Instagram advertising. I’d include beautiful, happy photos of moms and babies living the travel lifestyle with captions that tell them how my service makes their life easier. And I’d run these for at least a month.
• Google advertising. I’d focus on search keywords around the pain points they’re trying to solve such as “how to travel with a baby” “what running stroller should I buy” “best pumps at work” “how to nurse while traveling”. I’d also run these for a month.
• Trade show. If I have the money (trade shows can be incredibly expensive), I’d attend at least one or two mom product trade shows for the first couple of years. Not only would I find moms who are actively searching for my service, but I’d find influencers and other businesses to connect with who will amplify my service.
• Facebook and Google reviews. Not advertising, per se, but the more positive reviews I have, the better I’d look in my searches.

But because I’ve done my research, I know that each of these actions is going to uncover at least a few new customers.

Last thing, keep track of the results.

As you start putting yourself out there, keep track of your results. Know what return you’re getting for your time and money.

Then adapt. If you’re getting more results from Facebook ads, put more time and money there. If Google ads aren’t working, either adjust them and try again, or focus elsewhere.

Getting started.

Building awareness is a BIG task and we’re here to help you find the way! We offer comprehensive Facebook, Instagram, and Google advertising packages as well as blogging and content creation services.

Give us a call, or send us a message if you’re wanting to find out more about setting up a digital advertising campaign for your business.