Nut Monthly May
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Nut Monthly
“There’s always the danger that the need for comparison and the need for self-justification causes people to lean very heavily on one measure. Generally, the things that digital media do particularly well aren’t measured by attention metrics. ‘How many eyeballs did I reach for every thousand pounds I spent’ doesn’t factor in things like engagement — it doesn’t factor in that a voluntary audience is purer and more valuable than a random audience.”
This edition of Nut Monthly is all about results. Specifically, it’s about the results you can’t really measure, which are arguably the most important results your business will ever get for sustainable and consistent growth.
Guide: The Intangibles
Business growth can be measured in turnover, profit, staff headcount, customer numbers, and order values. All of those are expressed with numbers. A lot of people expect that the marketing that grows a business will be just as easy to define and report. However, when B2B marketing is at its best, it’s about trust, it’s about emotion, and its impossible to put on a spreadsheet.
Read our latest guide and master the intangibles of business growth.
You can approach marketing (and business growth generally) from two main directions. You can aim for quick growth, focusing on sales and turnover, and getting more customers through the door as soon as possible. Or, you can make recognition, identity, and trust the goals of a campaign. It’s not about immediate conversions, but about making a name that people want to buy from, which of course leads to a more consistent sales pipeline and reliable business growth.
Some people refer to those two as ‘performance marketing’ and ‘brand marketing’.The revenue-driven approach is always tempting because, put frankly, you want leads. You also get to justify your spend much more quickly — you can show your colleagues, investors, and senior decision-makers encouraging figures, and you don’t have to worry about whether or not your strategy is working.
However, if what you want is sustainable growth, and ultimately more profit, you need to concentrate on your brand. A strong and well-established brand creates the most important factor in the sale — trust.
Until your business’s longer-term sales growth is at the top of the agenda, the commitment to brand building will continue to be a challenge. Securing budget for it, and placing it at the heart of your marketing strategy will be tough if you need to show a quick result.
Recommended by LinkedIn
If you’re trying to grow a brand and a business that people not only trust, but think of as soon as they need help, drop me an email and we can put a coffee in the diary. It’s jenny.knighting@nutcrackeragency.com.
Defend the Spend: Marketing budgets facing scrutiny
A new survey suggests that many marketers are facing pressure to report their performance with hard data. 50% of respondents report that finding that data is their biggest challenge. It’s perfectly understandable that during economic instability and inflation, budgets face scrutiny, but as we’ve suggested throughout this newsletter, measuring marketing the wrong way doesn’t help create sustainable growth.
Fake reviews outlawed
A new bill is set to give the Digital Markets Unit (DMU) new powers to fine businesses who use fake reviews, or do not take reasonable steps to verify them. First of all, the fact that it’s worth legislating proves just how powerful social proof is for marketing. Secondly, the new law could make it even more powerful, with even more reason to trust the testimonials that we read.
Nice Story, doesn’t belong on LinkedIn
The BBC published an article discussing LinkedIn, Marketing, and personal branding, in which it weighed up the controversial topic of personality and authenticity on the website. It notes a prevalence of very personal, vulnerable posts and asks what is the ‘correct’ way to conduct a professional profile online. There probably is no ‘right way’, except authenticity. If you consider LinkedIn to be a sales channel, and your profile part of your brand, then the right thing to do is present a reliable image of what your customers will buy.
To start standing out from the crowd and giving your business the growth it deserves, call 020 3941 0305 or email hello@nutcrackeragency.com