New marketing channels are noise free

In summer, kids scream for ice cream, at Halloween people scream for treats, but marketers shouldn’t have to scream for leads. And let’s be honest, you’ve been screaming a little too much over the years haven’t you?

If you’ve been a marketer for a decent amount of time you know that committing to a new marketing channel or technology isn’t always smooth sailing. You receive the commitment and follow through when the technology is still bright and producing well, but slowly the newness fades and the promised deliverables are no longer met.

For the more seasoned marketers who were working in the late 90’s, you may recall the excitement that email marketing brought to the table. As marketers, we finally had a clear and incredibly effective way to push our message out to our database.

Those of you a bit younger may remember the doors getting blasted open by paid search. We were able to get right in front of a prospect exactly when they were searching for a solution that we could provide.

Still not relating? Well, there is always the up rise of social media. Social media is an inspired concept that  promised to connect us with our prospects at a more personal level and we dove in head first to get them to like our posts and god-willing, click through.

There are many more examples, but the story is the same. It starts with a breakthrough technology that transforms the way we reach our market. If you are lucky enough to be a first mover, you enjoy much more time harvesting the advantages from this new channel. But eventually, whether email marketing, paid search or social media, the channel that once provided such great results fades in its quality.

Why?

Noise.

How advocacy marketing avoids the marketing channel drop off

A new channel starts out sensationally because not everyone is using it, so those that are get the benefit of being clearly seen/heard amongst the crowd. But as this new method gets adopted by the masses, it loses its effectiveness. Your market gets bombarded (with emails or search ads or social posts) and it just becomes an overwhelming noise.

So they switch it off. They stop opening emails from vendors, they avoid paid search ads, use ad blocking technology, and filter out your social posts.

Then how do you break through?

What is the next channel to ride?

What marketing approach will finally make your message a priority?

The answer – advocacy marketing.

Regardless of the channel, there is one thing that will ALWAYS cut through the noise, advocacy marketing. Prospects may be ignoring your brand messages, but they will pay attention if it’s presented to them from someone they know. A former colleague, a friend, or a peer will always break through the noise better than a brand because of their pre-established bond of trust that a brand channel can’t artificially create.

If you want to break through the noise, recruit your customers, partners and employees to be your advocates. Empower them with the tools to reach out to their personal and professional networks and share the benefits of your products or services. I promise that they can cut through the noise and be heard where you can’t. In fact, a Nielsen study reported that customers are 400% more likely to buy a product recommended by a friend.

Bottom line – your advocates can spread your brand message and generate leads for your business. If you aren’t yet looking at advocacy marketing today, I highly suggest you investigate how advocacy marketing can deliver personalization of your brand at scale. It is quickly becoming the only effective way to break through the noise. Learn more about advocacy marketing by exploring the ebook, The Advocacy Market Explained, and discover a channel that won’t quit on you.

Questions? Tweet me @TrishaWinter