They say mindfulness is the next revolution in marketing.
But what is mindful marketing?
Mindful marketing, according to IGI Global, is a customer-centric approach that seeks ways to create win-win strategies by carefully considering both sellers’ and buyers’ interests at the same time. By thoughtfully aligning marketing functions with consumers’ interests in mind, a marketer can avoid wasteful, unethical, and selfish marketing practices.
In these changing times, where customers are more critical and discerning as ever, being mindful by hearing what they have to say and considering their interests with every business decision that you make, is an essential business practice.
Marketers are often known for always wanting to get ahead of the game with their constant need to find new ways to sell their products or services. In these modern times, we are expected to know every trendy digital platform there is such as Instagram, Snapchat, or Pinterest.
There is a fear of being left behind if we don’t have a social media strategy planned months ahead of time. There is also a need to comprehend and analyze Big Data, utilize the results, and implement it in our strategies. While mastering all of those, we are still expected to be on top of our advertising, pricing strategies, target monitoring, and other marketing tasks.
But too much of anything can make anyone go mad.
Step back and see the whole picture.
We don’t need to know and apply every new strategy to ours. Remember that sometimes less is better. Don’t get yourself overtaxed and overwhelmed with every trend. Instead, find the one that works for you and try to develop it. Your business success will not depend on the activities you mastered or acquired, how you communicate your message to your customers is still the essential activity that you need to focus on.
Stepping back and examining complex situations by being in the present moment is one step to marketing mindfully. Asking the right questions from the start can help you find the root cause of problems that come up and thus, will lead you to find the right solutions.
When I started shifting my priorities from mastering every digital platform to focusing on my customer’s needs, I was able to transform my business. Mindful marketing has enabled me to share in my clients’ goals instead of focusing on mine. I was able to pinpoint what my real problems are as I was able to declutter not only my marketing plan but also my business strategy.
The following are tips that I learned along the way when I started implementing mindful marketing to the core of my business:
Customize your marketing style
When I started to focus on my customer’s needs, I found out that there are a couple of different approaches that you can try for each individual. Blogger outreach services are good for customizing your message to a specific target group. Identifying the different types of customer groups I have for my business allowed me to create specific strategies based on the needs of each group.
Build a relationship with your customers
Use social media, not only to sell, but also to get feedback from your customers. The comments section should be taken seriously – it is your primary research point to know what makes your customers tick. Never miss a moment to respond to your customer’s queries. Make sure to respond to your customers as soon as you can. Aim to be the first resource that they will go to whenever they need answers. By having a quick response time, you will be able to gain trust and confidence from your customers. Remember that word-of-mouth is still the best marketing strategy that you can have. Building a loyal customer following online is as powerful as having celebrity ambassadors but without the celebrity cost.
I try to make myself available to my clients as much as I can and I have had numerous referrals because of relationships I’ve built with my existing clients. Getting new clients from referrals is great because there is no need to sell my business, because the relationship I’ve formed with the existing client that gave the referral is more effective than any ‘selling’ I can do.
Simplify your communication techniques
Deliver your message in the simplest possible way you can. Use the words that your customers can understand and fully comprehend. A quick response time is no use if you can’t get your message across clearly. Also, the best way to simplify a conversation is when you listen to your customers first. By doing so, you can instantly know what they want to hear. Use this knowledge to plan your conversations and promotions.
Simply put, marketing mindfully is an approach that anyone can apply to their marketing strategies – no matter what kind of business you have. The key is to step back from the chaos so you can see the whole picture and remember to put your customer at the center of your marketing efforts.