Some entrepreneurs believe that low-cost marketing efforts are enough to lead a company to their goals. While this might be possible for a very small percentage of all companies out there, it is far more likely that low-cost marketing will have the business falling short. This article helps explain why companies should be investing more time and money into their marketing efforts to avoid the hidden cost of low-cost marketing.
What Is Low-Cost Marketing?
Low-cost marketing is a relatively simple term that is defined by any form of marketing efforts that come at a relatively low cost. Some of the more common examples of low-cost marketing include social media advertisements, free product samples, website forums, and more. Many of these tactics are extremely valuable, but not when used in the setting of low-cost marketing.
Lack of Marketing Planning
Many different problems are associated with low-cost marketing. One of the biggest is that inexpensive marketing tends to lack any long-term vision. Since developing an in-depth marketing plan involves spending many hours and more than a thousand dollars on ideas and developments, most companies tend to avoid it when they are looking for low-cost marketing options.
Therefore, using these low-cost marketing tactics means companies are generally operating on a tactic basis rather than following a strategic plan. It is essentially bringing a “flying by the seat of your pants” attitude to running a business, which is never a good idea. After all, failing to plan your business ventures essentially equates to planning to fail.
Inability to Be Consistent
If you are going to be one thing, then it is best to be consistent. Consistency is especially true when it comes to operating a business. When customers and clients look at any part of a business’s operation, whether it is their website, social media pages, public advertisements or some other form of publicity, then they expect to see a certain standard of material. This type and standard will vary greatly depending on the specifics of the company. However, the company must be able to stick to their carefully crafted image no matter what they are doing.
The more people who are involved in the marketing efforts, the harder this is to do. This is because different individuals can have opposing opinions on how to best communicate strategies or ideas. If they are not working in unison and following a well-developed marketing plan, then it can be easy for approaches to become mixed up.
Inconsistent approaches often result in a random jumble of different voices being produced by the company. Not only will this come off as looking unprofessional and generally annoying, but it will also have real-world consequences by reducing the number of possible sales a company could get.
Less Progress Over More Time
When it comes to operating a business, an emphasis on long-term growth is essential. Since the majority of businesses fail within the first five years of operation, companies must be aware of where every single dollar is being spent so their operations can be sustainable over the long term.
Many companies make the mistake of thinking the answer is using low-cost marketing that will end up saving them money on their marketing efforts. However, what they fail to understand is that low-cost marketing has a very narrow window in which it is useful. If a company is hoping to be in operation for longer than a few months, then they are going to need something much more developed and hefty than anything low-cost marketing can offer.
Since low-cost marketing is spending significantly less money on a company’s marketing efforts, it is inherently going to produce fewer results. Fewer results are not typically something any company is looking for, especially one that is just getting started or is only a couple of years old looking for significant growth within their customer base.
The basic strategies of low-cost marketing mean it will result in a slow burn in how it improves a business’ customer base. If a company is only spending $1,000 every couple of months on simple tasks like Facebook marketing and is only seeing marginal results from it, then they are not going to get an outstanding ROI.
Solutions to Low-Cost Marketing
There is a reason why so many people say that you need to spend money to make money. In the world of business, this could not be more true, especially when it comes to marketing efforts. After all, if the company is not able to get their name out into the public and make customers know they even exist, then no one is going to be aware of their products or services, let alone purchase them. So if a company is going to cut corners anywhere, marketing is the last area in which they should do so.
Taking the time to develop a comprehensive marketing plan is crucial for the long-term development of any company. 
These marketing plans often have sections dedicated to setting milestones for the 6-month mark, 1-year mark, 5-year mark, and 10-year mark, with occasional milestones thrown in between those points. A marketing plan might not seem like an important part of the process, but it is vital to help ensure a company stays on track.
When marketing efforts are attempted without any vision of a common goal, then it is far too easy for the messages and efforts of the marketing to become lost and far less useful. Having one person or one team handle the vast majority of marketing efforts for a company can help to ensure all of the content stays on brand and delivers the best results possible.
Spending more money upfront on marketing efforts will also ensure faster results for the company. Instead of having to wait six months or even a year to see any significant rise in a company’s customer base, they could see their numbers more than double in only three to four months of work by spending $7,000 to $10,000 a month.
To get a team of professionals to help you fulfill the best marketing strategy possible, contact our team at Glint Advertising today. We deliver the content that you need to get the results that you want.
