Focus on the proven

Decreasing budgets and changing business climates can sway the confidence of even the best marketers. It is tempting to shift your core tactics to find that magic formula, something that gets more out of current customers while attracting new ones. Certainly, you need to update your plans based on current performance indicators and new research. However, these factors are as dynamic as the weather, so this is not a reason to stray from the core strategies that historically have weathered the business storms.

So what is a marketer to do? Focus, says Al Ries.1 He and Jack Trout2 are famous for developing the enduring concept of positioning. Ries tells marketers to narrow your scope and focus on what is proven to work, get rid of extraneous energy-wasting ventures, understand the trends, and hone in on core products. Remember, there is no magic bullet in marketing. Therefore, work to create value among your current customers and you may just pioneer new territory in the process.

1. Source: Al Ries, Focus: The Future of Your Company Depends on It, 1996.

2. Source: Al Ries and Jack Trout, Positioning, The Battle For Your Mind, 2001 20th Anniversary Edition, and 1981.

Trina V. Burton, MBA

Marketing Director

Trina Burton welcomes your questions, comments, and thoughts related to her column, submit to tburton@advanstar.com.