In a world of choices, small businesses and nonprofits can choose marketing that’s built to last. Most ad campaigns have a finite life and then disappear forever. But videos, websites, blogs and podcasts can draw prospects indefinitely and generate returns for years to come.
There are innumerable options screaming for your time and money. How do you choose between them?
By Roy Harryman
In “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” the ancient protector of the Holy Grail warned: “Choose wisely, for while the true Grail will bring you life, the false Grail will take it from you.”
How does this apply to marketing? Simply this: Your choices matter. Some decisions can burn your budget with little return. Others can generate results for years to come.
Quick burn vs. long churn
Nearly every form of marketing has some value. The question is, what will be most advantageous for you?
For simplicity, I’ll divide these into two categories: Quick burn (think firecracker) vs. long churn (think of making butter).
There goes the budget!
A direct mail postcard is like a firecracker. You may get immediate results. That’s good! But if your entire budget is consumed in one campaign, you’re likely to have mixed feelings. Once the sale is over, the card has no continued value and is headed to the landfill. Other “quick burn” examples are paid social media and traditional advertising, both of which have a finite life.
A social post’s life is determined by an algorithm over which you have no control or until your ad budget expires. Regardless of its form, advertising runs for the length of time specified in a contract. Then it disappears.
“The “long churn” approach puts the investment on the creation side of marketing.”
For example, instead of paying for the printing and distribution of a postcard, you could spend it on the creation of a quality video. While the postcard will vanish from the earth in a few days, a professional video can continue to draw viewers and prospects for years.
Cooking stuff up … on video.
It comes down to a matter of ownership. You own the video and can do what you want with it.
The same video can appear on:
Your website
All your social media channels
An email promotion
YouTube, Vimeo and other video hosting sites
When relevant videos are properly described and tagged, they can consistently draw viewers interested in your topic for years to come. It still surprises (and delights) me to find a video I created years ago is continuing to draw viewers and generate leads.
Contrasting the options
Let’s compare: A direct mail campaign to even a small city (let’s say 20,000 households) could easily cost $40,000. It’s printed, labeled, sent … and then it’s gone. If you invest that amount (or even much less) in a video, it’s yours forever. You can keep using it any way you want for as long as you want.
But wait … there’s more! If you plan wisely, you can maximize your experience with your videographer. She’s going to film more than she needs. So have her create three versions: long, medium and short. Your videographer won’t have to spend any extra time filming or staging your project. It will simply mean some extra work in production. Now you have three long-churn assets that are yours forever. In addition, your videographer can export still images (photos) from the video, giving you even more marketing resources. And if you want to use the isolated audio track, that’s yours too.
Beyond video
Video is not the only long-term marketing investment. Your website is also a potent long-churn lead generator. It’s also your business’s digital home base.
It’s hard to think of a better marketing tool than a quality, well-planned, well-maintained website. Why is this true?
Your website (if you create it right) will cause prospects and customers to discover (and rediscover) you.
You can control 100% of your content.
You can upload all your videos, photos, blog posts and more.
It serves as a springboard to connect people to your email newsletter and social media, giving them further exposure to your brand.
You can sell your stuff or services, book appointments, chat live or collect donations.
While you own and control your website, you absolutely do not own or control social media. Your account can be hacked, disabled or disappeared at any moment. I’ve seen all these things happen. When it occurs, social media companies are almost always unreachable, unresponsive and unreliable. Don’t build your castle on sand.
Other long-churn media include:
Blogging
Podcasts
Online photo galleries of your products and services
E-books
Printed materials (a magazine, booklet or book)
Branded merchandise such as apparel, travel mugs, sun shields and more
These have unlimited lifespans. Once you create them, they keep working around the clock to connect you with prospects and customers.
Maintain flexibility
My recommendation of long-churn marketing is a general principle about your overall strategy. It’s not intended to discourage direct mail, paid social media or other forms of “firecracker” advertising. Sometimes promotions are seasonal or only for one day. If that’s the case, you have to get the word out – and now! Just keep in mind you have finite resources, so saying “yes” to one tactic often means saying “no” to another.
And remember the words of the Grail knight: “Choose wisely.”
Roy Harryman is the author of “Small Business, Big Impact: A No-Nonsense Marketing Strategy For Companies That Do More With Less.” This column is an excerpt from the book.