A lot of times, I sit here and tell you all of the best practices for [insert social media platform here], or my best advice for designing, well anything, or the best marketing strategies for small businesses. But when it comes right down to it, the “best” advice is useless if it’s not workable for you.
I don’t even follow my own advice half the time, and you probably shouldn’t either. There is no one-size-fits-all version of marketing and there never will be. Your product, competition, physical location, target audience, and even your own personality all affect how you should market your business.
No two (effective) marketing strategies should be identical. Just because one strategy worked for a smalltown ice cream shop in the pacific northwest, doesn’t mean it will work for your smalltown ice cream shop in the pacific northwest. Just because another accounting firm has luck using Instagram doesn’t mean your accounting firm will. No two businesses are exactly alike and it’s those differences that should shape your marketing.
Especially as a solopreneur, you should take all marketing advice with a grain of salt. Even the picture-perfect marketing strategies are worthless if you don’t have the time to implement them. You need solutions that will actually work for you and it’s ok to adapt the advice you get into a strategy that you can viably do.
In fact, most marketing advice is never meant to be taken at face-value or considered some sort of marketing law (at least not if it was given by someone who actually understands marketing). It is intended to be a guide—think more like the Pirate’s Code and less like the Constitution. That’s why when you’re reading through someone’s “best marketing tips,” they sometimes seem vague and ill-thought out.
As a marketer, I can tell you it’s hard to be specific when you’re giving out general advice. You need to know all possible details of the business you’re making the strategy for in order to be more specific and that just isn’t feasible when you’re, say, writing a blog post for your website and don’t have any clue which business types will actually be the ones to read it.
So, feel free to pick and choose which advice to follow. Mold one strategy to fit into your own business model. Throw out some advice entirely if it doesn’t apply to you in the slightest. If something that you’re already doing is working, DO MORE OF IT! If something takes up too much of your time with little payoff, then scrap it altogether.
You are the expert at your own business and customers. You know what your personal strengths and limitations are. Only you, and not some internet marketer, can decide which marketing strategies are the best for your business.
All the best,
Ryanne Zender
Disclaimer: While marketing is based in part on statistics and psychology, it is not an exact science. Every business and market are unique. What may work for one business, will not necessarily work for another. There are no guarantees in marketing, and this post is for informational and educational purposes only and does not replace professional advice. You can check out the full list of disclaimers and disclosures here.
