How to Fight Perception Challenges with Marketing

Several weeks ago I provided some advice to a company dealing with perception issues in their marketplace. In The Challenge article in the Globe and Mail my advice focused on whether or not the company had a niche strategy. For small and medium-sized businesses, perception challenges can be pervasive, especially if you are competing with national or global companies.

It’s like the old adage says: “No one ever got fired for hiring IBM”.

For some, it’s a constant battle and practically impossible to compete. While survival and success are in fact possible, trying to do everything and reach everyone will not make you an effective competitor. Instead, you must find an area of focus – a niche strategy.

As a follow-up to the article, I wrote a blog on 5 Tips on Building Business Credibility and Strengthening Perceptions in the Market for TELUS Talks Business. The intent of the blog was to provide SMBs with practical marketing tactics that could help businesses struggling with perception to increase awareness and strengthen their overall credibility. Below is a brief synopsis of these five tactics:

1. Internal Communications – Ensure the entire organization is communicating the same message regarding how your company differentiates itself and the benefits realized by customers.
2. Thought Leadership – These activities will establish your company as a subject-matter expert within your niche. They are highly content-driven and can be leveraged across multiple marketing channels.
3. Speaking Engagements – Exposure at key industry events, especially by participating as a speaker can, in time, build credibility and support your firm’s thought leadership activities.
4. Public Relations – Share your successes with the industry. Developing and disseminating company news can spread word on your expertise, demonstrate client successes and serve as a platform for launching/re-launching products and services.
5. Partnerships – Alignment with relevant and credible partners can provide a significant boost to your company’s credibility.

If your firm is experiencing challenges with strengthening perceptions in the marketplace, give us a call to discuss how we can help. It may be a matter of re-focusing your marketing activities, or finding the position most suitable for your company to take in the marketplace. Either way, the sooner these perception challenges are addressed, the easier it will be to build brand credibility and strengthen sales.