Marketing. What, Why, and How?
5 Fundamental Elements of Marketing You Should Know
The topic of marketing is so broad and exciting that it’s impossible to cover it in one article and probably in one book as well.
As a developer, I have always dreamed of building my product. But I would get stuck whenever I started working on it because of the next blocking question.
- Who Needs This Product?
- Does Anybody Will Pay For This?
- How Do I Know if It’s the Right Product?
- Is There Any Reason to Build This?
I asked these questions every time I was doing something that stopped me.
Five years ago, I was developing a cooking app. Then I stopped.
Two years ago, I was developing a meditation app. Then I stopped.
Now, I’m creating a note and task-taking app. And now I am again getting those questions.
One Answer for All Those Questions
The answer to all these questions hides in one simple word.
It’s a Marketing.
Usually, people think about this like an advertisement, Google and Facebook ads, cold calls and emails, etc.
But the truth about marketing is that it answers all the questions and even more I’ve listed above.
Marketing Structure
I have painted this picture alone, so some professionals may disagree and say I’ve missed some items.
But the main items you can see here. It’s the general structure of the marketing.
So we have here the following items:
- Research
- Pain
- Target
- Value
- Notify
Let’s take a look at each of them closer.
Research
Before selling anything to anyone, you must be sure that anyone needs it.
For example, you want to sell cases for smartphones in your city.
- Do you know what the top popular phones in your city are?
- Do you know what the price people are ready to pay?
- Do you understand what your audience is?
These questions are just an example for you. For different products, they may be different.
And it’s perfect to know the answers for them.
Because with it, you will know what people need.
To find answers to these questions, you can use these tools:
- Quora
Also, it’s good to visit Facebook groups and read comments on Instagram and YouTube.
Suppose you want to go deeper and learn SEO, Google Trends, and how to use them. I’ve written several articles on this topic recently.
Pain & Target
Any product or service you want for your customers should have a reason. Do you understand why people will buy it?
If people are happy and have anything they need, will they buy your mystery box for 100$?
The answer is yes if it will solve their problems and pains and help improve their lives.
Otherwise, the answer will be no.
You need to know who has this particular problem you are trying to solve. Probably nobody cares about it, and you waste your time.
Before creating anything, check if anybody needs it. If anybody wants to buy it, you are on the right road.
The next step in understanding the problem is understanding your audience.
For example, you know two people who have this problem. But hundreds of people have the same problem.
Will one solution work for everybody?
Do good research on your target audience and create a User Persona describing your audience.
Value
Now you know the problem and the people who have it.
You know precisely what you need to solve.
Now it’s time for work. Create a solution, product, or service that will help your target audience solve your customers’ pains and problems and will help them sleep better.
Learn one thing: if your solution isn’t good enough, nobody will use it because it doesn’t give any benefit.
Make everything possible to create a great solution that will benefit any audience member, and be sure they will get value from this.
You can make mistakes. It’s okay. That’s why it’s so important to have consistent feedback from your customers.
Talk to them. Ask them what they think.
How would they like to improve it? These questions are crucial. Nobody will tell you what to do besides your customers.
Notify
Tell your story to everybody.
After finishing your work, ensure that everybody who might be part of your target audience knows about your product.
It doesn’t mean you must post everywhere and spam everyone on your contact list.
You can do it, but very carefully. Because one of the things people hate the most is spam.
Instead of this, try to find a place where your target audience may spend their time.
For example, it could be:
- Comments on specific posts on Instagram
- Discussions on Reddit
- Facebook groups
- Real meet-ups
- Cafes
Find the interests of your target audience and look for places you can find them. Understanding this lets you effortlessly reach them and tell them your message.
Summary
Marketing is a potent tool. It’s like a science of giving the value to the right audience.
It contains many topics and subtopics, tools, and strategies.
But the main thing we should learn is next:
- Find real problems of real people
- Create solutions for these problems
- Tell people about your solution