Marketing For Dummies, 5ed

Introduction

About This Book  

Foolish Assumptions  

Icons Used in This Book  

Beyond the Book

Where to Go from Here  

Part 1: Marketing in a Consumer-Driven World

Chapter 1: Understanding Consumers Today and What Matters Most

Coming to Terms with the State of the Consumer Mind  

Addressing the Generation Gaps  

Creating Trust Equity among Today's Consumers

Defining a common purpose

Building relationships with customers

Improving Customer Experiences for Sustainability

Guiding the decision process with customer experience planning

Creating powerful experiences beyond the sales process

Pushing Boundaries with Guerilla Marketing

The Fun Theory

Other guerilla marketing examples

Guerilla marketing and community building

Chapter 2: The Psychology of Choice and How to Trigger It for Lifetime Value

The Unconscious Mind: The Real Driver of Consumer Choice

The influence of schemas and the unconscious mind

The conscious and unconscious minds often disagree

Psychological Drivers That Drive Sales

Neurotransmitters and how they affect choice

Moving from USPs to ESPs

Rewards versus loss

Survival insticts

Understanding the basics of human psychology

Aligning with Powerful Social Influencers

Authority

Social proof

Reciprocity

Scarcity

Appealing to Consumers' Happiness and Purpose

Putting It All Together

Chapter 3: Laying a Foundation for Growth

Measuring the Growth Rate of Your Market

Responding to a Flat or Shrinking Market

Finding Your Best Growth Strategies

Go to market

Grow what you have for higher profitability

Growing a Market Segmentation Strategy

Customer segments

Niche marketing

Developing a Market Share Strategy

Define your metrics

Establish a benchmark

Do the math

Designing a Positioning Strategy

Envisioning your position: An exercise in observation and creativity

Aligning your positioning strategy with growth initiatives

Growth Hacking to Build Leads and Market Share

Search

Build links

Fish for emails

Try tripwires

Hire a growth hacker

Selling Innovative Products

Part 2: Building a Strategy for LTV and ROI

Chapter 4: Researching Your Customers, Competitors, and Industry

Knowing When and Why to Do Research

Monitoring social chatter to better understand your customers

Following thought leaders to get current with reality

Researching to discover what really drives your customers

Asking questions that get valid results

Checking Out Net Promoter Scores and How to Find Yours

Asking Really Good Questions on Surveys

Writing ESP Surveys

Paying Wisely for Market Research

Discovering Low-Cost and Even Free Ways to Find Out What Matters Most

Observe your customers

Do competitive research

Harness the power of one-question surveys

Establish a trend report

Probe your customer records

Test your marketing materials

Interview defectors

Create custom web analytics

Riding a Rising Tide with Demographics

Chapter 5: Creating a Winning Marketing Plan

The Marketing Plan Components You Need

First, the basics

Now a bit more complex concepts

And now some even bigger questions

Addressing the Four Ps

Conducting a SWOT Analysis

Focusing on Functional Alternatives

Why Collaboration Matters So Much

Teaming up on CSR

Building kinship, not just relationships

Expanding Your Target

Monitoring and reacting to trends

Developing the customer experience

Creating a Working Marketing Plan

Mapping Out Your Action Steps

Step 1: Complete a situational analysis/summary

Step 2: Establish your benchmark

Step 3: Define your goals

Step 4: Take note of lessons learned

Step 5: Outline your strategy

Step 6: Commit to action items

Step 7: Build learning plans

Keeping It Real: Do's and Don'ts of Planning

Don't ignore the details

Don't get stuck in the past

Don't try to break norms

Don't engage in unnecessary spending

Do set reasonable boundaries

Do break down your plan into simple subplans

Preparing for Economic Influences

Budgeting Your Game

Managing Your Marketing Program

Projecting Expenses and Revenues

Buildup forecasts

Indicator forecasts

Multiple-scenario forecasts

Time-period forecasts

Creating Your Controls

Chapter 6: Content Marketing and Marketing Content

An Overview of Content Marketing

Creating content that delivers

Channeling your content

Creating a Credible Content Marketing Plan

Taking Advantage of User-Generated Content

Flipping to Marketing Content

Content Marketing Writing Tips for Better Results

Try the inverted pyramid

Toss out some click bait

Give ads greater stopping and sticking power

Be consistent

Be as persuasive as possible

Be professional

Part 3: Creating an Omni-Channel Plan

Chapter 7: Creative That Engages the Mind

Creating Compelling Creative

Conducting a creativity audit

Changing (almost) everything

Applying Your Creativity

Building your creative strategy

Color your creative psychologically

Words, copy, and click bait

Writing a Creative Brief

Goals

Promise and offer

Support statement

Tone or persona statement

Emotional drivers

Wannabe profiles

Color palette

Golden triangle pattern

Constraints

Execution

Applying Creativity to Branding and Much More

Creativity and product development

Creativity and branding

Simple ways to spark new ideas

Making creativity a group activity

Managing the creative process

Elevating your creative thinking

Chapter 8: Digital Tools and Tactics That Work

Exploring Digital Channels You Can't Ignore

Using Facebook for Engagement That Builds Sales

Developing a successful Facebook plan

Creating content that gets response, dialogue, and leads  

Advertising on Facebook

Building Your Twitter Presence

Igniting Your Social Presence on Instagram

Expanding Your Network through LinkedIn

Groups

Engagement

Promoting Your Brand with Pinterest

Discovering Digital Tools That Drive Brands

Podcasts

Webinars

Videos

Online review sites

Fun and games work, too

Advertising on the Web

Search-term marketing

Google AdWords for ads as text, banners, and more

Getting the most out of each format

Using Automated Customization to Work Smarter and Faster

Chapter 9: Using Print in a Digital World

Creating Printed Marketing Materials

Exploring elements of successful print materials

Designing print materials that capture attention and sales

Working with a professional designer

Using online sources for design services

Doing the design on your own

Figuring out why fonts matter

Using flow for engagement and clarity

Producing Effective and Efficient Print Collateral

Designing fliers for grounded results

Developing brochures and self-mailers with specific marketing goals

Drafting an effective layout for your print brochure

Placing Print Ads That Generate Leads

Cheap but powerful publications

Ad size

Ad impact

Part 4: Powerful Ways to Engage for LTV and ROI

Chapter 10: Going Direct with Data, Personalization, and Sales

Understanding the Metrics of Direct Marketing

The Basics of Direct Marketing

Getting direct about direct marketing

The more you do, the more you get

Digging Deeper into Data

Using a CRM system

Putting DMPs and DSPs together for ROI

Creating Direct Campaigns for Direct Profitability

Messaging matters

Outside matters

Actions that matter

Mailing tips

Purchasing lists

Going Direct with Email

Triggered email

Personalized email

Testing direct

Maximizing direct response online

Integrating Call and Chat Centers  

Making use of phone time

Capturing useful information about each caller

Telemarketing: To call or not

Chapter 11: Building a Website That Engages and Sells

Creating and Managing a Web Identity

Understanding what consumers expect  

Standardizing your web identity

Creating an Engaging Website  

Watching your KPIs

Making content king on your website

Driving traffic with content

Integrating Key Design Elements

Using the golden triangle

Developing your web persona

Going from design concepts to an actual website

Driving Traffic via SEM and SEO

Creating Landing Pages, Blogs, and More

Using landing pages effectively

Using blogs to build brands, not bog them down

Monetizing Your Web Traffic

Pay per impression

Pay per click

Chapter 12: Leveraging Networks and Events

Harnessing the Power of Social Hives

"Face" your customers: Events that inspire engagement, loyalty, and referrals

Mix it up to create interest and ROI

Launching Your Own Public Event

Hosting events with meaning

Funding and monetizing your event

Getting help managing your event

Sponsoring a Special Event

Hosting and supporting cause-related campaigns and events

Sponsoring a cause-related event

Finding a good fit

Maximizing Trade Show ROI

Building the foundation for a good booth

Locating trade shows

Selecting space on the expo floor

Doing trade shows on a dime

Getting people to your booth

Offering premiums or "swag" that works

Part 5: Building a Brand That Sells Again and Again

Chapter 13: Making Your Brand Stand Out

Building Sustainable Brand Equity

Brands defined by service

Brands defined by experiences

Brands defined by product distinctions and innovation

Telling Your Brand's Story

The characters

The plot

The climax

Branding Your Identity

Unifying your brand identity

Developing your brand's iconography

Identifying your brand's personality traits

Developing brands within brands

Updating your brand

Designing a Product Line

Eyeing depth and breadth

Managing your product line effectively

Protecting your product line and brand

Strengthening an Existing Product

Introducing New and Successful Products

Partnering with experts to build new products

Getting insights from customers

Using the significant difference strategy

Upgrading or Expanding an Existing Product

Passing the differentiation test

Passing the champion test

Branding across channels

Chapter 14: Finding the Right Pricing Approach

Pricing Opportunities and Obstacles

Raising your price and selling more

Avoiding the dangers of deep discounting

Exploring the impact of pricing on customers' purchases

Increasing profits without increasing prices

Setting or Changing Your List Price

Step 1: Consider all the influencers

Step 2: Examine your costs

Step 3: Evaluate customers' price preferences

Step 4: Consider secondary influences on price

Step 5: Set your strategic objectives

Step 6: Master the psychology of pricing

Designing Special Offers

Creating coupons and other discounts

Figuring out how much to offer

Forecasting redemption rates

Predicting the cost of special offers

Keeping special offers special

Staying on Top of U.S Regulations

Chapter 15: Distribution and Merchandising in an Augmented World

Considering Distribution Strategies

Shelf strategies to avoid getting benched

E-commerce channels pros and cons

Tracking Down Ideal Distributors

Understanding Channel Structure

Reviewing Retail Strategies and Tactics

Attracting traffic

Creating atmosphere

Developing merchandising strategies

Chapter 16: Succeeding in Sales and Service

Selling for a Lifetime

Calculating lifetime value

Understanding the importance of customer loyalty

Selling for Sustainability

Subscription and retainer--based selling

Selling channels

Getting to Yes via ESP Selling

Generating sales leads

Purchasing lists for B2B lead generation

Consultative selling

Creating sales presentations with ESP power

Responding to problems

Organizing Your Sales Force

Determining how many salespeople you need

Hiring your own or using reps

Compensating your sales force

Retaining Customers with Great Service

Part 6: The Part of Tens

Chapter 17: Ten Common Marketing Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)

Making Assumptions

Ignoring Customer Complaints

Faking Popularity

Using Dirty Data

Competing on Price

Ignoring the Emotional Drivers of Choice

Forgetting to Edit  

Offering What You Can't Deliver

Treating Customers Impersonally

Blaming the Customer

Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Measure Results (Beyond ROI)

Establish Clear Objectives

Tie Your Metrics to Your Objectives

Set Learning Priorities

Establish a Target ROI

Know Your Customer Lifetime Value

Know Your Allowable Customer Acquisition Cost

Establish Benchmarks

Turn the Funnel Upside Down

Adjust Your Funnel Benchmark Assumptions When You Have Real Data

Avoid the Dashboard Trap

Index