"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."

Benjamin Franklin

The BIG Question

Let me ask you a point blank question. When was the last time you took a cold hard look at your marketing to find out whether or not it’s really working?
This is an important question as marketing is simply not a set it and forget it function. It requires regular monitoring and tweaking to ensure its effectiveness. Not doing so is what I call ‘marketing insanity’ – throwing marketing resources into the abyss with hopes of positive results. This typically spells disaster for a small business – realistically it can be looked at as a form of gambling. Now I don’t know about you but as a small business owner myself, I’m not willing to risk my livelihood on a gamble.

Time To Pull Back The Curtains

So if you haven’t done so in the last 3 months, now is as good a time as any to pull back the curtains so to speak and take a real close look at your marketing performance. I call this process ‘reflection’. It’s a great tool for business improvement and growth. Before we get started here though, I’d like for you to put on your ‘thick skin and honesty cap’ because with all due respect, this process simply will not yield the best results for you if you’re not willing to reveal the real truth regarding you business’s state of affairs – it simply can’t. You have to be willing to ask and honestly answer some real tough questions. But hey, if you can’t be honest with yourself then who can you be honest with?

So... Are You Ready To Begin?

Great… well the process of reflection for our purposes here is twofold. First take a clear snapshot of the current state of affairs of your small business and then second examine that snapshot in terms of what’s working and what’s not working. 

Sounds easy enough, right? 

Well hold on a minute, while the process of reflection is simple, it can pack a punch in terms of the reality it reveals.

Some questions to start this process are:

  • Have you met or exceeded your revenue goals over the past month? Past quarter? Or, how about the past year?
  • Which product or service lines are your top bread winners and why? Which are not meeting expectations and why?
  • Have you built a significant and steady pipeline of prospects interested in what your business offers? If so, how did you do it?
  • How many new clients have you picked up over the past month? Past quarter? Or, how about the past year?
  • Which of your clients has been the best and most lucrative to work with? How can you attract more like them?
  • Have you strengthened your credibility in the marketplace? How about your visibility?
  • What marketing strategies and tactics did you use? Were they effective? Why or Why not?

Parting Notes

Now as things get clearer for you and you make your determinations, don’t allow yourself to get emotionally attached to any specific marketing strategy or marketing tactic, simply replace the things that are not working with others that might work. Additionally, know that it’s okay if things didn’t turn out exactly as planned – this is all part of the growing process.

If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten... or worse!

Dean Mercado
The past is the past, it’s over and done with and we can’t change that however, we can certainly guide the future by understanding the past and taking appropriate action in the present. So in closing, I’d like to leave you with my spin on a very relevant quote from success expert Tony Robbins, “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten… or worse!” So do yourself a favor and take the time to reflect and just say no to ‘marketing insanity’.

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in December 2006 and has been updated for freshness, accuracy, and comprehensiveness.

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