Business Owner’s Apprehensions About Marketing

Marketing and advertising are among the most essential techniques to not only launch, but also maintain a successful business. Different embodiments of these, from out-of-home forms like billboards to digital content like banners and pop-ups, serve as the liaisons between business and consumer, or even another other business. They communicate the information necessary to inform the decoder about why that particular business is relevant to them and their needs. Although business owners out there understand the significance of carefully strategizing and implementing a marketing plan, many find themselves quite intimidated by the seemingly daunting undertaking. We’ve broken down some of these fears.

1. Fear of failure

This is everyone’s fear, isn’t it? Across the board, no matter which industry you identify with, you want to succeed. Launching a marketing initiative is a leap of faith, no doubt about it. It requires an intensive and comprehensive stage of research and analyses of different components such as the market, the business itself, etc. And what is understandably unsettling about advertising is that results are not immediately noticeable. To evaluate a campaign or marketing initiative, a significant portion of time must pass for uncovering insights, progression, and changes in behavior. As a result of this truth, there is a fear of spending too much on media and other marketing costs and not being promised those positive results. What owners must understand is that starting a business in and of itself was a leap of faith—you believe in it enough to bring it into the world, so you should feel some confidence with magnifying it, and expressing why it can exist in people’s lives.

2. Witnessing another company copy their idea and lead in the marketplace before they can

One of the first steps in constructing a business plan is identifying the competitors, the other businesses that share commonalities, and fight for the spotlight in the marketplace. One of the truths with virtually any idea is that it is almost never 100% original. So much of what we conceive stems from inspiration from something that has already existed and manifested itself within our subconscious. As evolving humans, we are always using some portion of the past to determine the future. With marketing, that means using nuances from ideas that may have worked well in the past to establish future ideas. With that being said, there is a good chance that you and a competitor might initiate similar marketing efforts. It is also possible that even though you came up with one first, that competitor will also use it and succeed more than you. Unfortunately, this is bound to happen in the business world, as there are ebbs and flows with consumer loyalty with certain companies. However, it is essential to persevere and acknowledge that every marketing initiative can be one step closer to finding the perfect fit, which makes the biggest difference. 

3. How much there is to it—it’s overwhelming.

Marketing is a beast–there’s no doubt about it. If everyone could do it, there wouldn’t be as much of a divide with the successes (or lack thereof) that come out of it. It also wouldn’t be an established career. Marketers focus on marketing and only marketing to become professionals and experts who understand the ins and outs of helping businesses. A business owner seeking marketing help will likely get overwhelmed once they sit down to take a closer look. A LOT goes into marketing, as it is an integration of a large amount of information. Understandably, this can be a lot to wrap one’s mind around. Still, fortunately, there are those third-party resources that specialize in that aspect of the business world who are willing to offer their expertise. 

4. Instilling trust in a third-party source (an agency) 

Bouncing off of #3, business owners are often uneasy when it comes to trying to find a trustworthy and credible agency to fund for marketing help. This agency is who they go to so that they don’t have to really learn about the industry—they already have so many things on their plate. Our advice to business owners is to do the research. Surf the Internet and carefully study different agencies at your disposal, referring to their portfolios and client testimonials for a true glimpse into how they function. There will always be that fear that you didn’t choose the right agency. Still, just like any client relationship, you can sit down with them to address your needs and concerns as a form of consultation. Agencies know all about business measures, such as ROI, and exist to boost your company in the marketplace.

Grova Creative is a minority and veteran-owned agency headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida, and works with clients all across the United States. If you are a business or organization seeking help with advertising, marketing, branding, messaging, marketing, strategy, website development, or other creative assets, email Grova Creative at [email protected] or visit grova.com.