15 Principles for Marketing Any Professional Service

Successful marketing doesn’t happen by accident. It takes insightful analysis, dedication to building a business and, most of all, patience.

Even though every company approaches the market in a unique way, the most effective marketers follow 15 principles that lead to their success.

1.Marketing is embedded in every aspect of the business, from the big things (like how you deliver services) to the details, such as the look of your emails and envelopes.

2.You have a market positioning vision that reflects your direction and purpose.Everyone in the practice understands and can describe it in a few brief sentences.

3.Clients understand your market positioning.

4.Your clients and prospects know what makes you different from your competitors.

5.All members of your practice know exactly how they contribute to the success of both your business and its marketing strategy.

6.You have a marketing activity calendar, and you follow it.

7.Client-specific programs are at the center of your marketing strategy.

8.You have patience with your marketing program, recognizing that some strategies take hold more quickly than others.

9.You measure the effectiveness of your marketing, making mid-course corrections as needed.

10.Your marketing strategy relies on an array of integrated tactics, applied consistently over time, rather than a start-and-stop approach.

11.You place a high value on client relationship skills.

12.You deliver your services flawlessly.

13.You provide a positive experience for your clients, no matter how tough the project.

14.Your marketing materials make a positive difference in your business development efforts.

15.You make time every day for marketing the business.

You can probably add to this list, but look at each of these principles and assess how well your firm is meeting the intent of each one. For most organizations, a few small changes in how they go to market can make a significant impact on performance.

I’ve left one essential, but obvious, item off this list. You must have an in-demand service offering that you can deliver to the market. Without that, your marketing efforts may succeed, but your business will ultimately fail.