The marketing industry is full of myths and misconceptions about your business. That’s right, your business. Marketing is here to help businesses succeed, so if yours isn’t getting the job done, you might want to consider reevaluating what you know about the industry.

In this article, we’ll go over 5 common myths and misconceptions about marketing that often stand in the way of a business reaching it’s full potential. Follow along to see if you’re inadvertently doing something that could be hurting your business.

1. “Marketing is all paid advertising and cold calls.”

Many business owners believe that marketing is intertwined with advertising and sales. And while that’s true to some degree, it’s so much more than that. Marketing your business doesn’t have to be expensive and it doesn’t have to be time-consuming.

Guerrilla marketing and event planning are great ways to market your business that come with an affordable price-tag and are interactive for consumers. However, if you’re looking for marketing efforts that have little to no price-tag attached, there’s always cross-promotion, networking, blogging, webinars, email lists, press releases, or in-house programs (such as loyalty or referral programs).

2. “Social media isn’t a big deal in my industry.”

Wrong. Social media is a big deal in ANY industry. Today’s consumers live in a web-obsessed world and social media comes with the territory. It’s the twenty-first century, and your business needs to represent that. If it doesn’t, it’ll appear “behind the times” and lead consumers into the arms of your seemingly advanced competitors.

If you’re looking for a reason to hop on the social media bandwagon, consider the fact that it can be one of the easiest, most effective ways to reach an audience. Since a majority of consumers are on at least one form of social media, it’s almost impossible to NOT benefit from using it. Setting up company pages— especially on sites like Facebook and LinkedIn— keeps consumer expectations at bay and makes the business feel more approachable.

Plus, as an added benefit, most social media sites have separate pages dedicated to promoting businesses. To learn more about how to do that, check out BoydTech’s article on Capitalizing on Social Media.

3. “My website has nothing to do with my marketing strategy.”

Another statement that just isn’t true. Your website is one way to market yourself— perhaps one of the most important— and it should be treated as such. A killer design, audience-appropriate text, and creative visual elements are no longer considered going the extra mile. Instead, those things are expected of your site.

Since most of today’s window shoppers are online, websites are responsible for more first impressions than any one brand representative. They answer credibility and convenience questions, persuade purchasing decisions, and help strengthen your brand image— all things business owners aim to do in their marketing. Knowing that, how could you not consider your website a vital part of your marketing strategy?

4. “Case studies are a waste of time.”

Case studies can be a pain to put together, but doing them can actually save time. When it comes to purchasing decisions, many consumers think they know exactly what they want. But what happens when you sit down with them to discuss your product or service in more detail and they decide it’s not the right fit for them? You’ve wasted a time on a failed prospect.

Case studies give potential customers and clients the opportunity to evaluate your work before contacting your office. They also help control consumer expectations by showing them what they can expect to get from your business. This limits any disappoint of a job they might have considered “not well done” if they had different expectations in mind throughout the process.

5. “Reaching as many people as possible should be my main marketing goal.”

Nope. Though reach is extremely important, it doesn’t allow for duplicated impressions. Reach is responsible for one impression per person… so what if that impression doesn’t last? Frequency, on the other hand, is also responsible for impressions, but on a much higher level. Why is the frequency at which people see your marketing efforts a big deal? In simplest terms, it’s because it solidifies your brand in consumers’ minds, which can lead to increased awareness and potential sales.

Does this mean frequency should be your main marketing goal? No again. It means reach and frequency should be treated with equal value during the marketing process. Focusing solely on one variable in your marketing campaign is a good way to ignore other important variables. The solution? Either start the campaign with multiple smaller (yet reachable) goals or one main goal that’s inclusive of all of the smaller ones, such as reach, frequency, awareness, and sales goals.

Don’t forget to follow us on social media for more blog posts just like this one. As always, thanks for reading and happy marketing!

—Amanda Myers, Copywriter at BoydTech Design, Inc.