Ask the experts: 10 tips for business growth

Whether you’re new to marketing or an old hand in the field, fresh insight can revolutionise the way you approach a campaign. 

At Articulate, we are constantly refactoring our processes and finding new ways to integrate the marketing tips and ideas of others into our work. Some would call it geeking out. We like to think of it as tapping into our ‘inner Doc Brown’.

So to help you charge up your own flux capacitor, we asked ten industry experts: what is your #1 marketing tip for growing a business?

Their answers? Well, you can check them all out below. We gathered some amazing insights from leaders in inbound, social media and content marketing and dished them up for you to enjoy. Great marketing hinges on clarity and personalisation, so use these awesome tips as a springboard for your own success.

Brian Halligan

Brian is CEO at HubSpot and an author of five marketing books.

Brian says:

‘Your success in marketing these days is far more about the width of your brain than the width of your wallet. You've got to match the way you market to the way humans actually buy stuff.  Stop spamming, stop calling cold calling, stop pushing....start pulling.’

@bhalligan

Ardath Albee

Ardath is CEO and B2B marketing strategist at Marketing Interactions. She has over 30 years business management and marketing operations experience.

Ardath says:

‘Know your customers better than you know your products or services. This knowledge will result in the creation of relevant content and experiences that resonate and convince them you’re their best choice to achieve their goals.’

@ardath421

John Paul Aguiar

John is an influential blogger at johnpaulaguiar.com and a social media marketing maestro.

 John says:

‘USE Twitter. Take the time to learn the best way you can use Twitter for marketing. The trick is to learn how to get the most out of Twitter WITHOUT being on it all the time.’

@johnaguiar

Susan Misukanis

 Susan is president at TopRank Marketing, a leading digital marketing agency in the US.

 Susan says:

‘More than anything, growing a business requires a strategic vision for the business that is greater than the products and services being sold. Nothing is more productive for growth than inspired employees delivering world class solutions to motivated customers - all based on a well-articulated purpose.’

@smisikanis

Ian Brodie

Ian is a leading marketing speaker, writer at ianbrodie.com and author of ‘Email Persuasion’.

Ian says:

‘Start by building a deep understanding of your ideal clients so that you can shape your products and services to meet their needs, and your marketing speaks to them about those needs in their language. The more in-tune you are with what your ideal clients think and feel, the better your marketing is going to be.’

@ianbrodie

Rebekah Radice

Rebekah is a pro-blogger at rebekahradice.com. Her blog was listed in the ‘Top 10 Social Media Blogs’ for both 2015 and 2016.

Rebekah says:

‘Focus on the process, not the tactics. Too many marketers get caught up in one-off ideas to try and plug holes. Commit to a daily routine of repeatable processes that support scalable growth.’

@RebekahRadice

Ann Handley

Ann is Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs and author of Everybody Writes.

Ann says:

‘My #1 tip for growing a business is to embrace the power of bigger, bolder, braver marketing. Tell a bigger story with a broader context. Have a bold, recognisable point of view expressed in a brave tone of voice (If you sound like everyone else….that’s not it!)’

@MarketingProfs

David Meerman Scott

David is an international marketing speaker, writer at davidmeermanscott.com and bestselling author of ‘The New Rules of Marketing & PR’, ‘Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead’ and ‘Newsjacking’.

David says:

‘Educate and inform rather than interrupt and sell.’

@dmscott

Brian Honigman

Brian is CEO of content marketing consultancy, Honigman Media and a contributor to The Wall Street Journal, Forbes and Entrepreneur.

Brian says:

‘Clarify your story to explain why your business exists in the first place. With a clear purpose behind all your communications, it'll be easier to connect with your audience around your stories, beliefs and the emotions they invoke.’

@BrianHonigman

 Josh Steimle

Josh is one of Forbes Magazine’s ’25 Marketing Influencers To Watch In 2017’ and writer at joshsteimle.com. He is currently CEO at digital marketing agency, MWI.

Josh says:

‘Become an influencer in your industry, that is, the go-to expert. If you run a fintech startup, become the go-to expert on all things fintech. If you run a self-storage business, become the self-storage expert. How do you become the expert? By sharing your knowledge freely. Answer the questions you or your customer service people always gets asked, and do it in a natural, human, unscripted way, as though you were speaking to a friend.’

@joshsteiml

Bonus advice from more experts!

The consumer isn’t a moron. She’s your wife. You insult her intelligence if you assume that a mere slogan and a few vapid adjectives will persuade her to buy anything. She wants all the information you can give her. David Ogilvy

‘Content is King!’ said Bill Gates. Guy Kawasaki agrees but with one important caveat: 'if you have more money than brains you should focus on outbound marketing. If you have more brains than money, you should focus on inbound marketing.'

Embrace the weird, says Seth Godin. Look for the people who ‘care’ and will therefore ‘listen’ to what you have to say. The masses, he says, have too many choices and no time to listen.

When people are moved by a service, a product or an idea, they make it their own and it becomes ‘a symbol of who they are’. So they will talk about it because to do so means they are sharing something important about themselves.

Rachael Evans at Man Bites Dog has five simple steps to get you inspired, creative and all mojo’ed up:

• Notice the little things in the world around you. Be OPEN.
• Be greedy. Soak up experiences outside of your comfort zone. Disciplines, Industries, People. Be Curious.
• Explore the edges of society and the mainstream. Be cultured.
• Get away from it all to dream, listen, walk or think. Be Idle.
• Look for the silver lining. Be Positive.

Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark. Aim for the company of immortals. David Ogilvy

If you found the advice in this roundup useful, make sure you share it with everyone you know. And for more quality tips on writing, marketing and working practices, follow Articulate on Twitter.

Got any sage advice of your own? Let us know your #1 marketing tip in the comments below.