Cats vs. Dogs - which are your customers?

Anyone who reads marketing books knows that the Eisenberg brothers have some pretty sound advice that has a tendency of smacking people right between the eyes. One of these, titled "Waiting For Your Cat to Bark?" says it all. So many businesses do not pay attention to what their clients

Approach your target audience like a house pet.

Dogs: They are loyal, repeat customers who are excited with each new product or service you offer. But now, with so many choices they will be tempted to stray. Years ago when there were a handful of TV networks and the Internet hadn't been invented competition for attention was limited. You need a strategy to keep them loyal.
Cats: These are all the new customers you want. You probably don't know how they prefer to be contacted with your message. If you torment them on the wrong level too often, like cats they will become indifferent to your message. Worse, they will decide to pay you back by telling others how annoying you are and that they wouldn't buy your catnip if you were the last catnip vendor on Earth.

Today our targets have choices in what they pay attention to. Like cats, they come when they need something - period. These cats can choose the Internet, text messages, blogs, TV, TiVo (where they fast forward through your 30 second spot with ease) and hundreds of channels that focus on their precise interests. We need to focus our attention on the places our target spends their time when they most likely need our product or service.

If yours is a "need not want" product or service, you have a great challenge. I'll use myself as an example. Marketing is not a wanted service. It's a business expense that most business owners see as a necessary evil. Corporations prove this every time they have a layoff - marketing staff usually goes first leaving a few, scared people to work with limited support and funds to produce quality leads for the sales force in a depressed market. Hmmm? Do you think they will do something brilliant, risky and inspiring? Not a chance.

I approach them constantly with education. I choose to educate via this blog, speaking engagements, networking and WOMM that I know what is happening in marketing at all times. During this particularly poor time, anyone marketing even slightly more than a competitor will reap rewards when we come out of this. It's been proven by large and small companies alike. If you pull back now, your competition will take your market share later. See http://collateraldamage.wordpress.com/category/marketing-blunders/

More on "need versus want" in another post.

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