Street Smart Guide To Small Business Marketing
Values-Driven Marketing
Values-Driven Marketing:
 Today,
younger consumers are choosing which products to buy and which
companies to support in a radical new way. More and more consumers are
making these decisions based on personal "causes" or affiliations with
which they like to identify themselves.
Tapping into
the values of your potential market is a way to reach a broader
audience or add a marketing factor that instigates a sale for a
customer who is considering your product or services against a
competitor's.
Types of Values-Driven Shoppers:
There are many types of values-driven shoppers.
Consider whether there are connections between your products, services,
or partnerships where you can use values-based marketing to communicate
to target markets that your business aligns with their values.
- Animal lovers/vegans or vegetarians.
- Environmentalists or "eco-friendly" shoppers.
- Faith-inspired purchasers.
- Politically motivated citizens.
- Charity supporters.
- Consumers who "buy American" or "made in the U.S.A."
- Handmade or handcrafted consumers.
- Sweatshop-free/fair trade activists.
- Organic or chemical-free advocates.
- Minority groups.
While
many companies have been selling recycled or "sustainable" products for
years, the current "green" trend is a great opportunity for businesses
to rethink their marketing strategy, and focus on communicating which
products or elements of their business cater to customers' values.
Values-driven marketing is an extremely effective tool because it
appeals to the customer's emotions. It can even make your business an
interesting "feature story" for members of the media and press if you
combine your values and business in a new or interesting way.
Ways to Connect to Values-Driven Shoppers:
Once you've identified key values-driven groups
that you've got products or services for, find ways to connect with
them and begin marketing to these target consumers. Here is a list of
ways small business owners can get started connecting to values-driven
shoppers:
1. Social media sites. Facebook,
Twitter, MySpace, and other niche social media sites often have
"groups" specific to certain causes.
2. Add values-driven
keywords to your website. With search engines being perhaps the most
important way consumers connect with businesses and information,
publishing articles or updating product listings to include
values-driven keywords will help your small business gain advantage
over the competition.
 3.
Post links in forums or blogs. Choose socially relevant sites to
promote the values-driven characteristics of your products or services
to the potential customers who identify with a particular cause.
4. List your products on values-driven shopping comparison or listing websites.
5. Partner with local organizations. For example, a pet store could partner with a local animal shelter.
6. Give a percentage of sales to a particular charity. If you sell on eBay, for example, you can use their Giving Works program for extra promotional and marketing advantage.
The Downside of Values-Driven Marketing:
There are a few things to take into consideration
before relying too heavily on values-driven marketing. First and
foremost, remember that it's ultimately the quality and price of your
product that will make customers buy. You can't just pull at
heartstrings and call it a successful business model.
Secondly,
you have to consider that most "values" are issues with two sides. Some
issues are controversial, and If you choose a "side" or support a cause
you might lose out on customers who don't support the cause..
What's Next
Next In This Guide
Part 39:
 Boost Sales With Affiliate Marketing
- If you want hundreds of people selling your products and only getting
paid when they make sales then affiliate marketing is for you!
Previous In This guide
Part 37:
 9 Tips for Successful Article Marketing - Writing articles and publishing on the web is an excellent marketing strategy for online or brick-and-mortar companies.
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