There’s absolutely no shame or lack of strategy in opting for traditional methods of structuring and developing a business. After all, tradition is here for a reason, it’s often what works. Sure, you could set your working hours for the day from 11-7 instead of 9-5, but unless you have a good reason for doing so in the office, letting people work the hours they expect is likely better for everyone involved.
That being said, sometimes it’s worth considering how to inject a little creativity into your brand planning. At the very least, this should be undertaken in areas where standing out is the goal. Marketing measures offer a great avenue to start veering away from the norm. But what does that look like in practice?
In this post, we’ll discuss how to avoid formulaic marketing efforts:
Work With A Creative Agency That Understands
While you may have an in-house marketing team or an individual handling your promotional efforts, sometimes it’s wise to collaborate with a dedicated marketing agency or creative studio – sometimes these are separate, sometimes unified! Using a proven presence such as Loudmouse Digital can be a great start because they help structure the entire digital marketing pipeline
Services like these are staffed with professionals who work on marketing full-time, whereas we can usually only dedicate part of our schedule to it. For that reason, reviewing progress, surveying competitors, and keeping up with industry best practices is done for you. Most of all, these services can review any kind of marketing effort you have in kind and refit to optimize them for your industry. That in itself is worth seeing.
Consider The Hallmark Marketing Efforts In Your Specific Industry
It’s healthy to take a clear look at the marketing landscape within your particular industry or niche. What are the hallmark tactics and tropes that every competitor seems to be leaning on? Does it make some firms seem indistinguishable from another? If so, that’s great, because it shows you what to avoid.
Once you identify those formulaic approaches, you can make a conscious effort to avoid them like the plague. Perhaps influencer marketing is oversaturated in your space (we’ve seen this with game developers sponsoring content creators) and then it’s time to explore other avenues.
Perhaps you’ve noticed many in your field are actually quite poor at SEO management, and so looking to dominate in this area could be the most effective use of your time. This can provide us with more confidence and the maximum bang for our buck.
Where Is Value Going Underserved?
A great principle of marketing that always holds water is finding people or needs that are going unserved, and then serving them. For example, finding an underserved value proposition and leaning into it hard could help define you well in the space. Sure, you might sell outdoor gear, but what about partnering with a local fishing store supply firm? Put together, you could market to the people who would have to search for two stores, instead of having their entire need serviced. This is just one example.
It’s good to consider if there’s an aspect of your product or service that competitors are neglecting to highlight. That doesn’t mean you can’t give them the complete picture, but starting here is wise. Perhaps it’s a specific use case, upgraded feature set, or superior customer experience that could help you get your foot in the door. Where the attention economy is concerned, that has more value than ever..
Designing A Marketing Push With Cohesiveness & Engagement In Mind
Even as you aim to avoid formulaic tactics, cohesiveness and strategic engagement should still be top priorities for you campaign, for obvious reasons. A truly successful and impactful marketing campaign needs to feel cohesive both in branding, platform, and messaging. Without that, even the best message can suffer.
Every facet of this approach, from the visuals and messaging down to the delivery mechanisms (do you focus on Instagram or TikTok?), should be planned in advance and kept cohesive. From there, you can build engagement and interaction into the experience wherever possible, from polls to surveys or even just offering discounts. Sure, a non-cohesive plan might be “less formulaic than others,” but without it, any attempt to break the mold will fall short.
With this advice, we hope you can avoid formulaic marketing efforts, as easy as they are to fall into. Alternatively, you might rocket-power the marketing strategy you’ve taken which just needs a little novelty to truly thrive. Good luck!
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