“You can never have too much of a good thing.” There has scarcely been a more inaccurate statement. Take pancakes…Everyone loves pancakes. Just seeing that photo is making my mouth water right now. But even pancakes have their limits.  No matter how much I love pancakes, after the 4th or 5th one, my stomach is starting to churn. Even the most amazing things have a cutoff point.

In business, moderation is key. But here is where many businesses go wrong. It’s so easy to repeat something when it works but if you don’t manage it properly, you risk over saturation and fatigue. 
We have a client who just opened a bar and needed to establish its place in the market. We created a number of different types of events to bring people in the door and help to build buzz around the new venue. We branded a music series that would allow them to host different groups and help to increase exposure.

Now imagine if you had the same group over and over. Despite the success of the first event, if you don’t keep it fresh people lose interest. This applies to everything. For example, there is no quicker way to gut your email list than by emailing too frequently.

But what is too often? What is too much?

That is an excellent question but the answer is far from simple. There are many factors that go into determining rate and frequency. This is where your marketing plan comes into play.

Marketing 101: Three things to consider when determining the frequency of your outreach. 

  1. Method of marketingInbound vs Outbound Marketing. There is a vast difference between the two. Because Inbound Marketing is non-intrusive and works by allowing your target market to come to you, the more content you create the better. By creating valuable content that speaks to their needs, you are helping to address their pain points and solve their problems. With Outbound Marketing the process is much more ‘in your face’. Outbound, on the other hand, relies on more traditional forms of marketing that are unsolicited and could, therefore, be a nuisance if implemented too frequently.
  2. Know your competition – Keeping an eye on your competition isn’t just a good idea it’s necessary to stay alive. Are they sending out emails weekly? Are they running quarterly direct mail campaigns? What are they doing and should you be doing it as well? Different industries have different norms. I’m not saying you can’t be the disruptor in your industry, but that can be a risky proposition if you don’t know what you’re doing. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel.
  3. Test, test, test and test some more! Pay attention to your metrics. (You are using metrics, right?) If you switch from monthly to bimonthly for your email campaigns and your open rate drops or you have a high rate of unsubscribes, then maybe the increase was too much.

Keep in mind that on average it requires 5 touches (via email, phone, etc.) before a potential client even registers that you exist.  So while you need to be cognizant of not overdoing it, you need to be equally cognizant of not underdoing it.  It’s a delicate balance, to say the least.

We Can Help

3D Studios helps businesses grow their influence and their brands. As a boutique brand management agency, we begin with a thorough analysis of your needs and partner with you to develop and execute a marketing plan that will help you take your business to the next level. To learn more about how 3D Studios can help you, visit us at www.3Dstudios.net or call 914-304-4229.