One of my hobbies is Lindy Hop – the original form of swing dancing that came out of Harlem in the 1930s. I’ve recently been learning how to DJ for dance events. DJing for dancers is challenging, because you have to read the crowd during every song to determine what they want to hear next. For example, do they want to pick up the tempo with a fast Charleston or slow it down with the blues? If you ignore the crowd and play only what you like, you may face an empty dance floor – never a good sign at a dance.
Since I spend a great deal of time thinking about both marketing and Lindy Hop, it’s not surprising that learning how to DJ reminds me of marketing. Some marketers are like inexperienced DJs. They blast out a message when their audience may want something completely different. However, if you don’t pay attention to your audience and give them what they want, they will ignore you and go to your competitors.
Here are 3 ways to play to your crowd:
- Do your homework. Before a DJ attends an event, they learn about the venue and who will be there. Before you put out any kind of message, you should also learn as much as possible about your crowd. Who are they? What are their key concerns? What types of content do they prefer (e.g. video, white papers, blogs)? How do they prefer to receive their messages (e.g. social media, email, direct mail, etc.)? Doing your research in advance will ensure that your messages are relevant to your audience and are more likely to get read, viewed or shared.
- Be flexible. When I DJ, I usually bring a short list of songs I’d like to play. However, if people aren’t dancing, I may need to switch to a completely different playlist. You’ll need to allow for the same flexibility in your marketing. Using analytics or marketing automation software can give you instant insight into what pages people are accessing on your website, how long they spend on each page and which campaigns are performing the best. Use your analytics as a guide and do what it takes to keep your conversion rates high – whether this means changing the header on a landing page or updating your social media strategy.
- Have fun. Your content must engage your target audience – which means it should be readable, enjoyable and educational. However, much B2B marketing content comes across as dry and complex. Marketing, like DJing, should be fun. Check out 3 Ways to Break Out of a Content Marketing Rut for ideas on how to make your content more creative and engaging. You can also read The Dos and Don’ts of Using Jargon in Your B2B Marketing Copy to learn if your content is scaring away your target audience.
Try some of these tips to make your marketing more relevant and keep your audience coming back for more. Plus, feel free to share your thoughts below.
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