The 7 Biggest Marketing Warning Signs
Patrick McFadden
Usually I talk about how to think and approach marketing in a different way for better results whether those results are to get more customers, increase your conversion rate, differentiate your business, create content assets, etc.
But you also need to know about the warning signs of bad marketing. Every failing business sends out certain warning signs before the eventual collapse. For the observant business owner, this disaster is avoided by taking certain strategic measures. But for the non-observing business owner, this disaster seems to creep in suddenly.
The death of a business is not as sudden as many tend to assume. Just as there is no such thing as overnight business growth, there is no such thing as overnight business collapse.
7 Warning Signs That Your Marketing is Failing
- Your sales are driven by price. Chasing the wrong prospects is the basis of all pricing problems. One of the most important components of any marketing strategy is the discovery of a ideal customer. From experience the lack of complete clarity on this will always cause you to struggle to compete on price.
- Customer can’t tell your unique difference from a competitor. If your business is receiving inquiries, and the first questions is, “How much does it cost?” there’s a strong possibility you’re not marketing your business effectively. This is a two part problem: first you must find your difference from the mouths of your customers and second you must communicate this difference through your tactical marketing efforts.
- You use get quick results services that fail. The shortcut is often the short story! If your business has experienced any growth, there comes a time when a company approaches you with an service or product that seems to address your need, but in fact, is so detrimental it may actually erode your business. These products and services often communicate a shortcut to growth and ignores the real work required to produce sustainable business and marketing results—but, of course, that’s the teaser.
- You don’t have a unified plan for taking your message to customers. No matter how perfectly you state your marketing message, if it doesn’t live firmly in the tactics you employ to communicate with customers it’s all for naught. This type of thinking forces you to push your core marketing message into every marketing activity. I’ve developed a very powerful tool for building this kind of framework within the customer journey.
- Your sales leads mostly come from your sales staff. A happy customer is the new lead generation. What do I mean? Leads should be coming from your customers who are having a positive experience. Growing a business today takes getting people talking. This is how referrals happen, PR happens, SEO happens and links happen. A recent survey on what motivates customers to make recommendations – essentially get them talking – stated, a whopping 93% of respondents cite “a positive experience with the brand.” The end result of a positive experience is a happy customer and happy customers are the most potent marketing asset any organization can leverage. It’s the most powerful lead generation channel. Perhaps more importantly, a positive customer experience + a happy customer is the greatest lead generation tool available.
- Your longtime customers say, “I didn’t know you offered that”. So, if you have ever heard these words from a long-time customer. I have to say shame on you. When a customer becomes a customer, it’s usually to purchase a specific product or solve a specific problem. When we solve that problem or ship that product the job is done, right? To build true marketing momentum the job has just begun. My advice is to create a monthly process of introduction to some aspect of your business and offer this information in several forms.
- You don’t have a customer or prospect database. Simply put you need a way to collect prospect and customer information in a manner that provides you with the opportunity to communicate to them without spending money on advertising. Standard marketing CRM type practice suggests that you should create and supplement a database of customers and prospects with the idea that you build more and more information to use to help build deeper relationships and create additional selling opportunities.
If you’re guilty of generating any one of these signs, it’s time to change all of that!!! Contact us today.
1. The Challenge: VMI was like many service providers — positioning their value around what they thought clients wanted : “Office furniture installation and assembly — let us handle creating your perfect workspace.” But the actual buyers — facility managers, project managers, furniture reps — weren’t looking for “perfect workspaces.” They were trying to avoid installation nightmares . Their real priority? ✅ Great installation days. ✅ No chaos. ✅ No missed deadlines. ✅ No angry phone calls from clients. 2. The Insight: After conducting stakeholder interviews under our marketing strategy consulting engagement , the Indispensable Marketing team uncovered critical feedback: “We need installers who maintain a professional site and follow instructions.” “We lose relationships when installations go badly.” “I need quotes back quickly or I can’t sell the job.” This wasn’t just about services , it was about trust, problem-solving , and professional reliability . So we reframed their differentiators not by what they did, but how they showed up : Same-day project quotes Problem-solving on-site Update protocol with clients Professionalism guarantee Lasting Impression Insurance 3. The Shift: We shifted the positioning from vague benefits to real-world, emotional triggers : Instead of: “Let us create your perfect workspace.” Now: “Get the perfect installation day, every time.” That subtle shift aligns with who’s actually buying (and who feels the pain when things go wrong). The end-user may care about the workspace. But the buyer cares about the install . 4. The Lesson for Others: If you’re selling a service, don’t describe what you do. Describe what the client wants to avoid or achieve — and who the real buyer is. Then, systematize what you’re already doing well and give it a name. Just like our team did with: “Same Day Quotes” “Lasting Impression Insurance” “Reliable Presence Protocol” 5. The Outcome Within weeks of updating their messaging and positioning: The company reported more qualified leads asking the right questions Furniture reps began referring them because they were “easy to work with and made them look good” They were shortlisted for larger, multi-phase projects due to increased confidence in their process But most importantly, they stopped competing on price — because they weren’t selling perfect workspaces anymore. They were selling peace of mind on installation day.
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