Some marketing habits tend to stick around longer than they should. They might've worked well a few years back, but they don't quite land the same way today. With technology advancing and strategies shifting, it's worth taking a second look to re-evaluate how you're showing up, for your brand and your audience.
Here are a few tactics that are starting to feel a little dusty in today's marketing world.
1. Mass emails to your entire list.
A single message blasted to every contact on your email list just doesn't hit the same. It might feel efficient, but it rarely lands well. Different people are at different stages in their relationship with your business, so that calls for different messages.
Some subscribers want deeper content, others are new and need an introduction. And a few might just be waiting for a sale. Treating them all the same guarantees you're speaking to no one in particular. That's spam for them!
Email marketing works best when it's built on interest and timing. If you're able to segment your subscribers based on what they're interested in before they sign up, like using checkboxes, it gives you instant insight. It also lets you group your list based on real preferences. If you're still hitting that "send to all" button, you're basically throwing flyers off a rooftop and hoping they land in the right hands.
2. Too many keywords in your blogs.
These days, keywords are often seen as the magic ingredient to help marketers boost their content in search results. The trouble begins when people start cramming too many into a blog post, hoping it'll improve visibility. You've seen it before and it doesn't feel natural.
It's not helpful to readers and it doesn't work with search engines anymore. Google now looks at how natural your content is and it's game over if you decide to spam it in. If you want to show up in search, keep it straight-forward and focus on answering real questions.
Effective SEO today comes from understanding what your audience is searching for and giving them well-written and informative content to keep them hooked. One well-placed keyword does more than ten stuffed into every paragraph.
3. Generic Holiday messages with no actual intentions.
Holidays are great because they bring emotion and meaning to each of us. But a holiday email with just your logo and no real substance feels more like an obligation than real communication.
People connect with thoughtfulness. Share a story from your team, offer a small discount as a thank-you, support a cause or highlight something personal. Anything that shows genuine effort will do more for your brand than a templated message. If you're only sending a message out of FOMO, it's probably best not to send one at all unless there's real purpose behind it.
4. Fake scarcity tactics
Nothing kills credibility faster than artificial urgency. For example, if you say "only 4 left" but it's been that way for a week, people stop believing you. They might even start ignoring you. Scarcity is meant to create urgency, but skepticism will lead to disparate results.
Modern consumers can smell a gimmick from a mile away. With so many marketing tactics out there, people have gotten good at spotting the fake ones. Real urgency should be based on real conditions. If you have limited stock, make that clear and mention how there won't be a restock for some time. Show proof when possible and avoid recycled urgency that your audience will catch on.
Marketing changes fast. There is one thing you do have control over and that is being real with your audience. If something feels outdated or pushy, it probably is. Keep it simple, honest and useful. You'll get people to respond!
💬 What marketing tactic have you scrapped?
Feel free to let us know in the comments below!
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About Stingray Advisory Group LLC: Stingray Advisory Group LLC is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and is a proud member of People First Economy. We help businesses thrive. By improving our client's sales over 60%, reducing their expenses and boosting their engagement by 40% or more, we enable our clients to refocus on what they love.
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