5 Principles of Marketing

​

5. Word of Mouth is the best form of marketing that ever was, and ever will be.

​

Word of mouth carries a level of trust and authenticity that no paid advertisement can match. People trust their friends and family above anyone else, especially if a product or brand comes up in the course of natural conversation.

 

Word of mouth needs to start with a good product and a good story.

 

Get these right and you will win in the long run.

 

Real word of mouth that isn't manufactured adds a layer of legitimacy and trust essential to a long term, sustainable business.

 

​

4. Grow your brand by associating it with other brands of equal or higher value.

​

This on​e is huge for upstart brands and whenever I mention it to clients I see a big "AHA!" bubble right above their head.

 

Look, if no one knows who you are, one of the best way's to get people to pay attention to you is by associating yourself with people or brands who are known already.

 

Nike was just another running shoe brand until they made themselves synonymous with Michael Jordan's brand.

 

For a small, growing brand, you don't need Michael Joran.

 

There are infinite number of ways to associate with other brands including press (local news, blogs, email newsletters or mainstream), influencers (start smaller and offer your product for free if you don't have the budget), certification organizations (think Trust Pilot, Inc. 5000 or  industry specific like Organic Certified) or adjacent brands (ex: if you sell gardening gloves try and associate yourself with a gardening blog or gardening tools company through a co-branded giveaway or collaborative content.) 

 

Strategic partnerships or collaborations with reputable brands can lend credibility and expand your reach. 

 

Then, leverage those brand associations by sharing their content, collaborating with them or posting their logos on your site and socials. Let people know you belong.

​

​

3. Position your brand with one clear idea in mind.

​

You can't be everything to everyone.

Find the ONE concept you can own in your customer's mind.

​

For example,

 

Nike = take action (Just Do It.)

​

Patagonia = environmentally conscious outdoor apparel

​

Red Bull = energy and adventure

​

Fenty = POC-friendly beauty

​

Rolex = luxury status

Being first or best in category, or being uniquely different, beats being just "better."

Simple, focused positioning wins over complex explanations.

​

​

2. Know your 1-2 north star metrics. make clear and actionable goals, within a specific timeframe.

​

You need to get your whole team (leadership, finance and marketing) on the same page about the 1-2 KPIs that actually matter.

 

Usually this is net sales, followed by some sort of efficiency metric like gross profit margin, CAC (customer acquisition cost), LTV (lifetime value of a customer), MER (marketing efficiency ratio) or ROAS (return on ad spend.)

​

Additionally, a specific timeframe adds a sense of urgency, encouraging timely execution and ensuring that strategies and tactics remain focused. It's this combination of clarity and urgency that propels businesses towards meaningful and measurable growth.

​

I often encourage clients to think of this in terms of a priority matrix, where resources/time it will take to complete a new project is the x-axis, and business impact towards your primary KPIs is the y-axis.

 

Think of it as having a GPS for your growth journey. Without it, you're just wandering around hoping for the best. Set your course, and let those metrics be your guiding star.​

​

​

​

​

1. Attention is the new currency.

​

There's never been more content, more information or more visual stimulus for our wearily-scrolling eyes. It's said that thanks to social media, we have the attention span of a gold fish. That's why attention needs to be valued so deeply.

​

How do you create attention, but how do you keep it?

​

This is why at the core of my marketing strategies is my SEND method.

​

S - Stop the Scroll

E - Engage the Viewer

N - Nurture Interest

D - Direct Attention
 

 

S - Stop the Scroll

In our attention-scarce world, users scroll continuously unless something psychologically compelling interrupts this pattern. Great content (ads, organic, email, etc.) must first capture attention within the critical first 3 seconds. 

​

Key Metric: Hook Rate (3s views/impressions). 

Benchmarks: 30%+ excellent, 20-29% good, <20% needs improvement

 

​

E - Engage the Viewer

Engagement typically falls under one of the two E’s: entertainment or education.

 

Once attention is captured, how do you keep viewers engaged through entertainment or education to ensure your message gets delivered? Engagement manifests as continued watching, commenting, sharing, or simply making a meaningful brand impression.

​

Key Metrics: Watch rates (25%, 50%, 75%), engagement actions (shares, saves, comments), and outbound CTR.

 

​

N - Nurture Interest

Building interest requires one or more of the following:

• delivering value

• peaking curiosity

• addressing pain points

• establishing credibility

This stage bridges initial engagement to eventual action by developing emotional connection and logical justification.

Effective nurturing techniques include storytelling, social proof, educational content, appeals to instant gratification, creating a juxtaposition and demonstrating product benefits.

​

 

D - Direct Attention

Finally, successful ads guide viewers toward a specific business outcome—whether that's a purchase, email sign up, or other conversion event—with clear calls to action and compelling offers.

CTAs must be clear and the landing page that captures the conversion must be aligned with the ad creative (easy to use checkout, signup, relevant content the ad mentions, etc.)

​

I work with you to make sure the CTAs are relevant to the stage of awareness the potential customer is in. For example, if people have never heard of your brand, viewers are likely not ready to purchase! You may want the CTA to be a profile view, DM, email sign up or simply remembering the product or brand name.

​

​

​

​