According to Greek legend, King Midas had the power to turn everything he touched into gold. If you want to grow your business, you may find that marketing is your "Midas touch."
I believe that success in any venture is the long-term result of doing simple things well. Since marketing is a critical element of business success, you must understand the basics and do them well. The following questions will help you understand where money comes from and how to keep it flowing into your business.

10 marketing questions
According to Greek legend, King Midas had the power to turn everything he touched into gold. If you want to grow your business, you may find that marketing is your "Midas touch."
I believe that success in any venture is the long-term result of doing simple things well. Since marketing is a critical element of business success, you must understand the basics and do them well. The following questions will help you understand where money comes from and how to keep it flowing into your business.

1. Where does cash come from? The source of cash - sales, revenues, income - is your customers. Once you know the source, you should focus on keeping the source from drying up. Therefore, the next nine questions will guide you toward serving your customers more effectively.
2. Who are my customers? If you're in an existing business you have at least six types of customers. These include current, potential, former, most-profitable, somewhat profitable and unprofitable customers. The key is to know which customers are helping you achieve your business goals.
3. How can I define (describe) them? There are two main ways to categorize customers: demographic and psychographic. Demographics include age, gender, income levels, education, location, etc. Psychographic factors include attitudes, lifestyles, preferences, prejudices, etc. Knowing your customers' characteristics will help you find ways to serve them better.
4. What are my customers thinking? There are four sub-questions you need to ask: What are they thinking about our products and services? What are they thinking about our business practices? How do they feel about our employees? How do they feel about me?
5. Where are they? This question is aimed at pinpointing the exact location of your customer base. Most important is the geographic location of your best customers. These are the ones who spend the most with you and generate the most profit for your firm. This information is critical in answering question six.
6. How can I reach my customers effectively and efficiently? How can we deliver a strong marketing message for the lowest possible cost? What media and methods will serve us best? We can use newspapers, radio, TV, direct mail, yellow pages, billboards, etc. What message do we want to send? What format will we use to drive the desired message home? See question eight for more on the message.
7. What are our customers buying? First, what are they buying from you? You can get this information from your sales records. Second, what are they buying from others? Here we're looking for general patterns and trends in your industry.
8. What can I offer my customers that they can't get from anyone else? This is your position. The future strength of your business depends on this point. The only advantage you have in the marketplace is what you offer your customers that no one else can. You may offer better pricing, higher quality products, faster service and follow-up, better work or quicker response. These advantages become the cornerstones on which you build your promotional message.
9. What are they likely to be looking for next? Anticipating your customers' future needs will help you position your business for success. You can get a jump on this by talking candidly with your customers, analyzing future trends and studying tomorrow's needs and wants.
10. Which products or services from question nine would be natural blends with, or extensions of your current offerings? This is your future market direction. Finally, items that work well with your current mix will help you keep a leg up on the competition. Tomorrow's profitable decisions will depend on the answers to the questions you ask today.