Services are rapidly becoming the most common commodity sought after by both consumers and business around the world, making marketing for it quite a challenge. After all, the outcome itself has no tangible product - so how can you market a process?
While services marketing may have the same elements as those in traditional marketing, there are a few tweaks that make them quite different from the other. Services marketing lacks the distinct end product that’s so often used in advertising, requiring marketers to become more creative with their campaigns and incorporate tangible elements in order to create a better experience and more streamlined processes.
One of the basics of services marketing is the special attention paid to the people aspect - that is, the service staff and/or personnel involved in the process. Unlike the mostly automated aspect of product-focused business, it’s common to see that services marketing involves a personal touch to the end result, whether it be a focus on the consumer or the provider.
For example, hair salons will often ask their patrons to select a particular stylist to work on their hair. In essence, this makes little to no difference as all staff are ideally trained to cut hair no matter the length or style, however customers may have a preference for the approach of one stylist over the other. Speaking in terms of marketing, it’s much better to market that your services are tailored to your customer (while still following the standard expected of that service) in order to distinguish yourself from your competitors.
Another basic thing to remember when marketing services is the process itself - or more specifically, what happens and how much it costs. Unlike product-driven businesses that charge per product or number, service is often labor and time-based, making a foundational understanding of the process crucial.
This plays into the personalisation aspect for a simple reason: the best way to modify a process is to be familiar with it in such a way that adjustments don’t ruin the standard expected from your service. Good services marketing focuses on the myriad options available to the interested consumer rather than the core service, which is taken under the tacit understanding that your service itself is already excellent.
The last basic aspect of services marketing is the attention paid to the tangibility of your service. While it may be that your process itself has no tangible end-product, what you can show as proof of concept is concrete evidence that your service is of a high standard and quality while taking into account the needs of your client.
This gesture could be anything from the visual presentation of your brand to the kind of ambience that you promote in your working spaces. Presenting proof of tangibility may seem paradoxical to a service business, but these little things can put your client at ease, give them an assurance that they are receiving a quality service and will overall present your business in a better light.
Services marketing basics are still a developing trend in the industry, and such a relatively young field can only open more possibilities for you and your business in the future. While certainly not as easy to market as the products that other business may provide, it isn’t impossible - and if well done, could leave your business in a much better position.
Interested in learning more on how you can shape up your marketing efforts? Contact myCEO’s team today for a consultation.
