Intro

Welcome back to Thinkk's startup foundations course. Today, we're diving deep into a crucial aspect of your business journey: marketing your company. At Thinkk, we've seen firsthand how effective marketing can make or break a startup, so let's explore how to get your brand out there and start attracting customers.

Picking Your Marketing Channels

The first step in marketing your company is choosing the right channels. At Thinkk, we focus on two main factors: your target audience and the service you offer. Your goal is to create brand awareness, and to do that, you need to meet your audience where they are.

For example, if you're selling B2B software for revenue maximization, your audience is likely on LinkedIn and reachable via email. On the other hand, if you're selling colorful beauty products to 18-24 year old women, platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat might be your best bet.

Now, here's a crucial piece of advice: start with no more than three marketing channels. Why? Because each channel requires time, resources, and its own content strategy. At Thinkk, we've found that it's better to master a few channels before expanding. Remember, quality trumps quantity in marketing, but both are neccessary to succeed.

I learned this lesson the hard way. I once launched a company with a marketing strategy that relied on a single channel. When that channel didn't work, I was lost. Diversify your approach, but don't spread yourself too thin. You need enough cash flow diversification that if one channel doesn't return the right results, the others will compensate.

Building Your Website

Your website is often the first impression potential customers have of your business. At Thinkk, we've designed over 1,000 webpages, and here's what we've learned:

1. Navigation: Keep it simple and intuitive. Include links to your main pages at the top.

2. Logo: Make it visible in the header but not overpowering.

3. Call to Action (CTA): Place it prominently, usually in the top right corner. This should be the main action you want visitors to take. Your buttons with CTAs should be large and bright to attract focus and take up screen real estate.

4. Hero Section: This should include a compelling headline (the big benefit to customers), a subheadline (elaborating on how that benefit comes about), and a CTA button. Make sure this is above the fold.

5. Social Proof: Include customer reviews, ratings, or logos of companies you've worked with. This builds trust immediately. Remember, people want what other people have.

6. High-Quality Imagery: Show your product or service in action. People fear what they don't understand, so be transparent about what you offer.

7. Video: If possible, include a short intro video. We've seen this increase conversion rates by up to 300%. In fact, in 2024, 74% of content ranking on Google's first page has a video, up from 52% in 2023.

8. Benefits: Highlight 3-5 main benefits of your product or service, usually stacked left to right with alternating text and images. Don’t talk about your features - talk about the outcomes of your product. In other words, don’t sell the 13 hour plane ride to Hawaii. Sell the beaches, warm weather, and floral clothing.

9. FAQ Section: Address common questions and concerns. This is a great opportunity to put yourself in your visitor's shoes. It’s also a good spot to summarize the page’s content so visitors don’t have to go back through your page seeking info.

10. Final CTA: Include one more prominent call-to-action towards the bottom of the page.

Remember, your website should clearly communicate your value proposition and make it easy for visitors to take action. And don't be afraid to get creative with your stats - if you've only got one customer but they're thrilled, that's still 100% customer satisfaction!

Leveraging Social Media

At Thinkk, we've seen the power of social media firsthand. Studies show that Gen Z and Millennials spend between 40 minutes and 90 minutes a day on these platforms - often more time than they spend talking to family or exercising. That's a huge opportunity for reaching potential customers.

We recommend a mix of content types:

1. Informational: Position yourself as an authority in your field.

2. Social Proof: Show happy customers and results. Sell the lifestyle.

3. Promotional: Pitch your services, but sparingly.

A good rule of thumb is to give 10 pieces of free value for every promotional post. As you grow, you can adjust this to a 3:1 ratio, as discussed in Alex Hormozi's "100M Leads".

Short-form video is king right now. Focus on creating engaging hooks in the first few seconds to capture attention. We often create 5 different hooks for each video, post them all, and let the best performer shine while removing the rest.

If you're just starting out, focus on gaining a following first. If you have a pet food app, start by posting funny cat and dog videos. Once you've amassed a following, introduce your product.

Be cautious with automation tools and buying fake followers. While they might seem tempting, they can skew your analytics and make it hard to gauge true engagement.

Harnessing Professional Media

For B2B companies, LinkedIn is a powerhouse. At Thinkk, we help our clients create company pages and share valuable content regularly. Remember, the tone here is more professional than on other social platforms.

We've found success using tools like Expandi for automation, but always balance automation with genuine engagement. Your goal is to form connections with potential customers, not just accumulate followers.

As of June 2024, LinkedIn has started testing video content in Canada. If this rolls out globally, early adopters could see great engagement due to the platform's algorithm favoring video content.

Mastering Email Marketing

Email marketing is all about volume and personalization. At Thinkk, we send out 800 emails daily across our businesses. Why? Because most people don't respond to emails from strangers. But with enough volume and the right approach, you'll find your audience.

Key tips for email marketing:

1. Personalize your messages and appeal to the person's specific problems. If it feels like an unpersonalized cold email, chances are you won’t get a response.

2. Keep emails short and focused - the goal is to get a response, not tell your life story. Only once you get a response should you pitch a meeting or demo.

3. Include links to your professional profiles for credibility.

4. A/B test everything. This means sending multiple different emails to like-audiences and gauging engagement rates. Remember to only change one thing at a time. If you change two things, you won’t be sure which contributed to the change in engagement.

5. Use multiple domains to protect your main domain's reputation. In other words, don’t send cold emails from your company’s main domain. If enough people flag it as spam, it’ll cause huge deliverability issues and make sending new emails a nightmare. Make sure you set up your other domains as forwarding domains that redirect to your main.

Remember, your email list is a valuable asset. Unlike social media followers, this is an audience you own and can market to directly. Plus, the ROI on email marketing is often the highest of any category because it's essentially free to send.

Exploring Traditional Media

While digital marketing dominates, don't discount traditional media entirely. At Thinkk, we've seen print and TV still work well for certain niches, like beauty products. The key is to know your audience and where they consume information.

Even appearing on the news can boost your credibility, even if it doesn't directly impact your bottom line. The content you can create after a news appearance is often more valuable than the appearance itself. Posting it across social channels, professional media channels and more will serve as the value you gain.

Just remember - appearing on the news doesn’t change the fundamentals of your business, even if everyone else starts looking at it through a different light.

Optimizing for Search Engines (SEO)

SEO is evolving rapidly, especially with Google's new generative search features. However, some principles remain crucial:

1. Use proper heading tags (H1, H2, etc.) for structure.

2. Build quality backlinks (references to other sites) and include internal links (references to your own site)

3. Create high quality, informative content around your industry and niche to let search engines know what to rank you for

4. Leverage tools like AnswerThePublic and SEMRush for keyword research, and mix in some ChatGPT to create a content calendar.

5. Include video content - 74% of first-page results now include video, up from 52% last year. We think search engines will continue to rank video content higher because of increased engagement, user preference, and the massive influx of AI-generated botshit that’s come to light following the adoption of AI in copywriting.

At Thinkk, we help our clients navigate these changes and stay ahead of the curve. We even use AI tools to help generate content, then refine it to ensure it's unique and valuable.

Wrapping Up

Marketing your startup is an ongoing process of experimentation and refinement. Don't be afraid to try new channels and tactics, but always keep your target audience and core message in mind.

Remember, at Thinkk, we believe that the best marketing doesn't feel like marketing at all. It's about providing value, building relationships, and solving real problems for your customers. Whether you're crafting an email campaign or designing your website, always ask yourself: "How does this help my customer?"

And don't forget, while we've focused on organic channels here, there's a whole world of paid advertising to explore too. From promoted posts on social media to Google Ads, these can be powerful tools when used correctly.

In our next class, we'll dive into the nitty-gritty of tracking your expenses and managing your startup's finances. It might not be as exciting as marketing, but trust me, it's just as crucial for your success. See you then!