Marketing Is Number One

by Steph on 07/29/09

Note from Andrew: This is Steph’s last post from her summer class:

Foam Finger Number 1I only have a few more days left at Cornell University Summer College. It’s been a great experience, but I’m also excited to go back home (but not before I stop by New York City to see a Broadway show).

Recently, the professor who is teaching the business class at the summer college gave an interesting lecture on marketing.  He explained that “Marketing is Number One.” Even if you have a great product or great service, nobody will know about it (or be able to access and buy it) if you don’t market it. No customers means no business.

That is why search engine optimization is so important. People are looking for the best goods and services, and it’s important that these potential customers are able to find your company and what your company offers.  The internet is a very effective way to reach people, and it is essential to maximize the opportunities on the web.  Search engine optimization can help with that, and I am excited to be part of the process here at Your Search Advisor.


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POSTED ON 07/29/09

Categories: Uncategorized, YSA
Comments: 2 Comments Tagged: , ,

2 Comments on » Marketing Is Number One

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Andrew Miller July 29, 2009 at 8:00 am

I’m not going to lie, I am a little jealous of the classes you are taking this summer. They sound like fun. Hurry back, I have a fun project for you to work on when you return.

I would encourage you to think about the opposite scenario, one in which a product or service is horrible but it is supported with a clever, effective marketing campaign. In today’s internet-connected world, this “smoke and mirrors” approach doesn’t last long before word spreads and consumers change their behaviors. I’m sure your marketing professor is aware of this as well.

Finally, there are counter-examples where breakthrough products and services have catapulted to success with little or no marketing support. Google and Craigslist come to mind. The professor’s theory is more applicable offline, where raising awareness for tangible products is harder without a few marketing dollars to (at least) kick-start some word of mouth marketing.

I’m not saying your professor is wrong, but there are always exceptions that prove the rule.

seth July 29, 2009 at 10:50 am

Marketing has always had some success at changing consumer perception. I think the big difference between today and the hey-day of traditional Madison Ave. campaigns is that the consumer’s voice is much more accessible today, thanks to the Web. People review anything and everything. Have a consumer complaint? There’s RipOffReport.com. Want to praise a company? Send them a message on their Facebook profile, send them a tweet, or write a blogpost.

Today there’s a whole new search marketing niche — reputation management — geared toward monitoring what is being said about a company’s products and services — and then figuring out how to promote the good search results, and push down the bad ones.

But I believe if the product is bad, enough people eventually hear about it, and there are not enough people buying the product for it to survive.

Finally, there are some products that are just not good ideas:
http://www.walletpop.com/specials/top-25-biggest-product-flops-of-all-time

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