Marketing is not a siloed business function. It's a cross-organizational discipline with ramifications for your balance sheet and earnings statement.
Staying on track requires attention to detail and a commitment to foundational marketing principles.
Industry Resources
Inexperience and a lack of industry connections have an isolating effect on owners of an accounting and finance software company. Most leaders are oblivious to the fact that the marketplace shows no favoritism - for every marketing challenge your business faces, there are hundreds of other businesses and leaders struggling to solve the same problem. The best resources are usually the ones that leverage industry-specific experience and the input of proven veterans.
Public Relations Strategies
The beauty of PR is that it can raise awareness of your offerings in a very credible and cost-effective fashion. For example, if you buy a premium mailing list and use it to conduct a direct mail campaign, that's marketing. On the other hand, if the Sunday paper runs a story about your accounting and finance software company, that's PR. The art of storytelling is a core PR competency. Storylines need to be believable and objective while communicating your brand's strengths and value proposition.
Contests
You've seen the contest concept in action, even if it wasn't used in an accounting and finance software company. A well-designed contest has the potential to generate buzz about your company and create a fun atmosphere for promoting your core business offerings. Even good contests carry risks, namely the possibility that your business will be dogged by allegations of unfair prize awards. Consequently, many accounting and finance software companies don't take contests lightly, but treat them with the same level of respect as any other marketing campaign.
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