Now now, before you get all up in arms that we’re inciting a riot or encouraging physical harm to others, we are not talking about *actual* violence. In the World of digital marketing there are a few “taboo” or no-no’s that we all try to follow. One of those is not pestering your prospects to the point that they not only will never buy something from you, but they are so irritated with your incessant ads, emails and calls they personally want to strangle you just to make it all stop.
So now that we’ve set the stranglin’ mood, let’s get on with the rest of the violence.
What is Violent Marketing™?
It’s like channeling your inner Texas Ranger to give your prospects a kick in the ass.
Violent Marketing™ is the principle that traditional modern marketing wisdom of respecting frequency caps and avoiding ad-fatigue should be thrown out the window in favor of beating a target into submission through a planned and concentrated barrage of content offerings, prospecting ads, and retargeting ads.
It’s not for the faint of heart, and it’s not for every situation. If it’s misused, all it will do is speed up ad-fatigue, burn through your budget, and won’t net you much in the way of new business. But when employed correctly, it can be a powerful tool to help you win the day when nobody else can get break past your prospects’ front lines.
When should you (and shouldn’t) use Violent Marketing™
With so many other marketing options available, when is Violent Marketing™ the right play? When you know your audience well, and you know that they have a specific problem that you are in a unique position to help them solve. The problem has to be enough of a pain point that they won’t get completely annoyed to be constantly reminded that you have a solution to it.
Why should you use Violent Marketing™?
Just a nice, gentle punch in the face…
In a world where peoples’ inboxes are overflowing with unread marketing emails that end up deleted before they’re even opened, Violent Marketing™ helps you to stay in front of your target and keep them from forgetting about you before you get the opportunity to help them solve their problem. It’s like a not-so-subtle nudge to get back to interacting with you because we KNOW they need you.
Who is an appropriate target for Violent Marketing™?
Violent Marketing™ typically works best in situations in which there tends to be a longer sales cycle or requires the buyer to put a lot of thought and decision making into the purchase. These typically end up being B2B sales, such as Enterprise SaaS or business services. Don’t forget, B2B sales although technically are done to a business, are actually just talking to humans!
How do you execute a Violent Marketing™ Strategy?
Violent Marketing is a multipart strategy that consists of a phased rollout of different tactics to a specific audience. It is best illustrated by the chorus of the song “Headhunter” by Front 242. Let’s begin.
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- One: You lock the target
As mentioned before, you should only use Violent Marketing™ on well defined, tested target audience with a very clear driver in mind. Trying this on a broad, general audience is unlikely to work. - Two: You bait the line
Offer up a piece of premium content that would be useful to your prospect. The more irresistible, the better. A helpful guide, infographic, or maybe a captivating blog article on how to implement a Violent Marketing™ strategy are good choices. - Three: You slowly spread the net
Once the prospect has interacted with your site, it’s time to hit them with an increasing series of retargeting ads. The goal here is for them to say, “Oh yeah, I remember them. They were the ones with the thing I interacted with. I should really get around to reaching out to them.”
- One: You lock the target
- And four: You catch the man
After a short period of seeing your face everywhere and being reminded that “Oh yeah, I really should get around to reaching out to them”, you’ll finally land that quality conversation that allows you to close the deal.
If we learned nothing from cartoons growing up it’s that occasionally a little tap on the head with an oversized mallet really will work to “encourage” your opponent prospect to pick up the phone and give you a ring.
