Fundamentals of Marketing - Marketing for the Engineer Entrepreneur

The language of the engineer and the marketeer don't always mix well. It's understandable. The two disciplines have different vocabulary sets and different objectives. To make matters worse, there is a lot of bad marketing floating out and about. Some of it is bad because the writers behind it have... let's say, something less than noble intentions in mind. Other marketing is bad because, while the intention is good, its execution misses the mark. 

So, what is the point of marketing? If you've designed something awesome, shouldn't people just want it?

 

Maybe. But not everyone needs it. And not everyone can pay you enough to make it worth your while to sell it. Further, the people who need or want it and can afford it need to be told that it is out there for them. That's where marketing comes in.

 

Marketing is the process of finding people who need what you have to offer and telling them about it in such a way that leads them to giving their business to you.

 

People buy from companies that:

    A) Have what they need

    B) They trust

    C) Have a personality they can relate to

 

If you want to have a successful business and want to be able to sleep at night, you've got to find the people who need your product and service and describe it using language they understand. You also have to understand that no matter how much you like your product or service, not everyone will feel the same. It can't just be a great thing. It also has to help a customer somehow. That is point A. I'll cover B and C in another blog post.

 

Duane Benson
No matter what, if it has chocolate in it, it is good marketing

 

Visit www.screamingcircuits.com to get a quote and place your PCB assembly order. You won't get chocolate (it would just melt in the reflow oven) but you will get your boards built.