Score Big With Marketing, March Madness Style

March Madness…Ah yes, that special time of year when seemingly rational and reasonable individuals turn into rowdy, vengeful, hyper and obsessive basketball fans. For those who aren’t aware, March Madness marks the time period each year when NCAA tournaments determine this year’s college basketball champions. This single-elimination tournament, dubbed “The Big Dance,” begins with 65 teams – and much to the dismay of some college sports fans, not every team in the country gets to participate. Teams automatically make the cut, fail to make the cut, are shut out, or join the ranks of the “bubble teams” which can go either way. In short, no matter what a team is seeded, ranking anywhere in the NCAA tournament brackets marks a team’s legitimacy and skill—and lasting to play in the Final Four means your team is the best of the best.

From a marketing perspective, there’s a bit to be learned from March Madness. After all, the tournament isn’t that much different from the business world—you either make it or you don’t, or, like a “bubble team” you teeter on the edge of success for as long as you can. So, in honor of the season, here are a few marketing rules, March Madness Style, to help your business win the game!

The “Final Four” Marketing Rules:

Know your team, as well as your opponents.

A good coach knows his players. He knows their strengths and weaknesses. He knows who passes a mean ball, who shoots the best and who’s the strongest blocker. A good coach also knows the opposing teams. He understands the competition and how their team stacks up against his team. And it’s through this understanding that he can pick his best strategy for play.

When you’re in business, you have to do the same for your team. You have to know your business’s strengths and weaknesses, how it stacks up in the marketplace and who your opponents are. Do a basic SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) Analysis, to help you understand how your business compares. And always, always, make sure to understand what other businesses offering your service are doing…it’s a great way to stay in the know and to select a strategy that works.

Stick with your game plan.

Once you’ve got an honest assessment of your business and its opponents, you can select a strategy that works. The key? Stick with your game plan as much as possible. Think about it this way: If you’re a coach and you know you have a star forward, why would you make him switch to guard? Or if your team excels at Zone Defense, why would you switch to Man-To-Man Defense halfway through a game?

With marketing, always take advantage of your strengths. Yes, it’s perfectly fine to test the waters by learning new skills and trying new strategies—but apply common sense and stick with what works! Assess your team’s skills, assess your business advantages, capitalize off those advantages, and you’ll always play strong on whatever your court may be.

“It’s not so important who starts the game but who finishes it”.

These motivational words, spoken by John Wooden, can be applied to all aspects of life, on and off the court. If you take a look at the list of previous NCAA winners and Final Four teams, for the most part you will see the same names repeated over and over again with a few blips on the radar. For example, if you look throughout college basketball history, a few teams have continually dominated the courts: UCLA, University of Kentucky, Indiana and North Carolina always play strong. These teams are doing SOMETHING right.

Without getting into basketball strategy, there’s a quick lesson to be learned here: there is a distinct difference between teams that make a quick splash and then fizzle out of contention, versus those that play consistently well. What does this show for your business?

Slow and steady wins the race.  Don’t aim to be a business that merely starts with a boom—aim to be a business that has a steady, reliable and recurring niche in the marketplace. Remember, it’s more profitable in the long run to be a slow and steady success than to start the game strong and end up 30 points down in the second half, unable to gain any footing.

Deserve victory!

A team has to practice to be good. If you want to win, you must work hard to own that victory – or, in the words of one of the most successful coaches currently in the NCAA, Rick Pitino, you must “Deserve Victory!” The same goes for your branding and messaging. Once you determine your business’s brand and messaging, practice it every chance you get. Flaunt your branding everywhere, as much as possible. Showcase it on your Web site, marketing materials, uniforms, signage, phone greeting and EVERY and ANY way you can.

Remember, as athletes, the more you practice, the better you perform. With your branding, the more you show it off, the better it performs for you!

Overtime tip: the season never ends!

A good coach trains his players all year. They train 365 days. Sure, the workouts vary depending on the month—but a good athlete focuses on his game year round. As a business owner, you have to focus on your marketing all year round. Marketing isn’t something you do once and then put on the shelf – do those teams who win the coveted NCAA National Championship Trophy just put it in the school’s display case and forget about it? No, they continue working hard, in hopes of adding more trophies in the years to come. You have to exercise your marketing continually in order to keep it playing strong. corecubed recommends a monthly marketing campaign to keep your business top of mind with potential clients and referrals. Why? A marketing action every month (an eNewsletter or direct mail, for example) will help to solidify relationships with key customers and gatekeepers. For more information on planning a monthly marketing campaign that works for you, contact corecubed!

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