Lesson 50
The 19 Marketing Traction Channels
Directions: Watch the first video and follow the instructions. It will explain what we are doing and the instructions for today.
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A gentleman named Gabriel Weinberg wrote a book called "Traction" that has identified 19 major "Traction Channels" to bring awareness to products and services. Watch the videos below to learn about each of the 19 channels he identified. Below, you will see video and text examples of all 19 channels. Start with the video introduction and work your way down the page.
Video Introduction
1 Viral Marketing
1.) Viral Marketing: Viral in a business sense goes beyond video but serves as a good example here. Viral videos are called viral videos because they spread like viruses. One person shares to another, and that next person shares it to another and so on. For businesses, viral marketing is when a user refers the next customer and the process repeats THAT is what Viral Marketing is about: finding a way to bring sales conversions by convincing your existing customers to share your products and services (family, friends, colleagues, social networks). It is most common that companies reward customers who make them go "viral". An example is, if a customer sends a second customer, the first customer gets rewarded with a perk such as a discount for a future purchase.
2 Public Relations
2.) Public Relations is about public perception. In other words, what people think about your product, business or service. A great example of public relations marketing is when a local business sponsors a Little League Baseball team. The team is often named after the local business or at the very least has its logo on the uniform somewhere. The families of the Little League baseball players get to know the name of the business in exchange for the business paying for the cost of uniforms. It is often a win win for all parties involved. Parents don't have to pay as much for the costs of Little League and the business gets potential customers and more local awareness.
3 Unconventional Public Relations
3.) Unconventional Public Relations: Public relations (PR) is the act of creating and maintaining a favorable public image. Unconventional PR is simply maintaining this image by using unexpected and abnormal methods. It can surface in many ways including publicity stunts, viral videos and customer appreciation. An example mentioned in the video is when Elon Musk used one of his companies SpaceX to launch a car from another one of his companies (Tesla) in to outer space. This was unconventional PR because in enhanced the public image of both SpaceX and Tesla by doing something that got positive attention. It is not every company that has the means to send a car in to outer space. A stunt like this says something about the high capabilities of both companies.
4 Search Engine Marketing
4.) Search Engine Marketing is paying for high placement on a search engine. Look at the image below. Notice that results are specific to Hempstead (because I did a search in Hempstead). Also notice that the first three results are "sponsored" meaning paid for. It is expensive to do search engine marketing but the gentleman in the video describes it as, "converting a customer who has already made a purchasing decision; who is now looking where to execute it". In other words companies are willing to pay Google a lot of money for top placement when someone is ready to buy.
5 Social And Display Ads
5.) Social And Display Ads: Unlike Search Engine Marketing, users are not looking for a location to make a purchase. Social and display ads are targeted based on interest. For instance, if you search TikTok for makeup tips, chances are you will see social and display ads that are specific to makeup tips.
6 Email Marketing
6.) Email Marketing is the act of sending a commercial message, typically to a group of people, using email. In its broadest sense, every email sent to a potential or current customer could be considered email marketing. It involves using email to send advertisements, request business, or solicit sales or donations. Email marketing strategies commonly seek to achieve one or more of three primary objectives, to build loyalty, trust, or brand awareness. The term usually refers to sending email messages with the purpose of enhancing a merchant's relationship with current or previous customers, encouraging customer loyalty and repeat business, acquiring new customers or convincing current customers to purchase something immediately, and sharing third-party ads.
7 Offline Ads
7.) Offline Ads are the advertisements you see off of the computer/phone. Examples are billboard ads, paper newspaper ads, advertisements you see while watching the train and advertisements you see on the television.
8 Search Engine Optimization
8.) Search Engine Optimization is optimizing your website or video to rank high in search (Google, YouTube, TikTok etc. This is different than Search Engine Marketing because there is no paid element to it. Most search engines track how long a person is on a website after a person searched for a term. Search engines also consider how many times a site has been shared and how many times it is hyperlinked to. The art of SEO is finding keywords that people search for and creating content to fit that search.
9 Content Marketing
9.) Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.
10 Engineering As Marketing
10.) Engineering as marketing is the practice of using your engineering time to develop complementary free tools that provide value to your target audience and generate leads for your main product.
11 Targeting Blogs
11.) Targeting Blogs: Blogs are online articles. Like TikTok and YouTube, some bloggers have millions of followers. Contacting a blog (relevant to your topic) with news can lead to more exposure for your product or brand. If you think of video makers as bloggers (video blogs or VLOGS are more popular today) this strategy might make more sense.
12 Business Development
12) Business development focuses on improving customer experience through your brand, while marketing aims to create better content and messaging that can also attract customers to the business. When each process focuses on generating more leads, businesses often see better results in attracting customers through the sales funnel. An example of business development is a restaurant and bowling alley collaborating on a promotion like this:
- Any customer who spends $100 at Pizza Palace Italian Restaurant will get a free game of bowling at ABC Bowling Alley.
- Every 10 games bowled at ABC Bowling Alley will get a customer a 20 dollar gift certificate at ABC Bowling Alley.
Both businesses decided to develop each others business by partnering up to increase each others traffic.
- Any customer who spends $100 at Pizza Palace Italian Restaurant will get a free game of bowling at ABC Bowling Alley.
- Every 10 games bowled at ABC Bowling Alley will get a customer a 20 dollar gift certificate at ABC Bowling Alley.
Both businesses decided to develop each others business by partnering up to increase each others traffic.
13 Sales
13.) Sales: Having motivated and knowledgeable sales professionals will do better than pulling any random person off the street to sell. Training your team to fully understand your product and your niche will help your company.
14 Affiliate Programs
14.) Affiliate marketing is the process by which an affiliate earns a commission for marketing another person’s or company’s products. The affiliate simply searches for a product they enjoy, then promotes that product and earns a piece of the profit from each sale they make. The sales are tracked via affiliate links from one website to another.
15 Existing Platforms
15.) Leveraging Existing Platforms: The term “platform” returns a surprising number of definitions. In marketing, it can refer to social media, podcasting, video, web, and more. The traction channel “Existing Platforms” alludes to how startups can leverage traction by integrating with platforms that already have a massive following.
The short explanation of this channel is that startups should represent their business on these platforms to get their content in front of existing audiences and be able to identify their ideal audience with better precision. The following is already on the platform. Take advantage of that pool and explore integrations with platforms that make the most sense with your business. This article highlights the platforms your startup should consider leveraging marketing efforts on.
The short explanation of this channel is that startups should represent their business on these platforms to get their content in front of existing audiences and be able to identify their ideal audience with better precision. The following is already on the platform. Take advantage of that pool and explore integrations with platforms that make the most sense with your business. This article highlights the platforms your startup should consider leveraging marketing efforts on.
16 Trade Shows
16.) Trade show marketing involves showcasing and promoting your products and services at one of these large-scale, industry-specific events. Because trade shows aim to help businesses boost brand awareness, you’ll gain a ton of exposure and a whole new audience by attending one as an exhibitor. You’ll also get to meet other professionals in your field as well as new customers, learn what your competitors are up to, and gain insight into the broader trends, products, and services shaping your industry.
17 Offline Events
3.) Offline Meetups are events where businesses come face to face with potential customers. A great example is the Nautical Mile Festival in Freeport. Every year businesses rent space, showcase their products and have open discussions with people who visit their booths.
18 Speaking Engagements
18.) A speaking engagement is any public or private event that hosts a single speaker or panel of speakers. In business prospecting, these events help professionals network with others in the same industry and display technical knowledge and skills. Business prospecting allows a business or entrepreneur to attract new clients and form lasting relationships that help ensure a business's success.
19 Community Building
19.) Lego's community is an excellent example of community based marketing, which manifests in the form of a web platform called Lego Ideas. The platform allows community members to share visual ideas for new products and proudly present creations they've made using Lego. Members can then vote and comment on specific ideas.