Feeling overwhelmed by marketing? Here’s how to simplify it.

Like many business owners, you probably wear many hats, including one for marketing.

If marketing isn’t ‘your thing’, the chances are that marketing can feel like a never-ending to-do-list. From content creation, social media posting, getting email campaigns out, to optimising your website for search, it’s easy to feel like you are drowning in tasks.

On top of that, marketing is getting more and more complicated by the day. It’s therefore no wonder that you’re feeling overwhelmed when it comes to marketing your business, especially if you’re not seeing any real results for your efforts.

But don’t worry. Marketing doesn’t need to feel overwhelming. Here are some tips to help you simplify your approach to marketing.

1. Create a marketing plan

Diving straight into ‘doing’ marketing without a plan is like setting off in your car to a new destination without having a sat nav or map. You might be moving, but you could end up getting lost or going around in circles! Instead, what I recommend is you take a step back and prepare a marketing plan. No this doesn’t have to be some huge document or over complicated, even a 3 month action plan would be better than none at all. Think of your plan as your roadmap – it will outline where you want to go and how you’ll get there. Start with some basics: Who are your customers? What do they need? Where do they search for information? A plan will ensure you stay on course.

2. Focus on what delivers results

There is so much pressure to be active on every channel. There are now so many channels to choose from – LinkedIn, Instagram, WhatsApp, email marketing, paid ads, events – that in itself can be overwhelming. While a multi-channel approach to marketing is now very important, you need to select wisely. Start by looking at your data to see which channels are driving the most traffic, engagement or generating the most leads. You should then concentrate your efforts on these high-impact channels, rather than spreading yourself too thinly. Sometimes, less is more.

3. Simplify your content creation

Creating new content doesn’t always mean you need to start from scratch. Take a look at some of the content you already have. If you have a well-written blog post, this can be repurposed to create a social media post, an email newsletter, or even a video. For every piece of content you create, always think about how you can repurpose it for use across other channels. This will help you to save time and money.

4. Automate where possible

There are many automated tools now available to help you reduce marketing overwhelm and many of them offer free starter packages too. There are tools available for scheduling social media posts (e.g. Buffer, Later and Hootsuite), managing email campaigns (e.g. MailerLite, Mailchimp and Constant Contact), and streamlining content creation (e.g. ChatGPT). These tools can save you time and improve engagement and lead conversion.

5. Stop comparing yourself to others

I see this all the time. It’s so easy to compare your marketing efforts to what others are doing. Yes, it’s important to observe what your competitors are doing, but remember, what works for one business might not work for another. And who’s to say that what you have seen is working for that business anyhow (they also might have a bigger team or budget than you!)? My recommendation is to focus on refining your own strategies based on what works for your business, instead of trying to replicate someone else’s approach.

6. Be realistic about your resources and budget

If you don’t have a huge budget, don’t start planning for big paid advertising campaigns, website redesigns or trade shows. If you only have half a day a week to focus on marketing, don’t commit to writing 5 blogs, 10 social posts and 1 email a week. It’s important to understand your limits and set realistic expectations based on your available resources and budget. Focus on quality over quantity, and prioritise activities that are going to deliver results.

7. Get support when needed

Please remember, you don’t have to manage everything yourself. If marketing feels overwhelming, consider getting some help. Whether it’s hiring a consultant for strategic advice, outsourcing tasks like social media management, or using tools to streamline your efforts, bringing in support can make a big difference. It allows you to focus on running your business while letting the experts handle the details.

Take back control of your marketing

Feeling overwhelmed by marketing is a common challenge for many business owners, I see often, but it doesn’t have to be the case. By focusing on planning, prioritisation, and simplification, you can get your marketing efforts back on track and start seeing results without the stress.

Remember, it’s all about working smarter, not harder.