Is Service Marketing part of your toolbox of strategies in 2022?
DJs and entertainment companies, for the most part, offer B2C services – that’s business-to-consumer.
Accordingly, as a working, professional DJ, there are many different types of marketing strategies and tactics you can use to your benefit.
I’ve written a lot about many of these strategies over the past couple of years. Service Marketing is one that I haven’t discussed much, but it should be one of the top strategies on DJs’ radar when they are developing their business plans and an execution method.
What Is Service Marketing?
Service Marketing is a strategy which promotes and showcases the intangible benefits and offerings delivered by a company to drive end-customer value. This can apply to standalone services or complementary services that you offer as a DJ. These are things which are driven mostly by people and process, which cannot be kept by a customer. Other than DJs, hospitality, tourism, financial services, professional services, etc., use Service Marketing to drive their businesses.
Why Is Service Marketing Important?
Marketers promote different types of things, such as goods, services, events, other people, etc. Because offering a service is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything, it requires excellence in three broad levels: External, Internal, and Interactive Marketing.
External Marketing covers the pricing, distribution, and promotion of services to consumers. Internal Marketing involves training and motivating employees to serve customers well. Interactive Marketing describes the employees’ skill in serving the client.
Service Marketing is different than general marketing because when you sell a service, you are basically telling your audience to buy something they will never own. So, then what are you actually selling?
You Are Selling An Experience.
DJs are everywhere in every market, so their services differ from each other much like as products do with their own features and qualities. DJs need to differentiate themselves from the competition and attract clients, because many of us are in a highly competitive and saturated services market.
The factors that differentiate your service from a competitor can be extremely impactful on a client’s decision to book you, and those are the ones to keep in mind when planning your Service Marketing strategy. Here are the five Service Marketing factors that influence buying decisions:
Affordability. Finding the right price range that your clients will consider acceptable for your services (and you consider profitable for your efforts).
Functionality. Your services and value promise the best fit for your customer’s needs.
Credibility. Service is intangible. A large part of your clients’ buying decisions will depend on how much they trust you.
Convenience. How accessible and easy it is for your customers to use your service.
Variety. Believe it or not, your clients will love the ability to choose different services you offer – but be mindful to define the right balance between too little and too much.
Service Marketing Strategy
Service Marketing strategies, like any other digital-marketing strategy, must begin with a deep understanding of your clients, your service’s strengths, and defining what your competitive advantages are. You have to understand your clients even before they are your clients. Build customer personas and map out what might influence their purchase decision. Your service’s strengths and how you position yourself to clients is a crucial part of your strategy and should include the end results your services promise to deliver.
Conclusion
Service Marketing is very different from product marketing. You need to really define your value, target your customer persona, clarify expectations, and build a lot of trust with clients, even before they book you to be their DJ, in order to succeed.
Perhaps the most important tip I can give when it comes to Service Marketing is to document your successes often and present them on your website, on your social channels and in your relevant customer touchpoints along a client’s journey to find the perfect DJ for their event.
Joshua Volpe own Kalifornia Entertainment in Rochester, N.Y.
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