Will Hardison

5 Ways Marketing Is Like Baking A Cake

DISCLAIMER: I apologize in advance if this makes you want cake while at work today.

Marketing, like baking, takes a lot of work, preparation, testing and learning from mistakes. Most bakers do not produce award-winning cakes on their first try. It takes years of practice, learning, trial and error, and time. The same applies to marketing. Other than very rare occasions, companies do not hit home runs with their first marketing campaign. Lines don’t form down the street after one ad for a local mom and pop shop. It takes a lot of hard work, “hustling,” and dedication to get a product or company off the ground. Below are 5 ways marketing is like baking a cake….

Ingredients: While baking, you have to have the correct amount of ingredients. The same is true when launching a marketing campaign. There isn’t a silver bullet in marketing that will produce a line around the corner to your business. A balanced campaign between multiple advertising channels has proven to be a better approach. You can’t invest all of your advertising dollars into one TV commercial and expect business to explode. Look at most brands like Coke, Nestle, and even some of your mom and pops, they all have a wide range of advertising that range from print, online media, sponsorships, to TV ads.

Presentation: Who wants to eat a cake that looks caved in or burnt? Generally the first reaction to a cake is how it is presented. The same applies to your marketing. If your ad is cheesy, looks home made or cheap, your target market will feel the same about the product you are offering. It doesn’t take much to make your business look professional. A consistent look, professionally laid out ads and a well working website will place you leaps and bounds ahead of the competition who are penny pinching on their presentation. Guess who gets my business between the professional looking company and the home made looking company?

If you would like a cake as professional looking and tasting as the one above, I have the girl for you! E-mail me.

Flavors: Not everyone likes Vanilla, therefore cakes come in a wide variety of flavors. The same is true when it comes to marketing. Not everyone is moved to buy for the same reasons. Some buy because of design, some buy because of price, and some because of functionality of the product. Leverage your selling points in several different ads and see which one proves to bring in the best results.

Time: “If you’re looking, you’re not cooking” is a famous cooking line. If you’re opening the oven to look at the cake every 30 seconds you’re letting all the heat out and the cake doesn’t bake. You have to give the oven time to bake the cake. The same rule applies with marketing. If you advertise for a week, you may not get immediate results; it doesn’t mean it’s not working though. Marketing takes time, hard work, and dedication. Think of brands that have lasted throughout time, they are still advertising today to continue to build their brand, and I guarantee you that if they would have pulled all of their ads down after a few weeks of “not working,” they wouldn’t be where they are today.

Feedback: “How does it taste?” is generally the first question out of the mouth of a baker when you are trying his or her cake. The reason is they are looking for feedback and they want to in a sense measure the results of a certain type of cake. Generally, when you walk into a bakery, the baker can tell you which cake people like the most. Can you tell someone which ad or advertising channel works the best for your company? Measuring, monitoring, and testing your marketing is, in my opinion, just as important as the choice of marketing channel and layout of the ad itself.

Tags: advertising, cake baking, marketing, will hardison