Ask HN How do I learn marketing? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN How do I learn marketing?

#41

Post by Leftium » Thu, Mar 09, 2023, 4:54 AM UTC

Leftium wrote: post #8

First, I think there are two kinds of marketing: 1. "Brute-force" marketing: hit everyone in a wide area with your message, without much consideration for the target audience. The focus is on you and your product/service. 99% of marketing is done this way. 2. "Precision" marketing: acute focus on the target audience with a deep understanding of their desires, needs, and fears. Don't waste time/resources hitting peopl…

I'd like to add that there is a spectrum between "brute-force" and "precision" marketing. So some people say/think they are doing precision marketing, but they are actually doing "brute-force" marketing with a few precision marketing tactics.

I think precision marketing is most effective when used as a holistic strategy. This often means precision marketing dictates what your core business is. Smart precision marketers first pick a niche and figure out what problems people really need solved. Then they confirm if people will buy even before building the solution to that pain.

Most people do things in the opposite order: think up a business idea, build it, then are confused when it is hard to sell to other people. Both methods can succeed, but I think the precision method minimizes the risk of (market) failure.

Re: Ask HN How do I learn marketing?

#42

Post by Amy_W » Thu, Mar 09, 2023, 5:42 AM UTC

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Re: Ask HN How do I learn marketing?

#43

Post by Want2Learn » Fri, Mar 10, 2023, 7:07 PM UTC

There are several good comments (& questions) in here, but I'll add the following:

Know your objective. What do you want to achieve with your marketing? Know your target. Who are you trying to reach? Per the comment re: "precision marketing" search the term "account based marketing". This is a targeted B2B type approach. To over simplify, it comes down to really knowing/understanding who you want to reach, what's life like for them, what issues/pain-points they want solved, & you must consider when is the best time to reach them. Use your knowledge of their life/issues to craft the content to best engage them. Consider the time-frame of what you are trying to sell/promote and the buying cycle... is it long (over months) or short? Thus, you may need to plan on additional follow-ups/touchpoints for the 'buyers journey". etc.

You're request was how you can learn marketing. College is an option, just as it is for engineering. For more timely and cost-effective methods you can also get access to specific courses on linkedIn learning (check your local library for free access btw). Also check out coursera. There are many other no-cost low cost sources, but I thought I'd give you a few to start.

Anyway, I hope this helps.