[00:00:00] I will say this, if you're not investing in marketing, you are capping your growth potential, and that's fine if that's the choice you're making on purpose. Just make sure you're actually choosing it... 

Hey friend, welcome back to In the EllaMents. I am Alishia Egenhoff, digital ad strategist, mentor, and the heart behind Social EllaMents Marketing. Around here, we talk about marketing, motherhood, and what it really looks like to build a business while also being a human with limited time, energy, and capacity.

I get this question frequently, "My business is already doing great through word of mouth. Do I really need to invest in marketing?" And honestly, I love that people are asking it, because if you're getting referrals and people are talking about your business, that's a really good problem to have. That's a good sign that your business is actually working. But here [00:01:00] is where I think people get confused.

Just because something is working doesn't mean it's working at full capacity. So today, I want to talk about the difference between a business that's doing okay and a business that's actually growing, why your current marketing strategy might be limiting your growth potential, and most importantly, how to figure out if you actually need to invest in marketing or if you're exactly where you want to be.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer for any of this. It really does depend on your business, your goals, and what you actually want to happen next.

First, let me be clear. If your business is growing through referrals and word of mouth, that is incredible. That's a huge sign that you're providing such great service that your happy clients can't shut up about you.

Word of mouth should absolutely be your number one source for new [00:02:00] business. If it's not, I'd actually be a little concerned. But here's the thing about relying on only referrals. Your network is limited. Your happy clients can only refer so many people, and even if they're actively referring you, you're only reaching the people in their circle.

What about everyone outside that circle? The people who would love your business but don't know you even exist because they weren't lucky enough to have a friend to recommend you. That's the growth potential you're leaving on the table. Marketing is what reaches those people, people who wouldn't have found you otherwise.

It also builds trust with people who are on the fence, the ones who've heard about you, but they're just not quite sure yet. And it builds recognition, which in this world right now is everything. Trust is what we're all craving.

So no, word of mouth isn't a problem. It's actually your [00:03:00] foundation. But if you want to grow beyond your current network, marketing is how you're going to do it.

Here's something that I think people miss. Your business is unique. A local service business trying to reach people in their area is selling to a completely different customer than someone selling a product online to the whole entire country.

Different customers, different strategies, different everything. And if you look at two businesses in the exact same niche, they still need different marketing approaches. Why? Because you bring something to the table that nobody else can, something your competitor cannot replicate, and they also bring something that you can't replicate.

So let that uniqueness show up in your marketing, in your branding. When you do, the right people are naturally attracted to you, the people [00:04:00] who actually vibe with what you do, the people who become your best clients, your favorite clients to work with. Those are the ones that stick around. They're the ones who refer you, who stay loyal.

So before you decide if you need marketing, look at your business specifically. What makes you different? What's your unique selling point? Who are you actually trying to reach? What would it do for your business if more of those people found you?

This is the part I think that most people skip over, but it's actually pretty crucial, and it's looking at your data. And I know numbers and bleh, it's not fun, but it's important. Google Analytics is free, and it tells you a ton about your website traffic if you have it installed. It tells you where people are coming from, what pages they're looking at, uh, how long they're staying on those pages. But where most businesses mess up, [00:05:00] they're not tracking where their referrals and their word of mouth are actually coming from in conjunction with that.

So how, how do you know how much business is coming from referrals versus your website versus social media if you're not tracking any of it? And the simple way to do this is... Like, the base level, simplest way to do this is to ask your customers how they heard about you, and then actually write it down somewhere. Keep track of it. It could be a spreadsheet. It could be a form in your intake process, whatever works for your business. But once you have a few months of data, suddenly you can see very clearly maybe 70% of your business is referrals, and 20% is from your website, and 10% is from social. Now you know what's working, and you know where you have room to grow.

Because here's the thing about marketing, it's all about testing. You throw, and I know people don't like to hear this, but you throw something at the wall, and you see if it sticks, and sometimes it works, and [00:06:00] sometimes it doesn't. But if you're tracking your data, you can make smart decisions instead of just guessing.

I'm never going to tell you that not investing in marketing is a bad decision, because for some business models, it might be exactly right, and I know I'm a marketing girl, but it has to fit for your business. So maybe you're already at capacity. You have more business than you can actually handle right now.

So why would you spend money to get more business that you cannot serve and serve well? That makes zero sense. Or maybe you're exactly where you want to be financially. Your business is profitable. You're happy with the income. You don't want to scale. You don't wanna add team members. You just want to keep doing what you're doing, and that's also totally valid.

Not every business owner wants to grow big and make millions of dollars. But I will say this, if you're not investing in marketing, you are [00:07:00] capping your growth potential, and that's fine if that's the choice you're making on purpose. Just make sure you're actually choosing it, not because you don't have the time, not because you don't know where to start, , not because you're scared it won't work. Make sure you're intentionally saying, "I'm happy where I am," and not just defaulting to the status quo.

So if you figure out that you need marketing, the next question is obvious: who's going to do it? And I'm going to be really honest here, because I see this happen all the time. It's happened to me as an employee. Business owners throw marketing onto someone's plate and just expect results. They don't give them the time. They don't give them the training. They don't give them the resources, and then they're confused why nothing works, or they're upset because nothing's working. If the person doing your marketing doesn't have the actual capacity or the knowledge to do it well, this is including yourself, you're going to get [00:08:00] mediocre results.

So ask yourself, "Do I or someone on my team actually have the time to do this right?" Not the time to squeeze it in between other stuff, real dedicated time to focus on marketing. If the answer is no, then you probably need to hire someone. And I know not everyone has the budget for a dedicated marketing person.

I get that. But if you do, here's my honest take: hire an expert. It's like hiring an accountant to do your taxes. You could learn QuickBooks yourself. You could figure out the tax code. But why would you when someone who knows what they're doing can actually maximize your results? Same thing with marketing.

That said, be realistic about what you're paying. If you're hiring someone but paying them so little they can only give you a few hours a week, don't expect miracles. But if you invest in the right person and actually give them what they need, the return can be amazing.

So [00:09:00] here's what this comes down to. Before you decide if your business needs marketing, sit down, answer these questions honestly. What are my actual growth goals? Do I want to scale this, or am I happy right where I'm at? How much of my business is coming from referrals versus other sources, and am I even tracking any of that?

If more customers came to me, could I actually handle them? Do I have the capacity, and do I have the capacity to do it well? Would reaching more of the right people actually change my business for the better? What's one marketing thing I could test without blowing my entire budget? And then be real with yourself because what's right for your business might be totally different from what's right for someone else's.

Maybe you don't need marketing right now, and that's totally okay. [00:10:00] Or maybe you're leaving money on the table, and that is worth thinking about. But make the decision on purpose based on your data, based on your goals, based on what you can actually handle, not because you think you're supposed to do it, not because your competitor is doing it, not because someone told you that you have to do it. Based on what's actually best for your business.

Here's what I want you to do. First, set up a simple way to track where your business is coming from. Just ask your next few clients, "How did you hear about me?" Write it down. Create a spreadsheet. After you've got a few months of data, look at the breakdown.

What's your percentage split? Second, if you have a website, look at Google Analytics. First, make sure it's installed, and then see where your traffic is actually coming from. This actually connects to social media too. And now you've got real data instead of assumptions. And then third, ask yourself [00:11:00] the hard question: Am I on track to hit my growth goals with my current strategy?

If the answer is no, you probably need to think about marketing. If the answer is yes, you're exactly where you need to be. Your business is successful, you've built something good, and you get to decide what happens next. Not because someone told you that you need marketing, not because you're supposed to scale, and not because your competitor is growing faster.

You get to decide based on what you actually want and need for your business. And if that's staying where you are, that's beautiful. Protect that and celebrate it. If it's growing, then marketing is a tool that can help you get there. Either way, make the choice on purpose because the best business decisions are the ones you make when you actually know your data and you have a clear picture of where you want to go.

If you want to stay connected, I'd love to have you on my email list. I send two to four emails a month with [00:12:00] honest thoughts on marketing, motherhood, and building a business that fits your real life. You can join through the link in the show notes. Thank you for spending time with me In The EllaMents.

Until next time, keep building with intention and give yourself grace as you grow.