“Marketing sets the condition for the sale to happen,” says Jim Wong, CEO of Brilliant™.
Marketing sets the stage for sales. It seeds your target market’s opinions. It engages them, and keeps your company top of mind. It makes your business more approachable.
Brilliant™ is a rapidly growing staffing firm with offices in Chicago and Florida. They provide accounting, finance and IT staffing solutions to mid-size companies that have a need for a consistent pipeline of talent.
Jim has a straightforward goal for Brilliant™’s marketing, “I want us to be everywhere, or I want people to think we’re everywhere.”
Top of mind
Brilliant™’s strategy is to be the first call when their market has a need for their services.
If an accountant is looking for a new job, call Brilliant™. If a software developer is ready for a new challenge, call Brilliant™. If a company needs a partner to find and attract these professionals, call Brilliant™.
The staffing industry is very competitive, and there are a lot of firms offering comparable services. Often the difference between one firm and the next is mindshare. Who comes to mind first when you’re considering a change?
Brilliant™ uses their marketing to increase mindshare, and be top of mind in their target markets.
Everywhere is relative
You can’t be all things to all people, and you definitely can’t “be everywhere” in a generalist market.
Jim explains, “I’m not too concerned if Motorola, Abbott and Baxter even know we’re on the face of the earth. But I do want to make sure that every single middle market finance, accounting and IT professional knows about us.”
Mid-market brands, like Brilliant™, do not have endless marketing budgets for mass advertising and promotion. Focusing on a niche enables them to punch outside their weight class, and create the perception that they’re everywhere.
Be a leader in your community
You can be leaders in your community when you have a clear and dominant niche.
Brilliant™ leverages three core programs in their community to be top of mind:
Sponsorship. They support the groups that support their target markets. Jim explains, “We want to be involved with and apart of every professional organization that penetrates the middle market. We do this through sponsorship, marketing and aligning ourselves with them.”
Content Marketing. Brilliant™ publishes weekly email newsletters that are content specific to the niche markets. The content fosters relationships, and keeps the brand top of mind.
Social Media. “We are building up Brilliant™’s presence on the various social networks,” continues Jim. “We get a number of referrals where people found us somewhere online.”
The three programs support each other. A candidate might receive the email newsletter or see them on LinkedIn, but the experience comes to life when they see Brilliant™ at an industry event or conference. The combination of experiences creates the impression that Brilliant™ is everywhere.
Promote with purpose
Companies grow sticky brands by punching outside their weight class. They create a buzz and an energy about them that captivates their market, and draws people to them.
Brilliant™ is driving their growth, because they’re not afraid to blow their own horn. The goal is simple: be everywhere. And their market is taking notice.
