It’s not often you get to pick one of the greatest business minds in South Africa, so we thought we’d see what burning questions on social media you had for marketing mogul, Gil Oved who took the time to answer the top five questions we received. Have a look and see if yours was included!
Today’s modern tech innovations have really allowed small start up’s and companies with limited budgets to get their name out there with the use of social media and SEO. It’s now less about the money you need to spend to get media coverage and more about the time you need to invest to come up with ideas that are so compelling that people would share it and cause virality because it is resonant with them. I’ve seen an inexpensive ad go viral and be viewed by millions of consumers and the total cost of production would be a few thousand dollars. The trick though is to understand what drives sharing and what makes for good content.
Just do it. Back yourself and just do it! Find something that you feel passionate about. You won’t have all the answers. You will make decisions on imperfect information. You will be required to do things that you are not an expert at. You will be a ‘doctor on call’ but you will not be alone because you will count yourself amongst peers who have changed the world and been through the same journey regardless of what industry they’re in.
Three pointers on that: 1 innovate, 2 innovate 3, innovate! Marketing is not what is used to be. There used to be a few mediums where skill sets were needed. TV, Radio, Print, Billboard and a few others. In today’s world anything could be a medium and old mediums are being used in new ways; mediums are converging. Digital and physical are being blurred. Vine, Instragram, Youtube, as examples, are changing how we interact, what we consume, what drives our decisions. Good marketers embrace change and they keep their eyes peeled for the latest trends and find compelling ways to engage consumers on behalf of their clients. It means that a start-up marketing business with innovative ideas could make waves and get quick market share.
There is no silver bullet answer for this. Every business has different needs, at different times and different cycles. There are many considerations to take into account. That all said… regardless of what you think you should be spending, think about HOW you spend it. Don’t fall for ‘EGO Advertising’ decisions. There are many ways to do what you need to do with spending less by taking more risks and finding ways to truly disrupt.
Unfortunately by the time you are there, it’s probably too little too late. So many businesses fail for the wrong reasons, primarily cash flow management. Entrepreneurs are generally great visionaries and great salesmen, but usually not great administrators. My suggestion is simple, surround yourself with the kind of people that are different from you, especially in the beginning of your business life cycle. Focus on administrators and those who are conservative and focus on the details to allow you to dream big and run after it.
Dragons’ Den SA is not only about finding great South African entrepreneurs but it also allows us to learn valuable lessons from the pitchers’ mistakes and advice that the Dragons proffer when it comes to sound business decisions. You just can’t put a price on this information! A big thank you to Gil Oved for taking the time to answer these questions.
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