More than advertising: What you need to know about marketing

Marketing is one of today’s most frequently used, yet misunderstood, business terms. For some, it’s equal to campaigns and ads. For others, it’s the core of how a business builds relationships, establishes trust, and drives growth. Let’s look into the concepts and explain why marketing is so much more than just advertising.

Ready to elevate your marketing?
Book a demo of Lime CRM and experience the difference.

Book a demo

What marketing is really all about

You might have a fantastic service or product, a strong and capable team, and big ambitions. But without the right marketing, chances are high that no one will ever hear about it. Marketing is more than just advertising, it’s the hub that shapes the customer experience, builds brand awareness, and creates meaningful connections with your target audience. Effective marketing is driven by insight and data, an understanding of what engages, influences, and benefits the customer throughout the entire customer journey.

This is where your CRM system plays a central role. With a CRM, such as Lime CRM, you gain insight into your customer data and the tools needed for creating more personalised and effective marketing efforts. When your communication is based on the right data, proper timing, and the right channels, your marketing isn’t just a cost, but instead becomes an investment that drives the growth of your business.

Why marketing is crucial, no matter the industry

What does marketing really mean? At its core, it’s about influencing someone to take action by buying something, subscribing, clicking, or contacting your business. But there are both legal and ethical guidelines on how this can be done.

In practice, you can’t just market anything however you’d like. In Sweden for instance, marketing is regulated by the Marketing Act (Marknadsföringslagen), which requires all communication to be clear, truthful, and not misleading. This applies to all marketing, whether it’s an offer in a newsletter, copy on your website, or a social media campaign.

Throughout the EU, there’s also common rules under the Directive on Unfair Commercial Practices. This means that your business must avoid any exaggerated claims, hidden fees, or unclear terms in all your marketing.

That’s why it’s so important to have structure in your marketing communication. This is where Lime CRM comes into the picture. With Lime CRM, you gain full control: you can segment your customer data, follow up on previous interactions, manage marketing consent, and make sure that every message is both relevant and accurate. It doesn’t only give you peace of mind, but also makes your campaigns more targeted, effective, and aligned with both your customers’ expectations and current marketing regulations.

Good marketing builds relationships, bad marketing destroys them

In an era where customers constantly search online, compare, and switch providers with just one click, having a great product is no longer enough. You also have to reach your audience with the right message, in the right way, or you risk losing business before it even starts.

That’s why marketing matters. It creates awareness, sparks interest, explains value, and ultimately, influences customers’ decisions. But, it’s also about trust. When your marketing feels well-thought-out, relevant, and honest, there’s an increased chance that customers will return and recommend you to others. When communication lacks clarity or feels unreliable, trust will disappear faster than you think.

This is where a CRM system, such as Lime CRM, provides a solid foundation for your business. By gathering all customer data in one place, from purchase history to past interactions, you can create targeted, personalised, and legally compliant communications. You reduce the risk of, for example, communicating the wrong price, sending irrelevant content, or overpromising something you can’t deliver on. At the same time, you gain full control over marketing consents, workflows, and content, making your marketing both more effective and trustworthy.

Want to learn more about Lime Marketing and how it works?

Discover our solution

How to create marketing that builds long-term trust

In today’s information overloaded society, it’s no longer enough to grab someone’s attention; you need to also earn their trust. Long-term trust is the currency that determines whether a customer comes back, recommends you to others, or chooses a competitor instead.

Marketing that builds trust is transparent, honest, and relevant. It never promises more than it can deliver, and it adapts to the customer’s needs, not the other way around. It’s about understanding where the customer is in their customer journey, and reaching them with the right message, in the right channel, at the right time.

This is where a CRM system, such as Lime CRM, makes a real difference. With Lime CRM, you can:

Segment your target groups based on factors such as industry, past purchases, geographic location, or areas of interest, then send targeted campaigns that instantly hits the mark.
Create automated messages triggered by customer behavior, such as after clicking on an offer, opening a newsletter, or if they haven’t completed a purchase for a while.
Set up e-mail and campaign templates that comply with both your brand guidelines and legal requirements, so you don’t have to start from scratch each time.

Track campaigns directly in the CRM to see which leads converted, who opened your messages, and who might need another follow-up.
View the customer’s entire history, right in the system. Perfect for tailoring your messaging, avoiding repetition or misunderstandings, and delivering the right content, at the right time.
Use dashboards and reports to see which marketing activities actually lead to sales, enabling you to adjust your marketing in real time.

With Lime CRM, you don’t just get better structure for your customer data; you also get a marketing engine that works smarter for you, every day.

Discover Lime CRM

Checklist: Is your marketing targeted, relevant, and ready to perform?

A strong campaign doesn’t start with a creative brief, but with an understanding of your audience. Before sending your next campaign, newsletter, or ad, consider these questions:

Do you have a clear target audience, and do you know what they actually want?
Is the content relevant to where the customer is in their customer journey?
Is the timing right? Are you communicating too early, too late, or too often?
Does your message match the customer’s past behavior or history?
Have you adapted the language and format to the channel you’re using?
Is it easy for the recipient to understand the next step and take it?
Have you measured previous efforts, so you know what works?

With Lime CRM, you gain the tools to check off each point through better visibility into your customer relationships, clear segmentation, smart automation, and insightful follow-ups.

Want to see how it works in practice?

Book a demo

See all