How to market your small business?
Ever new year has brought new trends, both in marketing and among your customer base. Here are five ways that you can find marketing success for your small business in the new year.
Plan ahead for marketing
Take the time to evaluate the success of your marketing last year. What types of marketing were most successful? Which fell flat? Are you dealing with the same target audience that you planned for a year ago? Does your logo design and branding strategy still feel relevant? Now is the time to look at every aspect of your marketing. Some types of marketing may need less investment, others may need more, while some may need an entire change of perspective. Looking at this matter objectively before spending money or time in areas where it doesn’t matter. Remember the old adage: Failing to plan is planning to fail.
Figure out social media
Social networking is more than a way for your teenage daughter to pass the weekend; it is a way that grownups and decision makers communicate and learn about the world. If you have a solid presence on one or two of the major social networking sites, your prospective customers will be exposed to your brand, your logo design, and your message on a regular basis in a natural way that is more credible than other forms of marketing. Social media marketing can be free or you can go for paid advertising using Google AdWords.
Be more personal
Don’t be afraid to blog or post videos on YouTube. The more customers see and hear from you as a person with a voice and a name, the more they will want to buy from you. Make sure all communications are congruent with your brand and be sure to refer almost constantly to your business and prominently display your logo design. However, if you follow these simple rules there is virtually no way to go wrong when letting your customers get to know you and your small business.
Get in their phone
That is, have an application for cell phones that users can download onto their telephone. This gets your name and logo design into the customer’s life every time they make a phone call. It is getting easier and easier to find someone to write applications for the iPhone and/or other 3G telephones as the technology becomes commonplace. There is a considerable market in this skill, which means that there is no reason not to hire an expert if you decide that this is the way to go.
Hire an expert
Marketing professionals bring something to the table that few small business owners can match: years and even decades of seeing firsthand what works. Even a few short sessions with a marketing or branding professional are well within the smallest business budget, and in most cases you will get the money back many times over. You wouldn’t fix your own plumbing; why attempt a do-it-yourself job on something as important as your business’s success?
5 Ways to Market a Small Business that the Big Guys Can’t Match
Local is the new black. It goes with any marketing scheme, and people are more likely to deal with a company simply because it is local. Indeed, buying local is widely considered as the socially and ecologically responsible way to go. However, even with this advantage, there are disadvantages to going up against the big guys—the large, global businesses that have marketing budgets exceeding your gross income. Fortunately, there are several ways to market yourself that will turn your small scale into a strength rather than a weakness.
Collaborate with partners
Sometimes two heads are better than one. Often, your vendors have bigger marketing budgets than you do, which can mean that partnering with one of them more than doubles your audience. Talk to the vendors who sell products through your store; chances are that at least one will be willing to go in on a branding campaign that will sell both your and their messages at the same time.
Offer incentives for local customers
Have you sent out a coupon allowing local audiences to try your product at a discounted price? Do you offer special deals for people in your neighborhood? These little things will only make a minor effect on your per-item profit, but they can have a huge effect on the way your business is perceived and your likelihood of success in your field.
Talk to local media
Many small business owners consider themselves above the local news stations, but they can be an invaluable advocate in your small business’s success. Being involved with your local media not only provides free advertising, it allows you to be viewed as an expert in your field. It gets your name and brand out into the public, where you need it to be. A short news story on your business will be more effective than a huge advertising campaign, and significantly cheaper as well.
Get involved
Be involved in a local event, a local charity, or other cause. This doesn’t have to mean giving large cash donations; sometimes simply selling event tickets through your store is enough to get a little free publicity and present yourself as a hometown favorite. You can also personally take part in local activities such as walkathons and holiday celebrations. Things like this reinforce that you are first and foremost a member of your community.
Sponsor local events
This may not be an option for cash-strapped new businesses, but as you grow and expand you should consider sponsoring local events. This will give people the impression that you are both local and involved. There is no better way to build an image of being a local, community-oriented business.
As you can see, marketing yourself locally doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive, especially if you follow the five new ways to build your brand online. Because buying local is the latest trend, a little goes a long way in this regard. By emphasizing your local roots, you can find success both in your community and beyond.
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