Small Business Marketing Tactics
We May Be Small But We Still Need To
Plan Our Tactics
It May NOT Be Doing What Comes Naturally.
For some, small business marketing tactics don’t come naturally.Those of us who haven't been in business before, it seems that there is some sort of Field of Dreams myth going around; “If you build it, they will come.” While this may be true in Hollywood, in real life people are a lot more fickle and will not frequent your business just because it's there. You need to market it silly. "What, market my business... that costs money" Yes it does, but the truth of the matter is that no one will come to your business if you don't let them know it’s there. Especially if your business is exclusively online. Have you checked Google to make sure your site is even showing up? What about ads, have you placed any? If you've answered no to these questions, it's time to get your marketing plan together. There are several tactics you can use, whether your business is online or not, to help build your customer base. Let's explore some of these in more detail.
Online Advertising.
Internet based marketing
is a very good small business marketing tactic.Your company website should be simple, search engine friendly & optimized. You can hire SEO (Search Engine Optimization) copywriters to help you with this task. You can contribute with some articles about your industry that people will find interesting. Next, a company blog is a good way to teach your customers about your business. When you have a project, post it on your blog and take them through it step-by-step so you can involve them in the entire experience instead of just showing them an end-product. Feature an employee monthly if you have any. Post at least one small thing every day. Other online small business marketing tactics include
craigslist
which is very popular, though now you are required to pay a slight monthly fee. You can also try
kijiji
which is a free classified board, and anywhere else where you can put an ad up for free. Learn all about Google AdWords and give them a try. It’s a great experience just learning. These are some of the most cost-effective things you can do for your business.
Traditional Methods
From using
print for marketing
to
low budget advertising
to
direct response marketing,
there are many ways to advertise your brick and mortar business.TV and radio commercials are popular but expensive. Have some business cards printed, start attending local networking events and pass out a stack of them while you're there. Don't forget about advertising in your local paper or contacting a flyer delivery service to help you pass out ads door-to-door. Another popular option are partnerships or advertising co-ops.
Forming strategic alliances
with non competing businesses that share the same customer profile as you is a great way to go. And... always, always, always test & measure each strategy so you know what's working and discard those that aren't. Whatever small business marketing tactics you decide, be sure to create a system and give your methods time to work.
Modern Net-Wit:
"I like pigs. Dogs look up at us. Cats look down at us. Pigs treat us as equals" ...................................................................Winston Churchill
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