What are some marketing strategies for my small business? How would you market a small business? How do you promote your small business? How do I advertise small businesses for free? These are just a sample of the frequently asked marketing strategy questions we receive from our small business clients. That’s why we have created our top 7 small business marketing tips for you to use to help answer the above and more on how your business can grow.
7 Tips for Small Business Marketing
1. Know your audience
Understanding who your target is key when creating a successful marketing strategy. We have created a handy infographic for you to reference when you start to dive into learning about your ideal customer and how they prefer to be communicated with.
2. Utilize Direct Mail
Did you think direct mail was a thing of the past? Well, think again! 92% of Canadians read their direct mail, 79% of Canadians save their direct mail, and 71% of Canadians share their direct mail with someone they know. Using direct mail as a key part of your marketing plan will help increase awareness and convert potential customers into revenue. Even more, direct mail has advanced and evolved in recent years to meet the growing needs of businesses and consumers. Direct mail now incorporates cutting-edge technology like QR codes that bridges the physical with the digital.
3. Promote on Social Media
Social Media is a powerful tool for businesses to connect with their audience. It is a way to communicate with your followers and gain new ones. Creating and responding to questions and discussions on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are a great way to engage with your followers and boost your presence. Having troubles on what to start posting? Download our small business marketing calendar to begin the brainstorming sessions on your first social media post!
4. Create an email campaign to nurture leads
Congratulations! You’ve converted a website visitor into a lead, but this doesn’t mean they are ready to buy yet. It’s important to stay top of mind and move them closer to a purchasing decision. Here are some ways you can ensure you are communicating with your leads without coming across as spam:
- Say Hello to new subscribers with a welcome email
- Keep your customers in the loop of your small business with a monthly newsletter
- Send out the latest specials right to their inbox
- Stay on top of abandoned carts and prompt action
5. Optimize your local Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
When you need to search for a dentist, pizzeria or plumber how do you find one? Most times you probably type into Google, “Dentist near me”, or “local pizzeria”. Your customers are no different. Most times when looking for a product or service you will use Google to find your answer. That’s why it’s important to have your local SEO optimized fully so when potential customers are searching for products/services around them, your business will be one of the first results that they can choose. You can do this by:
- Creating a Google My Business Account
- Updating your contact information on your website
- Ensuring your website is mobile-friendly
- Inserting keywords that people search for into your website’s blog
6. Start a blog to educate consumers on your product/service
Nothing beats being the industry leader or the go-to for information and advice on your specific product/service. This can be done in a variety of ways such as sharing local industry gatherings, news, or educational content to your blog. A blog is also a great way to insert keywords and improve your organic search engine rankings! Remember, write for humans and consider SEO – not the other way around!
7. Keep track of how your strategy is performing
Understanding how your marketing efforts are working is crucial for determining how to market your small business. We believe that measurement is the key to not only prove the value of your direct mail and digital campaigns but also for optimizing how your marketing dollars are spent to achieve the greatest return on your investment. Our Ultimate Guide to Campaign Tracking is a great resource to learn how to start.
Start marketing your small business today
Still, have questions on how to create a marketing plan that markets your brand/services for the highest impact and results? Contact your local Direct Response Media Group Marketing Consultant today to discover how you can grow your business, today.
Comments