A strategy is everything in a business.
Different marketing strategies for a small business need to be learned, applied and implemented in order to keep your business thriving, handle competition and reach success.
Huge businesses often discuss and improve on their marketing strategy on a regular basis.
Your business’s marketing strategy can help you land more customers buying your products and it can also help you with having a competitive advantage.
If your marketing strategy is not strong enough to handle competition, your business may fail. But if your marketing strategy is solid and can compete with businesses even bigger than yours, then you are doing the right thing.
A marketing strategy is one of the most important factors in the failure or success of a company.
As a small company that is just starting, your marketing strategy needs to help you get recognized by your prospect customers and clients. Your business’s strategy needs to be strong enough to keep your business growing and thriving, regardless of your competition.
You, as the business owner, need to be willing to think outside the box, be creative and strong-willed. Some businesses also hire marketing specialists for this purpose.
Here are different marketing strategies that you can try for your own business.
1. Social Media Marketing
This is probably the most common marketing strategy. We know that there are lots of people who are using social media on a regular basis; some use it daily.
As a small business, this is the type of marketing that should be on your list. As an emerging or established business, you need to have access to social media and be able to reach out to the public.
You can also find leads from social media, prospective clients and customers. In order to grow your business, social media is a powerful tool if used properly. Consider utilizing social media platforms in order to gain more customers.
2. Content Marketing
It is undeniable that content marketing is an effective marketing strategy. There are many businesses that are growing and have become successful as a result of using content marketing. When you have a business and you have your website, content marketing strategy is your partner.
You should produce quality content that is engaging, informative and relevant in order to connect with your target audience.
The same concept as with social media marketing applies: with people researching and searching online, they are able to find your content through the correct implementation of SEO.
This can give you the opportunity to grow your business and also give you the potential to develop business relationships that can last a lifetime if done properly.
3. Email Marketing
Another way to reach out and promote your products and services is through email marketing. Set up a subscription form on your website where you can ask your customers to sign up to your email list, so that they can receive updates and news about your business. In addition, consider offering your readers a free bonus for subscribing, i.e. an ebook, tutorial or discount on their first purchase.
Many big companies and small businesses continue to thrive because of email marketing. You would want to have a solid list of people who can become your patrons.
As you send them relevant and informative updates and news about your business, consider offering them special discounts from time to time, too. Email marketing is said to be one of the earliest forms of (digital) marketing strategies that is still very effective today.
4. Web Branding
For a business, whether offline or online, branding is important. This is how your future investors and customers will know about your business. It is important that you have a website, but in addition to having a website, web branding is also important.
Web branding strategy is when your presence on the web is known by the public. Usually, web branding is associated with credibility. If you are recognized online (and offline), the public will usually know that your business is credible, thus they will trust you.
Winning awards, being recognized by prominent people or being a member of trade associations can also assist your business in getting recognized and being more visible to the public. This opportunity can give you consistent and frequent interactions with prospective customers and develop long-term business relationships.
5. PR Marketing Strategy
When you have a PR, it means your business’ goal is to help the public. Your blog is a form of PR marketing strategy wherein you reach out to the public.
In addition to your blogs, you can also host events where the public can join or access your business personally.
Public relation is one of the most strategic approaches when you want to become visible to everyone. It also helps your image and credibility.
6. Advertising
One of the oldest strategies in the book is advertising. Whether traditional or digital advertising, it is still one of the most successful marketing strategies. The more you advertise your business, the more you are likely to be recognized and become visible to your target audience.
Today, there are different forms of advertising available to you and your business. You can utilize social media to advertise, create a website to advertise, use PPC, or even advertise on TV, your local radio and the good old newspaper. Whatever method you choose, advertising can help you reach out to more people.
7. SEO
If you have blogs on your website, you need to utilize SEO correctly in order to reach your target audience and increase traffic to your website.
The power of SEO should not be disregarded because it is one of the most useful strategies in reaching out and gaining traffic.
Having your content optimized and landing your articles on the top rank or the first page of search engine results will give you a high probability of visits. When this happens, you will gain new followers and traffic faster. This also gives the opportunity for them to sign up to your email list, as discussed above.
8. Guerrilla Marketing
Guerrilla Marketing might not be a very well-known marketing strategy but it can be very effective. It is said to be one of the oldest forms of marketing and was commonly used before the internet was developed.
Generally, you don’t need a huge budget to implement guerrilla marketing and it can be a fun and creative way to promote your business. If this sparked your interest, why not read this article to give you some ideas on how you can implement this marketing strategy to grow your business.
In a business, utilizing strategies is an important method to reach more people. When your marketing strategy works, you will not be invisible anymore; instead you will have solid followers that can help you keep your business thriving.
I’d love to hear from you which marketing strategies you are utilizing or are considering implementing in your business. Leave a comment below or contact me here.
And if you’d like to do further reading, you might be interested in some of these blog posts:
- Why Do You Need Email Marketing for a Small Business?
- Helpful Email List Building Tips for Beginners
- What Are the Best Email Autoresponders You Can Use?
- The Pros and Cons of Internet Marketing for a Small Business
- Advantages of Social Media Marketing for a Small Business
- What is an SEO Keyword? [And The Things You Should Know]
- Some of the Best Keyword Research Tools for SEO that You Can Use
Edith
Sources:
appinstitute.com/small-business-marketing/
blog.capterra.com/top-marketing-strategies-for-small-business/
lyfemarketing.com/blog/marketing-strategies-for-small-businesses/
justcreative.com/2018/06/06/marketing-strategies-small-business/