Small businesses often struggle with knowing when and how to market themselves. They have an exemplary product or service, but no one knows about it. And with limited time, know-how-and budget, a full blown marketing strategy can seem out of reach for the average small business owner.
But it doesn’t have to be a massively complex undertaking. Here are four tips to help with getting your marketing underway.
Maximise the marketing you’re already doing.
It’s extremely rare that a company will be doing no marketing at all. A website, business cards, uniforms, vehicle design, signage, and the like all qualify as marketing materials. It’s worth making these as high-quality as possible to promote your business. Having a logo which looks professional, a business card that communicates clearly, and signage which engages with your potential customers are all steps to marketing your small business. These are too often overlooked but are vitally important.
Work out a plan and a budget.
Your marketing plan doesn’t have to be a vast tome which has contingencies for every eventuality over the next decade. In fat, it shouldn’t be something weighty – you want your strategy to be agile and adjustable as you figure out what’s working and what your end goal is. But you do need some kind of plan otherwise you could be throwing money in the wrong direction.
Once you have your plan in place, be sure to measure whether it’s working or not – keep a record of your chosen metrics so you’re not sitting six months down the track unsure of whether your marketing plan has had any effect.
Invest in your website.
How many times have you searched for a local business and come up with a website which is poorly designed, hard to use, doesn’t have the information you want, or worst of all - doesn’t exist?
Your website doesn’t have to have all the bells and whistles, but it does have to look good, be well designed, and make it easy to find the information your customers need: Who you are, what you do, how much you cost (if you have set prices) and how to contact you – with a phone number and email address.
And in 2016 it’s more important than ever to make sure your website is mobile compatible. People searching for what you offer from their smartphones or tablets may decide to bypass your company if they’re forced to squint and resize constantly.
Target relationship marketing.
Building relationships with your existing customers is essential. Keep a good database of their contact details so you can keep them up-to-date with your company’s news, notify them of new products and specials, and send reminders about updates and servicing. Retaining new customers is easier than convincing new ones, but keeping your existing customers happy takes a little effort. However, it’s definitely worth it – a recommendation for your company from a friend is many times more convincing to a potential customer than any sales pitch.