One of the most common challenges that new businesses face is having to operate on a shoe-string budget. It can be difficult to place your product or service in front of people when you simply don’t have the means to. Fortunately, there are quite a few ways to market your small business without breaking the bank. The following information will consist of both tech and non-tech strategies that can be implemented.
Email Marketing
If you know anything about email marketing, then you understand its potential power. Email marketing is a great way to start exposing your company to the masses. The great thing about it is that it costs almost nothing to send out a mass email campaign. Therefore, it is no wonder why it’s a favorite of small businesses. However, what’s the point of a cheap marketing strategy if it doesn’t work, right? Although email marketing won’t get people that come to your site to show up at your door instantly, it can help you obtain valuable data: what offers or communications do they interact with most? What pages do they visit and what part of your email do they click? Remember that the more a contact interacts with your email (opens, clicks, etc.), the more likely they are to become customers or to buy from you again. A set of names that are no doubt valuable for a small company looking for potential customers.
However, remember that federal regulations require that you only send marketing emails to people who expect to hear from you. You can send email to current customers, or people who have given you their email address as a way to tell you it’s ok to contact them. You can find more information here.
Use a Referral System
Finding the right people to market to can be very difficult and expensive for a company to do. However, there is a proven strategy that can bring you loyal and long-term customers to your doorsteps. What exactly is this strategy? It’s referral marketing. By implementing a referral system, companies can begin using their most powerful asset, their customers. The challenge here is getting your customers to refer to your company. You can encourage them to do so by offering incentives, such as a discount on their total purchase, advanced notice on future promotions, or offering free shipping, just to name a few.
Did you know OFFIX has a referral system that offers cash incentives of up to $750 for referring a new customer? Contact us to learn more.
Use Social Media
Social media for the past few years has been the number one medium that small companies are choosing to market their products on. Why is this the case? Social media not only provides you with a large audience, but it costs almost nothing to promote your products. In addition, the longer you are present on social media, the most accurate your base begins to be. This can be utilized to find the exact market to advertise your products. If you want to stay in touch with OFFIX on LinkedIn, for example, all you have to do is follow us!
Note that small companies should be extra cautious when using social media as anything negative that you might get yourself into will no doubt make its way to your customers.
Use Listing Sites
Listing sites are a great way to place yourself in front of people who didn’t even know your company existed, thus advertising your small business. What are listing sites exactly? Listing sites are essentially a method of listing your company information online in order for people to easily find you. The most common example is Google. Say you want Chinese food and want to find one that’s open late. Looking up these words can place your business in front of millions of people. Remember to always put as much information as possible. The number one thing people look for when they are searching for your website is your hours of operation as well as a phone number. There are many competitors to major sites such as Craiglist that don’t come with some of the downsides.
Encourage Reviews
There is nothing more concerning to a potential customer than doing business with an unknown company. They may have concerns regarding sharing their credit card information or the product they will be receiving. What is the best way to deter these negative thoughts about your company? Customer reviews is the answer. When customers see that others have had a positive experience with your company, they are more likely to go through with the purchase. You can get people to leave reviews by informing them through email after their purchase or by offering certain discounts on their next purchase. You can see an example of the review for Offix’s Gainesville location here, where you can learn what customers think of our service and copier maintenance.
Collaborate
An effective way to market your business is to collaborate with other companies or organizations. These collaborations should be conducted with non-competitive companies that compliment your business. For example, a supplement company can collaborate with a local gym company, which leads to members being exposed to their products. It is recommended that you provide them with value as well. This could be through carrying their products or providing them with a discount to carry yours.
Give a Speech
Understandably, many people hate public speaking. However, this is often the best way to expose your company to the public while networking at the same time. Providing your expertise to local schools or organizations is a great way to accomplish this goal. Don’t worry, public speaking becomes easier the more you do it, and in return, you get to be seen as an authority in your particular industry.
These strategies listed above will be able to provide you with the much-needed stream of customers to grow your business. It is also proof that you do not necessarily need the marketing budget of companies like Amazon or Apple to truly create success for yourself and your company.
