When marketing your small business, you want to make the most of the money you’ve budgeted for your advertising. Unlike large corporations who spend millions of dollars on television commercials, a small business needs to plan carefully and spend their advertising dollars wisely.
In today’s world, the Internet has become one of the most popular and low-budgeted means of advertising. However, not every business will have success with online advertising and it is not the only advertising medium a small business should use. A small business has to work harder to get their name in the public’s eye. There are several marketing strategies you can use that do not involve the typical “flyer” method of advertising and are relatively low cost.
1. Local Media
Take advantage of the media in the town or city in which you live. Local newspapers and magazines quite often will write business profiles for their paper. An ad you place in the newspaper is apt to get lost within the scope of all the others. Readers will notice a business profile. Take the first step and contact your local newspaper or a local magazine and ask if they would be interested in doing a profile on your business. Prepare yourself for this interview and focus on what your business has to offer and why they should choose your business instead of another.
2. Write Articles For The Press
Display your abilities as an expert in your field by writing articles on your business. Offer these articles to your local newspaper, trade magazines, and even, online. By teaching potential clients about all aspects of your business, you are proving yourself to them as an expert in the field. This will get your name out there in front of potential clients and market yourself as an expert in your particular line of work.
3. Sponsor Your Community
Getting involved with the community in which you live in is a major advertising strategy. For example, sponsor a local team sport, such as Little League Baseball or Hockey. Soon you’ll have ten or more children running around with your business name on their back. When their parent’s are bragging, they’ll mention your business name when telling their friends and relatives what team their child is on.
4. Collect Written Testimonials
When a client states you’ve done a good job for them, don’t be afraid to ask them for a written testimonial. This can be as simple as a quick thank you note. These written testimonials should be added to your marketing materials, such as your web site, your company brochure, or company newsletter. Testimonials will add the trust factor to your business.
5. Unique Special Offer
Create an offer that no other business has. This could be as simple as offering something for free. For example, if your business is service oriented, you could offer a free three-day trial or for a cleaning service offer the first three-hours free with a written contract for your services. Every consumer likes to feel they are getting something for nothing.
6. Encourage Referrals
Set up a referral system. Offer your existing clients something free for referring someone else to your business. When applying this method of advertising make the referral system action oriented. The client will get their “free†item or service, only if their referral either purchases something or signs a contract for your service.
7. Package Insert Program
Another strategy proven to be effective is the Package Insert Program. Take a look at some of the business around you that are targeting the same market as you. Team up with them. When you send a package to your clients, insert a flyer or brochure from the other business. When they send a package out to their clients, they will be inserting the flyer or brochure from your business. This can work with both businesses each sending or you can pay another business to send them out with their information. Regardless of how this is done, the cost will be cheaper than a direct mailing and you’ll be targeting the market you’re after. It’s all about leverage!
When you have a small business, advertising dollars need to be spent wisely. Therefore, it is important that with each advertising means you use, you set up a tracking system to monitor each advertising method used. This will allow you to analyze the success or failure of each approach you utilized. The outcome of each advertising campaign you enlist will help you to determine the best way to spend your advertising dollars.
Some great tips. I have been thinking about sponsoring a sports team. Good Job.
Thank you for the information. As a small business owner just starting out I have limited advertising dollars to spend and need to get the most for my time and money.
Yours truly
Lori A. Metcalf
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Thank you for the great tips. We are in the business of finding appropriate care homes for seniors in California. Marketing is always a concern financially, with a limited budget, we need to make the right choices. Email us at [email protected] if you have any leads and we can work out a shared commission. Good luck to all the small businesses.
In a small business, advertising in a niche will be help you more in term of ROI. Your tips is useful but I think that will have more ideas than this.
I wanted to write and tell you that I very much appreciated the advice that you have given. I read you blog quite a while ago while doing some research on small business advertising. I even marked your site as a favorite because of the ideas that I got from reading it.
At this point I don’t think that my business is even big enough to be called a small business, I would look at it more like a hobby than anything. I’m a photographer who has been looking to make some money by doing something that I truly enjoy.
I was doing some advertising, and I learned the hard way that I wasn’t doing the right type of advertising for the area I live in. By reading your article I learned, in a way, to approach things differently. I guess you could say I learned to think outside the box. The type of advertising that I was doing wasn’t producing any clients. So here is what I did.
I’ve been going to our local fair grounds for the last couple years during the annual “Wedding Showcase”. I would usually rent a space, set up a table, have my brochures setting out for people to grab, and be there to answer any questions that one might ask. This year, I took the next step and prepared my information in handy advertising pamphlets and passed them out in a bag with my logo on it. The bag also had a few samples of my work. But here is what I think really set me apart from other vendors there. The building that the showcase is in is a rather big building. And I’ve now learned that a trick to getting clients is to be easily noticed. So I purchased advertising blimp from http://www.usablimp.com and hung it high above my station. I asked a few people during out conversations, what it was that made them come back to see me and they said “I could see you balloon that said you were a photographer.” I really believe that my advertising blimp helped get me noticed and I may have never thought of it had I not read your blog and learned that there are many different ways to advertise.
So, I write this comment in hopes that it may give other small business owners ideas of their own. I have already received more calls about my photography services than I did in the last 2 years combined… The blimp that I purchased has my logo on it, and is very durable. It works great in dark buildings as well (just like the one I was in) because it has internal lighting. So thank you!!
Approaching your local TV station and ask them to feature your company in their segment, it might cost some money but the exposure you are getting would be very good.
7 excellent marketing tips.
Being in several different businesses over the years, I can confidently say that getting your name out there is paramount to your success. Unfortunately, underestimating the importance of a good marketing campaign is one trap that many new entrepreneurs fall into. You can have the greatest service or product in the world, but you need to get your name out there and convince people to buy.