Small business marketing is important, but with a small business budget, you want to find that happy medium of having effective marketing and not paying too much. While taking out a big billboard, for instance, may work for the bigger guys, this could be out of the small business budget, so how can you get the same exposure? With a little creativity and proper marketing strategy, a small business can have just the opportunity to be seen as often as brands that are much larger.
Focus On Your Content
Your content, whether it’s in the form of a blog, or a Tweet, or a Facebook post, really matters. Publishing great content that is representative to your brand and focuses on the reader is one of the best ways to use the internet to your marketing advantage. In today’s internet age, the power of a simple share is invaluable, and it’s only quality content that audiences find valuable enough to share. When writing and publishing your content, thing to yourself first “Would I read this? What would I get from it?” and go from there, and don’t fear having a little fun in the process.
Content doesn’t solely come from social media marketing or blogging, it also comes from your website as well. A well-built website with quality content that is readable and easy to understand will keep those who find your website happily clicking, rather than sending them to a competitor who has a more “professional” internet presence. The best part about using quality content to market your brand and expand your internet presence is that it costs very little aside from some thoughtful writing and creativity, which will please your small business budget.
Don’t Be Afraid To Use Images
A picture says a thousand words, and for this reason, they should always be used in your small business marketing. Infographics, for instance, are highly shareable and informative, and if you have someone to design them, they’re perfect for spreading across all social media platforms as well as your business website. If infographics don’t fit your small business or marketing needs, regular photos will do just fine, and you may want to consider branching out to Instagram for simple and effective sharing across all social media platforms. With Instagram, an image based social media platform, you can simultaneously share to Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Swarm each time you share to Instagram, allowing 1 click to market to your entire social media audience at once using any number of interesting images.
Give LinkedIn A Little Attention
Most professionals and small businesses treat LinkedIn as something of an afterthought in terms of contributing to the site, but it really shouldn’t be overlooke. Sure, you build your profile and create your connections, but where the marketing goldmine really lies is in contributing to various LinkedIn groups and sharing your blogs or other information on the site for others to read. Especially if your small business works in the B2B sector, the content you contribute to your LinkedIn presence can really garner you just the attention you want to receive for your business marketing.
Customer Referrals And Promotions
There are few small business marketing techniques as tried, tested, and classic as customer referral programs and promotions, and nothing is going to get visitors to share your content or your website quite like the opportunity to benefit from doing so themselves. Word of mouth to and from those who know each other is a really powerful tool, and this is just what these promotions and referrals work to create – an organic way for people to share content with those who trust them and their choices on products, services, or whatever else your small business may have to offer.
For contests or promotions, your swag doesn’t need to break the bank, and sometimes even the offer of a small promo item related to your business using an online raffle can garner you hundreds of new leads or followers. Once they’re following you, hit them with quality shareable content and really see how your audiences begin to grow!
Marketing your small business in a small business budget friendly way really isn’t difficult, and you’ll see it only takes some creativity and knowing your audience well. With these few tips, you’ll be able to get yourself the attention and the leads that you need without ever breaking your bank.
