Imran
Rashid Khan
Small business owners are
increasingly showing concerns about effectively marketing their businesses.
Small business owners should take knowledgeable actions, which may seem small
now, but will prove to be a major factor in the stability and growth of their
businesses.
Here are six (6) simple tips
for building a better marketing strategy for your small business, one that will
put your customers first and your business second to none.
1. Develop a Marketing Budget.
Customer attraction and
retention are the two most pressing concerns for small business owners. While
few of them spend minimal amounts on marketing their business, majority of
small business owners don’t spend any money on marketing.
Small business owners should
put aside a flexible budget to tackle new marketing opportunities and ideas so
as to better position their business. Consumers are increasingly researching
products or services to make purchases, so return-on-investment (ROI) should be
the key factor by which to measure your marketing efforts. Business which spend
very less or nothing on their marketing will only hurt their bottom line. Small
businesses should make smart investments in marketing so they are better positioned
to attract customers now and in the future.
2. Build a Website.
A website is the essential
component for any business to have an online virtual presence. It is through
your business website that your current and potential customers will find you
and connect with you. Whether you are building you business website now, or
looking to improve the one you already have keep the following things in mind:
- Your business contact information (address, phone number, email, etc) should be promptly displayed on each page of your website, not just in your Contact or About Us page. Make sure that your business contact information is consistent and updated on all online business listing sites.
- Enlist the help of a professional website designer to build a visually appealing and easy to navigate website. Your website should be SEO optimized.
- Keep your website content current and updated so that it is relevant to those visiting your site and help in higher ranking of your site in search engine results. Update your site with promotions, offerings and introducing new products and services. Use analytical tools to find out from where your visitors are coming from, and how they are finding you. This will help you in improving the customer experience of your visitors, ensuring return visitors.
3. Make Your Website Mobile-Optimized.
Increasingly consumers are
using Smartphones and tablets to search for local businesses and to shop for
products and services, so ensure that your website is mobile-optimized or
responsive. Ignoring this opportunity will diminish the chances for securing
business from these visitors.
4. SUBSCRIBE
TO LOCAL LISTINGS.
Get your business listed in
the local listing, and make sure it is in the appropriate category. Make your
listing accurate and complete. Ensuring that your business listing is complete
and accurate plays an important role in determining whether your customers
reviewing your listing can move forward with contacting you and making a
purchase. Include business address, phone number, website address, email
address, social media channel addresses, photos, offerings, etc. This will help
your customers to get as much information as they need about your business
before making a decision.
5. MANAGE
TESTIMONIALS AND REVIEWS.
Before the online
revolution, consumers placed their trust on word-to-mouth testimonials, same
way online reviews and testimonials play an important role in driving consumers
purchasing behavior. Small business owners should ensure that their customers
can reach them directly through varied means. Regular monitoring should be in
place of the reviews. All reviews especially the negatives one should be
replied promptly in a professional way with focus to remedy the issue. After
every transaction or services provided, an email should be sent to your
customer asking them to leave feedback on your website or your business social
media channel.
6. BUILD
A SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE.
With the advent of online
social media platforms, consumers are spending more and more time on social
media not only interacting with their family and friends, but also with popular
brands. Small business owners are increasingly engaging their loyal and
potential customers through social media channels. Before jumping onto the
bandwagon, small business owners should take in to account the following
things:
- Begin by selecting which social media platform will be more appropriate for your business. Facebook and Twitter provide strong platforms to reach your customers with offerings, promotions, and the like. These platforms also have the ability to engage in one-to-one conversations with their customers answering to feedbacks, queries, and complaints. For businesses dealing in clothing, furniture, art, and other kinds of designing Pintrest can provide a platform for sharing visually their offerings. And sites like YouTube can help businesses to post ‘how-to-do’ videos.
- Once your business social media channel(s) have been created, share the information. Keep updating it with relevant information. Include compelling photos, videos, and other visual content so that your followers keep coming back and stay connected. Your business social media channel(s) are an extension of your online presence, respond to any inquiries, questions, and other comments promptly.
FINAL WORDS
Small business owners should
measure results from their marketing initiatives. They should find out how well
their marketing strategies have worked, and what else they can or should be
doing. Develop a reporting mechanism that will enable you to see the impact of
the marketing activities on your business. Soon you will start seeing the
benefits of your business marketing activities at work – the ability of your
business to retain and attract customers.
