When you're marketing a small business the main thing is to remain visible. So how do you go about this?
Essentially, you can have some great marketing, but what's the point of having it if no one even looks at it? Keep in mind that someone may hear about you once but if you disappear after that one time how are they supposed to find you again?
Initial visibility is important, especially if you do it through networking, presentations, business cards, and a website; however, people forget sometimes to keep in contact with their customers and remain visible.
The most important thing in business is to have your customers remember who you are. Whatever you're selling, make sure your customers think of you first when they need something in the future.
The best way to create a marketing strategy that helps people remember you is to literally stay in touch with clients. Constantly reminding your customers that you are out there will help them remember you. If you keep in contact as the years go by, this will be beneficial to both sides.
The best way to keep in contact is by offering valuable information to your customers. Most small businesses forget this important fact. You have to offer something of value to customers. This is the only reason they will want to come back to you later. Don't have someone call just to check in every few weeks; yes, you will stay visible but this doesn't really do the trick.
Luckily, providing valuable information to your customers on a consistent basis is actually easier than you might think. Writing articles about your industry and offering information from your expertise is a great way to give something of value to your customer and have them coming back for more. Providing tips, information, and other resources, will also help build a trusting relationship between your company and the customer.
Sometimes creating valuable content is a good way to connect to your customer by providing a service that they need. They won't have to buy anything to take advantage of your content, but at the same time, they will probably turn into a paying customer by buying one of your products once again.
Staying visible is one of the most important, and easy, ways to keep clients coming back to your service or product.
Perhaps you can put your customers on a newsletter or mailing list, and keep in touch with them regularly in that way. You can come up with many different ways to stay visible that don't cost a lot of money and are very effective.
In fact, the Internet and online marketing have made it possible to keep in contact with customers even more easily. Send them valuable information through a newsletter or through a mailing list. Every week your brand name and logo will arrive in their mailbox with free information they can use in their daily lives.
This type of visibility works wonders. It's great for keeping in touch with customers in a way that is not too intrusive or pushy. And it doesn't cost a lot of money to implement. Give it a try and see how your business will continue to thrive if you do so.
In the end, visibility is the most important part of keeping customers and having them return to you in the future.
This article is about using consistent, free (or cheap) marketing strategies that you can start using today to make a difference in your business.
The Goal of marketing your business on the internet is to get consistent traffic to your site from your target market.
The three key words to remember about internet marketing are Consistent, Targeted, and Smart.
~Consistent marketing practices will help you build a trusted presence on the web, and catch people who visit the same sites regularly. New people are always suspect, and you may not start to get results until you've been around long enough for people to trust you.
~A Targeted strategy will focus on the type of person who is most likely to be interested in your product or service. If your ideal customer is a truck driver between 40 and 50 years old, you should not be marketing to young single moms on Myspace.
~Smart marketing means using the tools the big kids use. Do some research to discover what the successful marketers are doing to get crazy high traffic, and do that. My mentor Walter Hailey always told me that "It's easier to copy genius than to create mediocrity."
It will take time to create the kind of web presence that will generate consistent traffic (and revenue) for your business, but as long as your effort is targeted, consistent, and smart, you will attract quality customers without spending thousands of dollars or hundreds of hours of your time.
Let's get down to specifics - what can I start doing in my business tomorrow that will put me on the path to generating more traffic for my site and putting more money in my pocket?
I will assume that you already have a website for your business, and a professional email address with a unique url (not generic like yourname@gmail.com or business@yahoo.com). If you don't have one yet, you can get one free from Google. Your next step is getting your business name, image, and content onto the web where your target market will find it and become a customer/client.
There are three main categories of marketing strategies to investigate as you are creating a marketing plan: Networking, Blogging/Article Writing, and Advertising.
1. Social or Business Networking. Become a part of a networking community where you can build your own profile or web page and interact with others in the community. There are a ton of networking sites on the internet, some of which are mostly for socializing about niche topics, others are more focused on doing business. Choose 3-5 networks to join, and make sure all of them are connected to each other, and back to your website.
Here are a few to get you started: Facebook, Myspace, Squidoo, Twitter, LinkedIn, Direct Matches, Shmoozii, Biznik
2. Blogging and Article Writing. They go together like peanuts and raisins. Every article you write for the blog should also be published on the web to as many article directories as possible, with your link included in the resource box. The more places your link appears on the web, the better. Update the blog frequently, put an RSS feed on your website and social networking profiles, and tell your friends about it. Search engines love fresh, new content that matches keywords, so including keywords in the blog content can help searchers find you.
Google's Blogspot is a great way to get started if you have never had a blog before. Wordpress, Squarespace, Typepad, and Thoughts.com are easy to use, have professional looking templates, and can be set up in a few hours.
As for Article Directories, you can submit by hand, but I wouldn't recommend it. People getting real results with article writing have an automated service that submits articles to hundreds of directories automatically. I have found two: SubmitYOURArticle (web-based) and Article Submitter Platinum (Software). They are not free, but they are worth it if you choose article writing as one of your marketing strategies.
3. Advertising using Adwords, keywords, pay-per-click, or traffic exchanges. Although it is less personal, advertising gives you access to a vast number of people for a relatively small cost - and most sites have free trials or sign-up bonuses that can help you create an ad that works before you start paying for it. Use the same keywords that are on your website and blog in your advertisements, and search engines will like you even more.
My short list of Advertising sites would include: Adland Pro, Bananapile, ReaLook, Spiderjump, and HitsFrenzy. Also look at Clickable - a service that can manage advertising campaigns on Google, Yahoo, MSN, and others simultaneously.
Using a few of the services from all three of the above categories in tandem will create a tight web to capture your customers and send them to your site. As long as you update Consistently, Target your campaigns accurately, and be Smart about where you spend your money and time, you can see results in a little as a few weeks and secure your long-term success.
Best of luck with your research, stick with it, and remember that even in the tedious moments, owning your own business is so much better than going to work at 9am in a job that doesn't fulfill you.
Both Shonda Miles & Colin Turner are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Shonda Miles has sinced written about articles on various topics from Blogging, Marketing and Online Marketing. Shonda Miles is a small business coach and consultant of . Her main focus i. Shonda Miles's top article generates over 2900 views. to your Favourites.
Colin Turner has sinced written about articles on various topics from Internet Marketing, Network Marketing and Marketing Tips. Colin Turner has been an entrepreneur since the age of 17, and is a regular blogger and writer about home based businesses. He has become a mentor and trusted source for. Colin Turner's top article generates over 720 views. to your Favourites.