Not every small business has the funds to hire marketing professionals. You must also serve as your marketing department if you run your business independently. Thankfully, this is easier than it sounds! Plenty of digital tools and resources can help you learn about marketing and implement cost-effective marketing strategies without spending all your time on this one aspect of your business. Here are some tips from Craig Saphin Consulting to help you get the hang of small business marketing!
Identify Your Target Market
First and foremost, you need to identify your target market. The target market defines who you’ll be targeting with your marketing material and is one of the most critical elements of your marketing plan. Knowing your target audience involves understanding what characteristics they share, where they spend their time online, how you can best reach them, and why they might want to buy from you. MyBusiness.com explains that it’s important to draw this information directly from your existing customers instead of making assumptions.
Learn About SEO
Good search engine optimization (SEO) will make your website more visible and drive more organic search traffic—unpaid traffic—to your website. Implementing SEO strategies on your website is a great way to market your business passively without spending much money. If you’re unfamiliar with SEO, don’t hesitate to outsource this work to a professional. Working with a Perth SEO services company will allow you to create SEO-optimized content through keyword research and optimized on-page elements such as meta tags, internal links, and headings.
Select Your Marketing Channels
Marketing channels are online or offline, free or paid platforms through which your business can communicate with your target audience. These are the avenues you will use to deliver your messaging. Some examples include email, blogging, social media, and working with influencers. Remember to consider offline, traditional marketing channels, such as billboards, community bulletin boards, and networking at community events.
Define Your Brand Message
Your messaging is how your business communicates with your customers and shares the values of your products in marketing content. You can think of your messaging as the key messages and statements you use to address your target market’s most pressing problems and present them with solutions through your products or services. Co-Pilot Marketing suggests asking yourself what exactly it is that you’re selling, focusing on the benefits customers can expect rather than the nitty gritty mechanics of your business.
Evaluate Your Marketing Outcomes
As a one-person marketing team, you likely have limited time and resources for your marketing efforts. Evaluating your marketing outcomes allows you to focus your efforts on the most effective strategies and tactics, maximizing the impact of your limited resources. Analyzing your marketing outcomes will also help you continuously improve your strategy without a team around to bounce ideas off of. At the same time, tracking your marketing ROI will ensure every dollar you spend on marketing is worthwhile. Consider hiring a marketing consultant to provide an objective and unbiased perspective on your marketing strategies and help you identify areas for improvement.
Marketing your business as a solopreneur doesn’t have to be impossible. You can build a successful marketing strategy without onboarding experts by taking the time to identify your target market, learn about SEO, select the right marketing channels, and define your brand message. While it may seem challenging to manage all of these tasks independently, digital tools, online resources, and external consultants will help ensure your marketing efforts are approachable and successful.
Are you looking for guidance as you grow your small business? Contact Craig Saphin Consulting so we can discuss your business challenges and find solutions to take your venture to the next level!
Contributed by Chelsea Lamb Businesspop.net | chelsea@businesspop.net