Marketing is integral to the success of your business.
It’s how you:
Let customers know your business exists.
Explain what it is you do.
And educate your customers on how you can help them.
Marketing is imperative for expanding your reach, growing your business and ultimately putting more cash in your coffers.
But despite its monumental importance, far too many small businesses totally bail out on the whole marketing bailiwick…
And the #1 reason why: They don’t think they can afford it.
Effective marketing, however, doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, the limitations of a smaller budget can actually work in your favor.
It forces you to get creative.
To bust out of your typical “box.”
And really focus on developing a marketing strategy borne out of achieving your business goals.
Not just throwing money at a situation and hoping something sticks.
Making a big marking splash on small budget is all about leveraging your non-financial assets…
Working Harder (And Smarter)
Don’t have a big budget backing you up? Well then, you need to leverage your other most precious commodity: time.
Investing time into content marketing, i.e. creating a blog and publishing useful content directed at your target audience, has proven it can bring your ideal customers right to your front door!
Take, for example, Marcus Sheridan of River Pools & Spas. When the economy took a dump, it nearly sent his business right down the crapper with the rest of the decimated real estate market. With no budget for anything, let alone expensive advertising, Marcus started publishing content that answered burning questions and addressed legitimate concerns of real-world pool buyers.
In no time flat, River Pools & Spas jump to the top of Google search results of pool installations, and remains their today thanks to a steady flow of relevant content.
I can tell you from first-hand experience, managing a blog is no small task. But in terms of bang for your (very small) buck it’s an effective marketing tool the produces RESULTS!
And the cost of setting up a blog is minimal – you can register a domain and set up WordPress blog (that can double as your business website) for pennies a day. Plus, little to no technical savvy is required. You just have to put in the time to research what your customers want to know and create the content.
Be Real (Not “Produced”)
It used to be that you had to drop big money for print and display advertising or layout tons of cash for professionally produced radio of TV commercials.
Nowadays, however, all you need is a website (which as mentioned about you can put together on your own for shoe string with basically zero technical facility). WordPress covers you on the website front, giving you a platform to promote your business to the whole world (not just the select few who happen see your print or billboard ad).
And a cellphone video camera is the only tool you need to go “viral,” making your business the next YouTube sensation – a marketing achieve 10x more powerful and far reaching than any TV commercial.
Flaunt Convention
Old Spice produced and series of on the spot produced YouTube videos based on random incoming Tweets from the public at large, staring the actor from the popular Old Spice TV spots.
Red Bull sponsored and filmed Felix Baumgartner’s free fall from the stratosphere.
Blentec created the “Will it Blend” YouTube video series, in which the company’s president “blends” just about everything but food. Cellphones to golf balls and marbles to an even iPad all go the “blended!”
As you can imagine, all of these stunts went viral – big time!
On a smaller scale, Marcus Sheridan dared to do something unheard of in the pool installation business: he published pricing on River Pools & Spas, blog.
If you really want to stand out in the marketplace, give whatever flaunting convention looks like in your business a shot.
Find Your Tribe
There’s a community or website or at least a Facebook page dedicated to just about everything these days. Do a little research and find out where your Tribe hangs out – and make a connection.
If you can’t find your tribe, perhaps it’s time to start it…
Consistency is Key (to Effective Marketing)
Created some great content to promote your biz?
Awesome!
Now keep it up.
And keeping pushing it out: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, you name it – as long as it makes sense – feed your content into those platforms early and often.
What About You
Feeling like you don’t have the marketing budget necessary to compete in your marketplace? Perhaps you’re not really tapping into your imagination. What are some new, unique or unconventional methods you could use to promote your business?
Talkback: Pitch us some nifty ideas, we’d love to hear all about them!