As any seasoned entrepreneur can attest, effectively promoting a small business can be tricky. This is particularly true in the case of niche enterprises whose products or services don’t boast mainstream appeal. Additionally, if your business is still in the process of carving out a name for itself, you may be working with a very limited marketing budget. If this is indeed the case, it’s imperative that you properly allocate your resources, focus on avenues of promotion with proven effectiveness and make a point of avoiding the following mistakes.
Not Reaching Out to Experts
If your promotional efforts could use a fresh infusion of energy, don’t hesitate to reach out to seasoned marketing experts. Additionally, when looking to promote a business that primarily appeals to a younger demographic, limit your options to marketing companies that are well-versed in all things digital. Consulting with knowledgeable marketers can help you grow your business in an expedient manner and provide you with invaluable tools for future marketing endeavors. For example, marijuana-based businesses looking for effective ways to get the word out would do well to get in touch with Marijuana Marketing Xperts.
Underestimating the Importance of Social Media
You’d be hard-pressed to find a successful small business – or a successful enterprise of any size, for that matter – that hasn’t fully embraced social media and integrated it into their digital marketing efforts. The web’s most popular social platforms are free, easy to use and can expose your brand to thousands of prospective patrons. So, if you haven’t put a lot of effort into your social media endeavors – or you’ve simply ignored social media entirely – there’s no time like the present to rectify things.
In addition to creating accounts for your brand on social media mainstays like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, you’ll need to update your accounts on a daily basis. Of course, this isn’t to say you’ll need to post excessive updates. When it comes to Facebook and Instagram, one or two new posts per day should prove more than sufficient. Alternatively, anywhere between two and five new posts per day should serve you well on Twitter.
You should also make a point of regularly engaging with your followers. This involves creating posts that encourage audience engagement and frequently expressing appreciation for people who have stuck with your brand. Additionally, take care to respond to any comments, concerns or queries from followers in a timely and professional manner.
If no one on your team has much experience with social media, bringing on a dedicated social media manager might be a wise course of action. As the title suggests, this individual would be responsible for all things social media-related, including creating posts for your various accounts, interacting with followers and identifying the most opportune times of day to post new content. Depending on the size of your enterprise, this role can range anywhere from freelance to full-time.
Improperly Allocating Marketing Resources
When working to promote their brands, many business owners (understandably) seek to reach the broadest possible audience. In addition to going all-in with digital promotion, this often entails focusing on traditional advertising avenues, like television, radio, and print. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with promoting your brand across a wide array of channels, this may not be the most brilliant move for a fledgling business with limited resources.
To help ensure proper allocation of marketing resources, start focusing exclusively on the channels that have proven most effective. For example, if your brand primarily caters to a young, tech-savvy audience, placing your focus on digital promotion is strongly recommended. Conversely, if you’re catering to an older crowd, purchasing ad spots on local TV outlets, radio stations, print publications, and EDDM mailing may help you reach your intended audience.
No matter how amazing your brand’s products and/or services are, getting the word out can prove difficult. Many first-time business owners simply assume that customers will organically become aware of their respective brands, even though this is highly unlikely to pan out. As such, it’s in the best interest of every small business owner to have a solid – and constantly evolving – marketing strategy in place. When working to make the most of your marketing budget and promotional manpower, remember to steer clear of the previously discussed blunders.