Entrepreneurs often ask us what is the best way to market and scale at the same time if you’re working on a tighter budget. After all, it’s not exactly possible to do big TV ads or hire a top PR firm if you’re working on what you can afford.
We tell them that it’s challenging, but there are several places where smaller businesses and startups should focus their efforts until their resources increase. That you don’t have to spend thousands of dollars to get your business noticed. It all comes down to working smarter, not harder.
Luckily, there are a few methods that will make it easier for you to get the reach you need without breaking the bank. You just need to know where to start.
That’s why we put together this master list of marketing campaigns that are ideal for small business marketing. Keep reading for everything you need to know:
Balancing Affordability And Maximum Reach
What you need to consider when you are thinking about how best to market your small business is your budget and time constraints as well as where you will find most of your ideal customers.
This means that you, as an entrepreneur, need to sit down and think - how much time and money am I willing to spend to bring in new business? And at what point will I be overspending?
The other thing you need to think about is your customer profile. Things like your customer’s general age and interests can have a big impact on the medium you use to do marketing. If you’re hoping to target millennials, for example, you don’t want to put all your money into something like TikTok which is more commonly used by younger generations.
Take the time to do your due diligence regarding the above before you jump into the strategies that are laid out below.
Content Marketing
One of the most affordable ways to market your business is to invest in content marketing. Writing content for your website, for example, is a great way to:
-Establish more trust in your business online
-Generate new leads and sales
-Drum up backlinks and other important attention
Content marketing online is largely dependent on search engine optimization, also known as SEO. This is a practice that relates to fixing up blog posts and other types of online content with keywords that are scraped by search engines. When you find a link at the top of your Google Search results, it’s because they have great SEO.
The great thing about content is that your biggest investment will be time. You can easily get started with creating your own and outsourcing the work as you scale over time. Later on, your content marketing strategies could evolve to include things like eBooks and videos that allow you to draw in customers in new ways.
Our best tip for great content marketing? Keep it informational. Answer a question your customers might have so that they can access it without having to ask first.
Earning Backlinks And Media Features
Working closely with content marketing is the option to get backlinks, also known as earned media, online. This is when another business or online outlet promotes your content and business on their website.
Why are backlinks so important? It all comes back to trust. Earning a backlink or online media feature means your company has been considered credible by a third-party source.
But it’s not just trust that is exciting about this kind of opportunity. If you’re still a smaller business and you get featured in a larger publication online, you get exposed to a whole new audience that now becomes familiar with your brand name and image.
Influencer marketing also falls into this category. Endorsement from the right figure in your field will draw in new customers.
Marketing With A Partner
One of the best ways to lower costs is to split them! Finding a company that offers a complimentary service or product to yours represents an opportunity to team up and grow a bigger audience collectively.
This approach can be as simple as cross-posting to each other’s blogs or more complex such as putting together a joint offer or sale. As long as it’s a win-win situation for both, a partnership is a great way to get more of your business out there.
Social Media Marketing
Typically one of the most affordable ways to market your business online, social media marketing is an essential tool in every small business’s arsenal. Once you choose the right platform, you can build a whole community around your brand.
Social media marketing is generally pretty affordable, and it’s a two-in-one: you get to advertise your business but also open a direct line of communication between customers and yourself.
Reviews on social media can be especially valuable. Many individuals check online reviews via social channels to see if a brand can be trusted, so having an active online presence can be key to displaying your happiest client feedback.
Email Marketing
Similar to social media, email marketing is an accessible and cost-effective place to launch your brand marketing efforts.
Your email list typically consists of people who have consented to receive marketing messages from your business, usually by subscribing online. This empowers you to segment them based on how close they are to making a purchase and then to email them with the exact right message to close it.
Email marketing is also a way to keep your business at the forefront of people’s minds. Sending them a weekly email helps you stay relevant and even to make the right offer at the right time.
Referral Marketing
We’ve already mentioned that reviews can be key to closing a sale or service purchase. This means that happy customers can effectively be their own little marketing messages encouraging other potential customers to work with you.
You want to encourage your customers to leave a review regarding their experience with your business and spread the word about you in order to bring in new customers.
What’s important here is that speed is important. If you don’t follow up for a review in due time, your customer will forget or feel less inclined to do the effort.
Finding An Affordable Marketing Agency In Sarasota
Having to take on all the strategies listed above can be daunting and time-consuming, and so is building your own marketing team. What if you could put it all onto a local digital marketing agency that can cover every angle while working with your budget and stipulations? One that specializes in taking small businesses to the next level?
At The Hive Marketing Collective, we're a small business marketing agency developing digital marketing solutions that are creative, intuitive, and completely custom to your business and your goals. We do not believe in a one-size-fits-all marketing approach and focus instead on truly understanding your business goals, to ensure we deliver results that exceed your expectations when crafting your online presence.
Put your marketing campaigns in the hands of a full-service digital marketing agency that goes the extra mile to build buzz around your business. Contact us at 941-216-5454 or drop us an email at hello@thehivemarketingcollective.com