Are you a new small business owner? If so, building awareness and building your brand from the ground up can feel overwhelming and complicated — there are usually many moving parts of navigating and figuring out. Luckily, an effective small business marketing plan can help you achieve success.
Marketing is an excellent way for your business to engage and draw in new customers and find other growth opportunities. With marketing, you can respond to reviews, reach out to customers on social media, and create a robust website.
But where do you start? Please keep it simple and start on a solid foundation as you begin.
To make your small business marketing strategy feel less overwhelming, there are 13 steps you can follow to help you achieve growth. These steps include:
- Identifying your audience to learn who to target and what they want from a brand. Doing so can help you figure out what issues they want to be solved, what motivates them to buy, and what platforms they prefer to make purchases on.
- Defining why you're different to help you stand out from competitors.
- Creating an online presence to help drive awareness and build a following — be sure also to encourage your customers to share feedback and reviews so you can learn and grow.
- Building a marketing plan to help you stay organized and plan your budget. You can use a SWOT analysis to guide you through the process.
- Making a website to help build a presence and sell if you're in eCommerce. If you can, consider hiring a website developer or website designer to help you.
- Optimizing for SEO ensures you're visible and seen by those searching what you offer.
- Set up social media accounts to create a platform for your followers and those who love your brand. Many customers will look up your social media profiles before purchasing. Make sure you also build your content calendar and set aside time to brainstorm content.
- Claiming listings online to verify your business and prove its legitimacy. It also helps you appear in any “near me” searches that customers may use.
- Looking into email marketing to expand your reach to your audience and potentially attract new ones. Make sure you have a professional business email address before you begin.
- Consider advertising in conjunction with your marketing efforts, such as PPC advertising.
- Building a rewards and customer loyalty program to keep people coming back and to show your appreciation. You can also utilize coupons and discount codes.
- Getting involved with your community to help foster a connection with those around you. To get more involved, you can consider donating to local charities or holding different contests or promotions at other local businesses.
- Asking for help from friends, family, other agencies, business owners, entrepreneurs, and resources online.
Following these steps can help you achieve success for your brand. For more detailed information, check out the infographic below.
