Are you thinking of starting your own business? Here are our top tips on how to market your business effectively without breaking the bank:

Create an elevator pitch

Any sales person worth their salt will be able to give you their elevator pitch, this is a short and persuasive speech that you use to spark interest in what your business does. It should last no longer than a short elevator ride, hence the name, so you’re looking at around 30 seconds.

Create a website

Let’s face it, with half of the world’s population using the internet and 93% of business purchase decisions starting with a search engine search why wouldn’t you have a website? And there are a large number of buyers in today’s market that wouldn’t even consider purchasing from a business that doesn’t have one so make sure this is top of your list.

Create a plan

It’s imperative to stay focused and see things through. By creating a plan with objectives and goals, this will help you stay on track. Of course, the plan will need to be flexible to fit in with new opportunities, the idea is to guide you and ensure you keep heading in the right direction.

Create valuable content

Create something that is interesting and informative for your customer. Give them some sort of information for free. This can be done in a number of ways like blogs, videos and infographics. Not only will you be seen as an authority in your industry, google loves this sort of content so it will help with your SEO.

Advertising

Now we’re not talking about a billboard or expensive television advertising campaign here we’re talking about online advertising platforms like google adwords and social media advertising which are targeted, cost effective and trackable.

Network

You can do this by attending traditional business networking events in your local area. But a really great way to do this is via social media. Did you know the number of worldwide social media users is expected to reach 2.95 billion by 2020, which is around a third of the world’s population? That a lot of people to have access to through a click of a button. So get talking, join relevant groups and get networking with your buyers.

Offers and Competitions

Who doesn’t want something for free? Promote your new business by offering a free trial or sample of your product or service, this enables people to see how great it is before they buy it. You can encourage sales by offering discounts and increase your brand awareness, database and followers by running competitions.

Collaborate

If you’re a small business, chances are you have a limited marketing budget, so why not collaborate with a local complementary business and agree to cross promote your products and services, it’s a win win for everyone.If you’re a small business, chances are you have a limited marketing budget, so why not collaborate with a local complementary business and agree to cross promote your products and services, it’s a win win for everyone.

Ask for referrals

Once you have your business up and running, a great way to gain more business is to ask for referrals from those that have used your product or service. Most customers are happy to do so when asked.

Build Relationships

Ensure you have strong relationships with your customer base, keep in touch with them and keep them informed about your business. Are you launching any new products or services? A great way to do this is through email marketing as you can contact your database quickly and with relevant content.

So now you’re all set to promote your new business and if you need a helping hand please contact us and we’d be happy to assist.