Stop Being Invisible - Get Your Marketing Noticed
It's really hard to be seen in today's digital world. Unless you have a giant Instagram budget, it can often feel like a lost cause. Today I wanted to create a resource that will touch many aspects of both traditional and digital marketing.
These are going to be INEXPENSIVE tips and tricks you can try, to get your business noticed.
Tips & Tricks To Get Noticed:
DIGITAL
Create and manage a really great social media campaign for yourself. This will be time consuming, but you can do it for practically nothing if you do it yourself. Make the commitment and get started. You have many options to choose from, but don't get overwhelmed with your choices. My advice is to start with figuring out where your ideal customers are, and make that platform your focus. There are many free resources online that will help you develop a social media strategy, just like this one.
Run social media contests and give-aways. Nothing gets shared like a free pair of movie tickets!
Find Facebook groups you can join -- this is similar to in-person networking events, only you have the opportunity to connect with people from around the globe. Participate in these groups and provide value. Positioning yourself as an industry expert will give people a reason to do business with you when the time comes.
Make sure you claim your free Google page for business. You can do that here.
Start creating content, or blogging. In order to have something for people to share and distribute, you've got to be creating it! Blogging is one of the most powerful and inexpensive ways you can get noticed online today. Figure out what type of content your ideal customers are interested in consuming, and start creating it. You can use your new social media account to promote it, and if people like it, they will share it. Aside from investing in a host, the cost is practically non-existent.
Small budget search engine marketing campaigns can work if you do it properly. If you can be very specific and extremely targeted in the product or service you want to sell, you may be able to generate some solid leads. If you can find relevant keywords that have decent volume but aren't too high in cost, and create a quality landing or sales page, you can be successful with a small budget.
Facebook ads can also perform well with minimal budgets. I've heard stories of people being successful with budgeting just $1/day. Make sure that before you start this, you've got your social media plan in place and have already created some content. You want to make sure you can back up what you're promoting.
Build your own website. With the beautiful and free (or inexpensive) templates available today, you can create a stunning website without having to hire anyone. There are plenty of free resources out there, and if you can write the copy, you can figure out the rest. Having a bad website is never a good thing, so just make sure you're committed to learning and investing the time before you get started. Not having a website is really not an option in today's market. And, the good platforms allow you to host your blog and have a mobile site as well -- no need to invest in 3 different things. I really like Wix and SquareSpace.
Make sure your website has a mobile version or is responsive. If it's not, you don't even have a chance of being returned on Google for mobile searches. If your site is older, you may not have a mobile version.
Use Twitter to connect with industry influencers. If you started that blog I suggested, you now have something worth sharing and talking about. Twitter will be extremely powerful for you if you start blogging.
Start collecting email addresses and sending out a monthly newsletter. Email marketing still continues to deliver the highest ROI from all forms of digital marketing, and I don't image that will change anytime soon. Even if you just start with a few people, you need to start somewhere. As they always say, they money's in the list! MailChimp is a free option to get started.
Host free webinars or classes online. Teach people what you know.
Offer to guest blog or contribute to online magazines that give you the opportunity to position yourself as any industry expert.
Make sure everything you do online is branded. Stay consistent with the image you're showing, because you need to ensure people can remember you. Whatever you're doing, use the same picture, logo, colours, etc. Carry this across your website, blogs, social media accounts and even offline to your business cards. Repetition is key and people need to remember you before they want to do business with you.
TRADITIONAL
Try out those lawn signs -- they're inexpensive and are great when you're promoting a local sale or event. They still get noticed by drivers and bring traffic to your door.
Sponsor a local little league team. Get your website address on the back of a kid's jersey that will be seen by members of your community every single week.
Do pro-bono work. Help other businesses that are just starting out. They will tell everyone they know how great you are, and hopefully mention you on social media.
Get networking. It's hard to make the time and commitment to attend local networking events, but they are so powerful for making new connections and getting new customers. A quick online search should show you some local groups in your area.
Ask for referrals. Many people struggle with this and feel embarrassed, but don't. If you have happy clients, they won't mind at all. Often, all you need to do is ask and they'll keep you in mind whenever the opportunity presents itself. You can also ask for testimonials, which you can post on your website. Testimonials and referrals are extremely powerful ways to marketing yourself and get new business.
Look for partners and complimentary businesses you can work with. If you're a website designer, maybe you know a really great copywriter you could team up with to send each other work.
Donate your products or services to local events, like auctions.
Get business cards. Many people don't feel this is necessary today, and in some cases, they're right. But, if you're going to networking events in-person, you need cards. If you want local business, you need cards.
Get decals or a magnetic sign made for your car. People spend a lot of time in traffic, and the entire local community will see your business name every day.
Do you have anything to add to this list?
These are going to be INEXPENSIVE tips and tricks you can try, to get your business noticed.
Tips & Tricks To Get Noticed:
DIGITAL
Create and manage a really great social media campaign for yourself. This will be time consuming, but you can do it for practically nothing if you do it yourself. Make the commitment and get started. You have many options to choose from, but don't get overwhelmed with your choices. My advice is to start with figuring out where your ideal customers are, and make that platform your focus. There are many free resources online that will help you develop a social media strategy, just like this one.
Run social media contests and give-aways. Nothing gets shared like a free pair of movie tickets!
Find Facebook groups you can join -- this is similar to in-person networking events, only you have the opportunity to connect with people from around the globe. Participate in these groups and provide value. Positioning yourself as an industry expert will give people a reason to do business with you when the time comes.
Make sure you claim your free Google page for business. You can do that here.
Start creating content, or blogging. In order to have something for people to share and distribute, you've got to be creating it! Blogging is one of the most powerful and inexpensive ways you can get noticed online today. Figure out what type of content your ideal customers are interested in consuming, and start creating it. You can use your new social media account to promote it, and if people like it, they will share it. Aside from investing in a host, the cost is practically non-existent.
Small budget search engine marketing campaigns can work if you do it properly. If you can be very specific and extremely targeted in the product or service you want to sell, you may be able to generate some solid leads. If you can find relevant keywords that have decent volume but aren't too high in cost, and create a quality landing or sales page, you can be successful with a small budget.
Facebook ads can also perform well with minimal budgets. I've heard stories of people being successful with budgeting just $1/day. Make sure that before you start this, you've got your social media plan in place and have already created some content. You want to make sure you can back up what you're promoting.
Build your own website. With the beautiful and free (or inexpensive) templates available today, you can create a stunning website without having to hire anyone. There are plenty of free resources out there, and if you can write the copy, you can figure out the rest. Having a bad website is never a good thing, so just make sure you're committed to learning and investing the time before you get started. Not having a website is really not an option in today's market. And, the good platforms allow you to host your blog and have a mobile site as well -- no need to invest in 3 different things. I really like Wix and SquareSpace.
Make sure your website has a mobile version or is responsive. If it's not, you don't even have a chance of being returned on Google for mobile searches. If your site is older, you may not have a mobile version.
Use Twitter to connect with industry influencers. If you started that blog I suggested, you now have something worth sharing and talking about. Twitter will be extremely powerful for you if you start blogging.
Start collecting email addresses and sending out a monthly newsletter. Email marketing still continues to deliver the highest ROI from all forms of digital marketing, and I don't image that will change anytime soon. Even if you just start with a few people, you need to start somewhere. As they always say, they money's in the list! MailChimp is a free option to get started.
Host free webinars or classes online. Teach people what you know.
Offer to guest blog or contribute to online magazines that give you the opportunity to position yourself as any industry expert.
Make sure everything you do online is branded. Stay consistent with the image you're showing, because you need to ensure people can remember you. Whatever you're doing, use the same picture, logo, colours, etc. Carry this across your website, blogs, social media accounts and even offline to your business cards. Repetition is key and people need to remember you before they want to do business with you.
TRADITIONAL
Try out those lawn signs -- they're inexpensive and are great when you're promoting a local sale or event. They still get noticed by drivers and bring traffic to your door.
Sponsor a local little league team. Get your website address on the back of a kid's jersey that will be seen by members of your community every single week.
Do pro-bono work. Help other businesses that are just starting out. They will tell everyone they know how great you are, and hopefully mention you on social media.
Get networking. It's hard to make the time and commitment to attend local networking events, but they are so powerful for making new connections and getting new customers. A quick online search should show you some local groups in your area.
Ask for referrals. Many people struggle with this and feel embarrassed, but don't. If you have happy clients, they won't mind at all. Often, all you need to do is ask and they'll keep you in mind whenever the opportunity presents itself. You can also ask for testimonials, which you can post on your website. Testimonials and referrals are extremely powerful ways to marketing yourself and get new business.
Look for partners and complimentary businesses you can work with. If you're a website designer, maybe you know a really great copywriter you could team up with to send each other work.
Donate your products or services to local events, like auctions.
Get business cards. Many people don't feel this is necessary today, and in some cases, they're right. But, if you're going to networking events in-person, you need cards. If you want local business, you need cards.
Get decals or a magnetic sign made for your car. People spend a lot of time in traffic, and the entire local community will see your business name every day.
Do you have anything to add to this list?