Small Business Marketing is becoming more complex. It is essential to keep up with the basics of marketing in an online environment that changes quickly. This is to be able to focus on the customer’s needs.
Profiling Your Target Customer
What are your ideal customers? Who do they buy products and services from? Many businesses have multiple market segments that each have different needs. It is therefore important to identify these segments and create a customer profile for each.
Find the best way to reach your customer
Which are the most effective ways to reach specific customers and market segments? While offline marketing may be the best option, online marketing is more cost-effective and efficient. Find out what information sources customers use to find it. This could be through search engine queries, social media or online publications. No matter which route you choose, focus your efforts on these mediums.
Be found
Having a website is futile if it remains unseen by potential customers. Over 90% of users don’t venture beyond the first page of search results. This principle extends to social media platforms. The primary aim of any online marketing tool is to be easily discoverable. Explore informational blogs for optimizing visibility strategies.
Establish a Relationship
Only a few prospects will purchase immediately after being find. A larger percentage of prospects will continue to visit the site and learn more, and they will purchase in the future. The goal is to establish trust and credibility with prospects to help them sell in the medium- to long-term.
Convert
If a relationship does not lead to a sale, it is useless. It is crucial to show prospects the right way and tell them what to do (calls for action). In order to foster ongoing dialogue, it may be necessary to obtain a prospect’s email address in exchange for a valuable download.
Small business marketing success starts with the customer. Once you have a clear understanding of the customer, provide the necessary information and build a relationship that leads to a sale. It is crucial to ensure that the message is sent in a way that is most likely be read and understand. Be visible, don’t get distract by marketing hype and keep your eyes on the essentials.
Profile Your Target Customer
Who is your ideal customer, what do they buy, why do they need those products or services, and why do they buy from you? Most businesses serve several market segments, each with different requirements. So it is important to identify those segments and build a customer profile for each.
Decide How To Reach Your Customer
What are the best ways to reach identified customers and market segments? It may be the best route is offline but more likely the most efficient and cost-effective method will be online marketing. Research what methods target customers use to source information. It may be via search engine queries, or possibly social media, or online publications. Whatever route is best, target your efforts on those mediums.
Be Found
There is little point in having a website if it is not found when a prospect types a relevant search term into one of the major search engines. Statistics show that over 90% of prospects never go beyond page 1 when looking for information. The same argument applies to social media. With any online marketing tool, the objective is to be found.
Build A Relationship
Once found, only a small percentage of prospects will make an immediate purchase. A much larger proportion will keep coming back to learn more and will buy in the future. Once a prospect lands on an online communication channel the objective is to start to build a relationship and credibility to achieve a sale in the medium to long term.
Convert
A relationship is of little use if it does not ultimately convert to a sale. So it is important to lead prospects down a path and specifically tell them what you suggest they do (calls to action). The process may include securing a prospect Email address (perhaps in return for a valuable download) to facilitate ongoing dialogue.
The key to small business marketing success then is to start with the customer. With the customer defined, deliver the information they need and develop a relationship that ultimately results in a sale. It is important to make sure the message goes out via a method that is most likely to be read and engaged with. Don’t be invisible, forget the marketing hype and focus on the basics.