Marketing is something that has so many different approaches. It can have an almost infinite number of results, but when small businesses take the plunge and start to tackle their marketing tactics, they have to make sure that they are approaching it with a strategic and focused method. Here is what small businesses should do to ensure they are approaching their marketing campaigns effectively:
Truly determine your budget
If there is one thing small businesses are not short on, it is ambition. If there is one thing small businesses are short on, it’s budget. You should determine your marketing budget at the outset based on your current financial capacity and what your expected returns would be. You could use a marketing Return on Ad Spend (RoAS) calculator to ensure that whatever budget you have is being used effectively. It is critical to use the right resources across your marketing campaigns and make sure that you are going where your audience is. If your audience is more on social media, it makes logical sense to put more financial resources there. However, you have to remember that putting all of your eggs in one basket doesn’t always bring about the right outcome.
Focus on quality content
Many businesses approach marketing as if they were bombing a country. They would completely saturate every single area with a barrage of messages. The fact is that businesses that have the budget to blow on this could be better off focusing their efforts on creating quality results by getting those basics right. Understanding your audience and recognising the gaps that your small business can take advantage of will mean you end up creating quality content. We should all be focusing on creating content, and because it is more of a slow burn this is where we think we are better off opting for things like paid ads. You’ve got to adopt the tortoise and hare approach to your marketing because when you have website traffic there is no guarantee that any of those people that come to your website will actually stop to purchase something. Address your audience’s needs through good quality and relevant content and you will be working far more effectively and under budget.
Prioritise the Customer Experience
When you market your business it’s not just about blog posts or SEO tactics, but about making sure those customers that you sell to will tell their friends and family. Word of mouth is still the most important marketing tool, especially for small businesses. You can speak directly to a customer in your content and on social media, but you can also use things like explainer videos that make your company appear more human. If a customer feels a kinship with you, this means they are more likely to purchase from you so you can grow your business in a far more organic fashion.
If you approach your marketing tactics more strategically and with greater focus there will be a greater benefit for both you and the customer in the long run.
