Top 5 Tips for Marketing Your Small Business In 2021
As we dive into the new year, and hopefully put the calamity that was 2020 behind us, we know many small businesses will be looking to make the most of their marketing activity to stop simply “surviving” and start “thriving”.
So, as both marketing experts and a small business ourselves, we thought it was only fair to share a little of our wisdom with fellow start-ups and SMEs to help your brand flourish in 2021!
Research Your Customers
As obvious as it sounds, so many small businesses don’t have a clear idea of exactly who their customers are. Customer research should be more than a bunch of demographics - it’s a set of detailed personas with opinions, behaviours, actions, and (perhaps most importantly) physical and digital locations. So, before you kick off your marketing efforts for 2021, ask yourself the following questions:
What is my ideal customer’s age, gender, location, relationship status?
Where does my ideal customer live?
How does my ideal customer live?
What does my ideal customer look like?
What is my ideal customer interested in?
Where does my ideal customer shop?
Why is my ideal customer interested in my product or service?
How does my ideal customer feel when they see or interact with my brand?
Analyse Your Touchpoints
Now you know exactly who your ideal customer is, think about all the potential “touchpoints” which provide an opportunity for you to reach them. Where do they hang out, online and offline?
Develop a “map” of potential touchpoints and ensure you reach each of your customer persona’s at least three times along the way. This could be through out of home media, print and/or digital publications, on google, social media, or their favourite websites.Think about all the places your target audience is likely to be, and hit them there!
Collect ALL The Data
Businesses that use data win. Fact.
Data sources give you insights into your audience that can inform your marketing activity in all areas. A customer might find your website’s blog via organic search, but read one article and never return again. Using data, you could easily retarget this customer with social media, Google Ads, display advertising, and even email marketing. You could be present on every digital touchpoint until they become not only a customer, but a loyal brand advocate.
So what data sources should you be embracing? Here’s your top three:
Website visitors and users - through Google Analytics, Google Ads and Facebook Pixels
CRM data from your website or email marketing database
Social engagement data
Put SEO Value First
One of the sure-fire ways to waste money in marketing is to create content that no one wants. You would be horrified at how much marketing budget is thrown down the drain each year in the name of “content creation”.
Content marketing isn’t just about saying something. It is about saying something with meaning - something that is useful and valuable. An easy way to make sure your content is valuable? Run it through a couple of SEO tools before you invest your time and/or money into creating it.
Make Mistakes!
We saved the best till last on this one.
If there was one single piece of advice we would shout from the rooftops when it comes to marketing of any kind, it would be to make mistakes. Sounds a bit nuts, we know, but if you are constantly afraid of making mistakes, you will never take the risks that lead to real rewards. Mistakes are part of the journey - we have to make them to learn what works and what doesn’t. So don’t be afraid to try something experimental!
Want to implement some or all of these tips, but not sure how to start? Don’t have the time, experience or resources to do all of them yourself? We’ve been helping so many small businesses enhance their brands and fire up their marketing engines, and we’d love to help you too!
Get in touch via social media, our website, or over the phone!
