subject: Marketing Strategy For Small Businesses [print this page] There are two strategies you can use to market your small business: (1) Market Research; and (2) Target Marketing.
Lets focus on market research so you would have a better understanding of this strategy.
Market Research
Having a market research is a great help for small businesses as it provides you information on what your industry is about, as well as what your prospects are looking for that is still not being offered in the market. By knowing this information, you will be able to position yourself in a way that you will be offering exactly what your target clients are looking for. This way, you will be able to customize your marketing tools such as your poster printing or print posters into materials that generate leads every time.
Here are the questions you need to answer when market researching:
-What kind of goods and services will provide you with the most interest? Would your products and services be better off alone or offered in combinations?
-What makes you different? What is your advantage over the others? Is it the price? The quality of the product or service? Do you have faster turnaround in delivery and shipping?
-What should you highlight about your business? What are you an expert on?
-Whats your history as a business?
-Can you really compete with the rest of the businesses already in the market?
-Who is your competition? Whats their edge over you?
-Who would be most interested in what you have to offer? Who would most likely buy your product or service?
-What would be your benefits? How can you make your business more interesting and exciting in the eyes of your prospective clients?
-How do they want to respond to your marketing collaterals? More importantly, what types of marketing materials do they find interesting?
After gathering all the information you needed to answer these questions, you should then be able to determine the following details:
1-What does your prospect look for? What do they need and want? Where would you be able to get more profits?
2-How can you improve on what is already out there? For print posters for example, how can you make yours more interesting and effective generators of clients?
3-How can you compete? How can your competition stop you from gaining success?
4-How can you gain customers? How can you lose them?
5-What should you do so your product offer doesnt become outdated and outmoded?
6-What are the trends in marketing that can affect your small business?
7-What new ideas can you get from your research? Who can help you implement your ideas?
As a final rule when doing your market research, the information you culled from it would determine the efficiency and effectiveness of your research. When you have high quality and reliable information, you will be able to have a successful business as a result.
