subject: Marketing Your Small Business In The Smartest Way Possible [print this page] If you have a small business, you need to make sure that you have a killer marketing strategy. After all, what is a business, if they do not know their audience, and how to sell to it?
The biggest mistake you can make in marketing is making everything so difficult for consumers to understand that they do not get it. Literally and figuratively!
If they do not get it, they usually do not feel compelled to act, buy, etc. Marketing is about informing consumers about your products and services, and telling them why they should pick you over your competitors-that is the simple truth of it.
Are you doing that? If you are not, it is time to really analyze your marketing strategy and evaluate the point you are trying to get across.
Too often small companies try to market like they are big companies. The truth is, they have missed the core components that will get a person to buy their products or services.
The first key piece of advice is to stop trying to compete with the "big dogs." Find your own niche and your own market, and become one of the big dogs.
How do you do this? It is by moving a customer from the point of just attracting their attention to inspiring them to actually take action-which is making a purchase from you.
There are four steps to doing this. First, you have to successfully get their attention.
Whether you believe it or not, you have competition. It does not have to be a lot of competition, but everyone has some competition.
It is up to you to get the attention of your consumers. Do you know how to do that?
You speak to their need. You inform of them of the solution that you provide.
If you do not provide a solution , it is time to get back to the drawing board. You have to create a message which speaks directly to them.
You know your solution, now you have to create a message that says, "I am your answer." Have you done that with your marketing message?
If not, why do you think they will buy your products or services? If you do not inform them about your product, who will?
Craft your advertising message so that it is easy to understand and a consumer does not want to walk out of a store without purchasing your product or service, and taking advantage of it right away. Your message has to speak about the solution as well as creating an urgency for the need.
Have you done that? If not, again take it back to the drawing board.
Evaluate as many different methods and strategies as you can. You have to really research and consider the different methods to thoroughly know which ones will work for you.
For example, do you serve a market that is more drawn to the Yellow Pages or Twitter? Do they spend more time watching television or surfing the internet?
Be aware of and informed about different strategies and which ones will work with your audience. This form of business is never going to be a one-size fits all kind of deal.
Next, once you have decided what route you are going to take, you need to make sure that your consumers are readily and easily able to access it. The reason you need to evaluate the different methods are so you can select the ones that are more visible to your potential purchaser.
Why advertise in the Yellow Pages if your consumers are not searching the yellow pages? Why spend money on television advertising if they are spending more time surfing the internet?
When you select the right way to go about things, you can create a placement that your potential consumers will see. When you select the wrong way of going about things, you might as well throw your money out the window.
Make sure that you are very deliberate and thorough about your moves. Learn your audience of consumers backward and forward, and you may just find success.
Once you tap into their minds, you can tap into their wallets! Talk to marketing analyst or professional advertiser today about exactly what your options may be.
