Brainstorm small business marketing - 5 ways to boost your fall marketing plan

5 low-cost strategies to add to your fall

marketing plan

August 31, 2009

It’s surprising how many businesses haven’t really changed their sales & marketing strategies since the economy hit the skids. Usually it's the result of one of four reasons; no need (business is still going strong), no time (I can barely keep up now), no idea (I don’t know what to do), or no money (I can’t afford to spend anything). If you land in one of the last three categories, don’t despair. Here are five effective and low-cost ways to keep your business visible, your customers interested, and your sales growing this fall.

1. Start a contest. Businesses need to look for new ways to connect with their customers, without always trying to sell them something. A unique contest can help to attract attention with the media, remind past customers about your products or services, and helps to keep your business on people’s minds. It’s also a fun way to break the monotony and keep your customers entertained.

2. Cross promote. Cross promoting your business alongside someone else’s can take many forms, from selling your products in someone else’s location (ie. Starbucks in Safeway), to getting a coupon from a video store when you open up your phone bill, to handing out flyers for another company if they do the same for you, to exchanging leads or trading links on your website. Bottom line; partnering with other companies extends your brand beyond your front door. Take the initiative to approach businesses that share similar customers as you do – or go in the opposite direction and suggest a co-marketing arrangement with a business that reaches an audience you’d like to tap into.

3. Try social networking. Networking is one of the most effective marketing tools for any business. So why not spread your wisdom beyond the small group of people you network with in person? Twitter, facebook, or LinkedIn isn’t for everyone, but the idea of tapping into a massive (and growing) audience that loves to communicate and is often looking for things to talk or tweet about is hard to ignore. So jump in and join the conversation; just don’t expect that this one step will change your business fortunes overnight.

4. Come up with an unbelievable offer. The number one key in marketing is to be different. Different gets noticed. Different gets remembered. And different gets talked about. So get creative and come up with an offer that’s going to blow ‘em away. It could be giving out free samples if that’s unheard of in your industry, offering a guarantee on your services if no one else does, or developing a new product or service that’s half the price of something you’re already doing or offering. Whether your offer is to encourage more referrals, stimulate more business from your existing customers, or attract brand new clients - do something that no one else would think of.

5. Write something. Anything. Write a column about a topic within your area of expertise and fax and email it to a few local papers and magazines. Write a press release about something new about your business – a contest you’ve started, a new service you’re offering, or a problem in the community you’re helping to solve - and send it to all the local media. Publish your own eNewsletter and send it to your customers every month or every quarter. Update the content on your website. Send thank-you cards to your customers. Submit a story to an article directory like ezine articles to help drive more traffic to your website or improve your ranking on major search engines. Bottom line, writing more can help you sell more.