As a child of the Internet age, you may be under the impression that marketing requires online know-how to create advertising websites, YouTube videos, and Instagram campaigns. You forget that small businesses were marketing long before computers appeared. The old-fashioned marketing strategies that worked in the past, work just as well today. Here are three of the easiest old-fashioned marketing strategies that take no technology and little to no money to help grow your business:
Specialty Clubs
The best way to meet plenty of potential customers as well as suppliers, employees, and business professionals is to attend meetings of like-minded individuals. You don’t have to confine your mingling to industry groups. Think of anybody who might use your products and services and the groups they might attend. For example, if you’re an accountant, present budgeting tips to a new mother’s club, set up statistics calculations for the high school baseball team, or volunteer to handle the taxes of a local charity. The goal is to show up often enough so when someone thinks accounting, your face is the first that comes to mind.
Give Away Useful Products
If your small business produces low-cost goods, then give away free samples at networking events. If your items are expensive, donate them as prizes at fundraisers and contests held by organizations. If your company is more about services, then customize small, useful items with your name and contact information. Examples include calendars, refrigerator magnets, pens, and key chains. Every time your recipient uses your gift, they will be reminded of you.
Sponsor a Sports Team
If your target customers are everyday consumers, then you can keep your name in their eye by sponsoring the teams that they or their children belong to. This may entail nothing more than paying a small fee to get an ad in their program to shelling out for uniforms and equipment. Ask if you can hang a banner that advertises your business at their games. Then, have a banner professionally created that displays your business name, phone number, Internet information, and main products.
Remember, running a business successfully does not need to be complicated. Keep it simple!
For more valuable articles to help you successfully manage the challenges of growing your business profitably, please search our blog at our website www.portalcfo.com.
Manny Skevofilax is a consultant and speaker that helps his clients successfully navigate the challenges of growing their businesses profitably. Since 2003, Manny helps businesses enhance their results by using his experience in strategic planning, financial statement analysis, operations, organizational development, and team-building. His consulting firm, PORTAL CFO Consulting, Inc., has attracted clients from diverse industries in the United States and abroad.
Manny can be reached at 410-808-3441 or via email at manny@portalcfo.com.