Step into the world of marketing yourself and your business
You may be ready to step into the world of marketing yourself and your business, or perhaps you are wanting to revamp your existing marketing plan – but the big question is HOW to best go about it?
First and foremost – you need a plan! Your plan will help to create priorities, influence your ad spend and lead to a solid return on investment (ROI); all while relating it back to localized marketing by way of understanding the market place you’re operating in and how you’re going to activate it.
Study after study shows that many business owners depend on word-of-mouth referrals, showing just how crucial it is to reach customers in your local area; how important quality customer service is and how you need to deliver on your word. But what exactly is a local marketing strategy? Local marketing is slightly different compared with other methods of general marketing, as you will be working hard to find, reach, and appeal to people local to your business. It is literally a roll up your sleeves and dig in approach. You will be essentially looking to engage with customers in a small radius of your business location – anywhere from 25-75 kilometer radius, depending on your business.
Read on below about some great local marketing ideas, and how you can easily market your business with a little bit of blood, sweat & tears:
1) Confirm your website is mobile-friendly
This is key. A good, clean, user-friendly website that can be easily viewed on a mobile device is instrumental in maintaining your audience’s attention. With pretty much everyone and their grandmother using mobile devices now, your site needs to be easily viewed on any device.
2) Maximize your local business listings
By using opportunities such as a Google My Business listing and other third party directories and websites, you can claim your space on the internet for your company. You can include not only your business name, but all contact information, including your phone #, address, directions, your operating hours, website link, etc. You can be savvy and also add content such as enticing photos and Google reviews. It’s free marketing and visibility in the world’s most powerful search engine – that everyone seems to use.
3) Be active in your community
Join your town’s BIA, be a part of a Rotary Club, engage in community events, sponsor or donate local festivals and contests. Become a known face in the downtown community where your business is located. Supporting local is a huge thing right now while the world is in chaos. How can you and your business help support local? Make local business contacts and connections – think of the “I’ll scratch your back, you scratch mine” idea, and how you can work collaboratively with other businesses in your area. The possibilities with your local community can be endless – host or co-host an event, advertise in common areas in your town, launch a “locals coupon campaign”, etc.
4) Local media advertising
Local media advertising is an essential part of becoming ingrained in your business community. With advertising on radio, local papers, direct mailers, sponsorships, etc – you can connect directly with the audience in your local community. Keep in mind that localizing your advertising can be a direct and quick ROI in your advertising spend. You can also localize your social media advertising, and can customize exactly who and where you ads will be seen. If you are active on social media, definitely entertain the possibilities offered by using this approach.
5) Create a loyalty program
Depending on your business, consider a loyalty program to keep your clientele as repeat customers. Customers love to feel valued! You can go basic, with punch cards, or grow to having an app built for you. You can include a customer referral program, as word of mouth is an essential part of new business.
6) Invest in local SEO
You can take your advertising to the next level but targeting your SEO – there are so many options with your website and localized SEO tactics, that you can really hone in to where you want your audience to find you.
Localizing your marketing strategy can visit so many avenues, and these are just a few of the ideas we use in our approach here at Kleurvision. If you’d like to chat marketing or pick our brains, reach out! www.kleurvision.com
