5 Creative Ways of Marketing Your Small Business
Marketing is essential in order for a business to survive. Good marketing can be the difference between a business surviving and falling by the wayside. Far too many businesses, especially smaller businesses, mistakenly believe that in order to be successful with their marketing they simply need to throw money at it. Having a well-funded marketing campaign can help, but the best marketing is not necessarily the most expensive.
Instead, it pays to be creative with your marketing. Marketing materials that the viewer is able to actually connect with are the most effective. This isn’t an effect that you can simulate just by spending significant amounts of cash. Instead, you need to take a more creative approach by producing a marketing campaign that is more than just another obvious corporate marketing drive.
The good news is that there are a number of marketing techniques you can use that will give your marketing campaign the air of authenticity it needs to succeed. These marketing techniques are the ones that are most likely to resonate with your audience and connect with them on the deep and personal level that you need to turn your marketing campaign into sustained growth and profits.
Go Guerrilla
The most effective marketing materials are those which don’t make the viewer feel like they’re being sold something. When we are conscious of the fact that what we are looking at has been designed to sell us a product or service, then we put up certain defences and instinctively resist the message. On the other hand, marketing techniques that are interactive and don’t have the sheen of a high-priced marketing drive, are much more effective at resonating with the audience.
Guerrilla marketing lends itself particularly well to small businesses as it encourages frugal thinking. Coming up with a single definition of guerrilla marketing that can be applied universally is not easy. It is easier instead to talk about what the essence of a guerrilla marketing campaign is. These are marketing campaigns which take an unconventional and creative approach to evoke a memorable reaction from the viewer.
Guerrilla marketing is often - or often portrayed as being - unauthorized or improvised. If, for example, you run a small business selling sports paraphernalia and equipment, then you could order some NFL shirts from NFL Shop UK (visit the website here) and customise them with the name of your business. This would then make an effective marketing tool.
Use Humour
Humour is a very effective way of making otherwise cold and impersonal marketing materials seem a little more personal. Humour is something that everyone can appreciate and relate to, it is something that you know the audience will universally feel positively towards. Numerous studies have shown that when consumers feel more positively about a brand, they are far more likely to spend money with them.
By showing viewers that your business has a humorous and more light-hearted side, you are making your business more relatable and cultivating a more positive image in the minds of your customers. Anything you can do to add a little humour and entertainment to your marketing campaign will pay off in the long run.
However, it is also important to tread carefully. We’ve all come across those adverts that are so poorly written that their attempt to be funny ends up leaving us feeling more negative towards them than we did before.
Contact Information
There is now a plethora of different mediums through which businesses can market to their customers. Each of these mediums has its own advantages and drawbacks, and each needs to be used in a different way to be most effective. Regardless of the medium that you choose, however, it is a wise idea to include some contact information.
This should let viewers know how they can contact you or your business should they need to. You should also include a website address or at least a link to social media. This is also another great way of making the relationship between you and your customers more personal. Consumers love businesses that they can easily interact with. Make sure that the contact information you put out there leads to a source that is monitored so that replies can be given.
Re-Invent the Classics
There’s nothing wrong with making use of techniques and styles which have proven themselves to be effective in the past. However, it is important that you do everything you can to put a new and unique spin on these ideas. Otherwise, you run the risk of seeming lazy and derivative. This can create a negative impression of your business and undermine the purpose of your campaign.
Whatever marketing you do ultimately produce should be distinct and unique to your business. You want to do everything you can to separate yourself from the rest of the crowd. Remember, your marketing materials are your canvas upon which you want to project the image of your company that you want to sell to consumers.
Use the Best Photography
If you decide to incorporate any photography into your marketing materials, then make sure that you hire a professional photographer and get a series of shots that look professional. It is no good offering potential customers grainy or low-quality images to try and illustrate the complexities of a flagship product. Far too many businesses assume that because access to a camera is easy, they should try and save some money by doing their own photography.
Ultimately, however, low-quality photography means a low return on your investment. Consumers will develop negative feelings towards your business and you will overall be losing out on all the benefits you are seeking to gain.
The money it costs to hire a professional photographer to take photos for you using high-end equipment is nothing compared to the returns that a successful marketing campaign can bring.
Marketing a business creatively isn’t easy, but it is effective. The shiny, slick, high-production marketing campaigns favoured by big businesses are all well and good, but they lack the personal touch that the more creative marketing campaigns offer.
