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Let’s face it, the sole aim of any business, big or small, is to sell its products or services. And selling involves two key elements:
- A great product or an extraordinary service
- A great marketing strategy
Every product is different, every business is unique, and every business’s target audience varies, but there is a strong commonality in the way marketing can be carried out. And if history is any indication, smart marketing (or the lack of it) can make or break a business.
To help put your marketing woes to rest and ensure business success, here are five marketing tips that small businesses, such as yourself, should keep in mind:
1.SEO IS EVERYTHING
Not many startups and small businesses understand the full potential of SEO and its importance in the marketing realm. To win at SEO, you need to search for keywords relevant to your business and industry niche.More specifically, you should target long-tail keywords since voice search, semantic search, and the way people search are changing. For instance, if you are in the business of selling electronic gadgets online, you should target keywords such as ‘new technology,’ ‘buy gadgets,’ ‘buy electronics,’ etc.
However, that alone won’t cut the mustard. You need to optimize your website for long-tail keywords such as ‘buy electronic gadgets online,’ ‘buy wireless Bluetooth headphones,’ ‘the best wireless charger,’ etc. You can use tools such as SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Google Keyword Planner to figure out which keywords to focus on.
It’s best to opt for keywords with low competition and mid-range search volumes. Frequently publishing high-quality content that is rich in these keywords will help you win at SEO because search engines will ascertain your authority over these topics and consequently push these posts to rank high.
Also, encourage customers to leave product reviews or comments on your website. Search engines love new content; and testimonials and reviews go a long way in keeping search engines happy, strengthening your SEO strategy, and building your brand image.
In fact, Hannah Whitehouse of Bouncezap recently commented on the importance of SEO stating that “Not only will you benefit from a constant stream of targeted traffic, but you’ll also establish yourself as an authority in your industry – a key priority for new businesses looking to dominate their market.”
SEO is the basis of organic marketing, and one thing to understand about SEO is that it takes time, but it is a long-term investment and well worth it.
2.CONTENT MARKETING WORKS
If you want to win at SEO, you need to invest in content marketing. We mentioned about how you should use long-tail keywords in your content and the best way to do that is to create value-driven blog posts.Ideally, your content marketing strategy should focus on creating high-quality content that is rich in relevant keywords and is centered towards addressing customer queries.
Writing about informative topics that will interest your readers or topics that address their pain points, or thought leadership articles that are filled with useful insights and tips and tricks is a great way to go about building your blog. And don’t forget to subtly slide in your product or service and how it can help the reader.
This way you will be able to drive crazy amounts of relevant traffic and convert visitors into loyal customers. In fact, Samantha Avneri, Marketing Director at Regpack, recently stated that “content marketing brings us amazing traffic and helps tremendously with our SEO (which then helps us rank better organically).”
3.SOCIAL MEDIA WORKS TOO
The internet has transformed into a parallel universe with the advent of social media platforms in the likes of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Depending on the nature of your business, you should focus your marketing efforts towards building a following on either of the aforementioned social media channels.For instance, if you have a fashion business that also sells online, consider building a community of followers on Instagram and Facebook. Similarly, if you have a FinTech startup, LinkedIn would be a more apt platform to promote your business.
Social media is also a great place to share your blog posts and engage with customers and your target audience.
“Building a following on social media contributes towards increased awareness among potential customers and also helps to build credibility within a larger community”, says Paige Arnof-Fenn, the founder & CEO of global marketing firm Mavens & Moguls.
4.CONNECT WITH INFLUENCERS
Getting the right kind of exposure for your small business can get a bit tricky, especially if you don’t have previous marketing experience. This is where you need to put on your smart hat and make the most of social media and leverage it to build brand awareness by connecting with influencers.For instance, imagine your tech startup’s product being showcased or suggested by Lewis Hilsenteger, founder and host of Unbox Therapy. The Canadian tech channel on YouTube is the leading voice on all things tech and one mention from him about your product will reach his 14 million subscribers!
Which is why it’s worth building a genuine relationship with influencers. Simply write them an email or shoot out a tweet or tag them on your blog post to get them to notice you.
The idea is to show influencers how your new product or service works and what makes it unique and why they should consider trying it.
5. DO SOMETHING NEW
There are millions of small businesses and startups out there. And if you want to come across as unique and different, you need to do something that will stand the test of time and be memorable for ages to come.One effective way to do something new and shatter stereotypes is to pick a short and brandable web address powered by a new domain extension.
Think about it, instead of choosing a long, awkward, and clunky name on conventional domain extensions due to lack of availability, why not pick a slick, clean, and crisp one-word name on a relevant new domain?
For instance, if you are planning to establish an online presence for your business, you should use a .ONLINE domain or if you are starting a smart blog, pick a cool .SPACE domain or if you are in the construction business, you can choose a .SITE domain.
www.remote.online, www.loop.space, and www.untold.site are examples of smart one-word names on relevant new domain extensions. And if you are a tech business or an eCommerce business, you can choose creative names on a .STORE or a .TECH domain extension.
New domain extensions make for a great avenue for small businesses to pick memorable and supremely brandable monikers to denote their online identity.
IN CONCLUSION
Marketing is often looked upon as a complicated and capital-intensive activity. However, the marketing tips mentioned above are easy to implement and easy on the pocket for small businesses such as yourself.All you need is a dash of dedication to constantly create SEO optimized content, push it across your social media, and to reach out to the right influencers. Couple this with a pinch of market understanding to gauge how your business can utilize new domain extensions to come across as memorable and unique, and you have a recipe of marketing success.
But through all this, remember to have fun and experiment to see what works and what doesn’t. Study what market leaders are doing and what your competitors are doing. Because there’s a great possibility that they’re missing a critical step which you can use to your advantage. Happy marketing!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Eshan is a Senior Content Marketing Specialist at Radix, the registry behind some of the most successful new domain extensions, including .STORE and .TECH. You can connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn.
