Starting up a new business is a considerable challenge. Many things need attention, but most important is making sure the promotion strategy is spot on. Consider this, you may have the finest product and top industry knowledge, yet it’s all for nothing as no one ever hears of you? This recognition is why you need to be 100% dedicated to getting the promo right. It’s essential to plan this correctly, as otherwise, you could waste a fortune in advertising costs without even knowing you are throwing money down the drain.
Know What You Are Selling.
Asking a business owner to know what they are selling sounds like teaching your proverbial Grandmother to suck eggs. However, with closer inspection, we can see that it is not such a daft idea. In marketing terms, what you are selling is not necessarily the product or service. Suppose we take the fictional example of a company that sells and installs high-end stereo equipment as part of smart-device setups in the customer’s home. For this example, we must consider what your selling point is? You are physically selling the stereo equipment, but you also provide the installation service, advice, and expertise. You need to figure out what part of this trio of services is the biggest draw and why customers will come to you over your rivals. If it’s expert advice, then pushing the product and prices will not give you optimal results if those items are available elsewhere.
Who are Your Customers?
If you are confident that you know your USP (unique selling point), then the next step is to consider what group of customers will be interested in your product. Looking at our showcase company here, we could say that the customers will likely be homeowners, interested in tech, and music lovers. Now you know who your target customers are, you will develop strategies to reach that specific group. Ideally, you would find a promotional strategy that covers as many of those bases as possible.
Do You Sell Locally, Nationally, or Internationally?
Where you sell is also vital when devising a promotional strategy. Is it locally, National, or International? For our smart stereo company, it is likely to be a local or national firm, as the installation side of the business tells us that it is not a large multinational, such as the manufacturer. If you will be selling internationally, make sure you have any paperwork or permissions you need to do this in place, such as the LEI.
Social Media
Social media of the most powerful tools available to us when promoting a new business. The key is that rather than charging for the use of their platforms, social media operators such a Facebook gather and keep vast amounts of demographic data on their users. Facebook is the master when it comes to this; it has your age, gender, sexual orientation, job and career history, education, friends, and social activities, not to mention music and film taste. With this info on millions of people, they can use powerful algorithms to identify and categorize individuals with frightening accuracy. While sounding a bit 1984, it is fantastic news for advertisers to pinpoint users with the exact profile we are searching for.
Finding the users to promote to is only half the battle. On social media, we are competing with millions of other advertisers. For this reason, we must ensure our adverts capture our potential customers’ attention to lessen the chances of them scrolling past. Visually appealing posts work best, preferably video with high production values. We always used video production Boca Raton for their skills and understanding of the market, molding every project to suit the campaign’s aims.
Word of Mouth
Making technology work for us is an excellent avenue for success. Excellent customer service is the key to achieving this, as happy customers will hopefully recommend you to others. But we shouldn’t forget the tried and tested ways that good companies create a reputation. In fact, with how easily people communicate these days, a good reputation is more important than ever. With our stereo firm, it would be a good idea to have the installations tagged, in a discreet way, with a sticker stating, “installed by..”, as these types of items are the sort that people like to show off.
Promotions
Gently encouraging customers with promotions can be a good way of turning that sales query into an actual sale. Think back to our sticker idea on the equipment; we could encourage customers this is a good idea by offering a referral reward if their friends become customers. Other ways of promoting can include traditional sales or discounts. Be wary of offering too many deals, as if this is the case, few customers will ever pay full price as they will simply wait for the next sale. One successful strategy is to offer members of specific organizations a fixed discount, typically around 10%. This ensures that the group will promote for you, and you may get more customer referrals from this strategy.
Traditional Media
Although most of the focus on promoting these days comes in the form of online strategies, we should not neglect traditional methods. By this, we mean such media outlets as print promotion and radio adverts. Being a specialist music-based business, our example company could do well here. Advertising in stereo and music magazines will undoubtedly hit the target demographic. While using local and specialist music stations, they can hit even more music lovers.
Monitoring Success
It is essential to monitor how effective our promotions are, especially if we run several at once. If we see an uplift in sales but have three different campaigns running concurrently, how do we know which, if any, has brought the new customers in? With traditional methods, it is a little trickier. We can easily monitor click-through rates for digital channels and even what each customer did once they ended up on your site. Customer surveys can give us the info we need, or even just asking where they heard of us. This allows us to concentrate on successful advertising and lets us eliminate those ideas that aren’t working.