As a small business owner you want to stand out from your completion and be the go-to person within your community… But how do you achieve this? Competing with larger brands and companies, that don’t have the problem of being understaffed with cramped budgets, can quickly become a full time job. Relax. We’ve got some tips that should help you increase your brands awareness and boost your presence within your community.
Know Your Audience. This is vital and non-negotiable! You can’t market to everyone –it just doesn’t work that way. So pick your target market and get to know them well. What do they love? Why do they keep coming back? Where do they hang out? What blogs do they follow? If you don’t know this yet then conduct a market research through Survey Monkey . What happens if you skip this step? You'll be wasting thousands of dollars (and hours!) on marketing that will never come to fruition. Seriously.
Be Yourself It Gives Your Brand Personality. No one likes dealing with an autobot so give your brand some life and spice it up! If your small business is a personal brand don’t be scared to mix in some of your personality. My name, for example, means Little Bee in Hebrew. So, I knew I wanted my brand colors to be black and yellow from the start. Think about what you can take from your background –language, colors, tones, style- and apply it to all corners of your business from marketing to website to your store (if you have one) or office space.
Stand for Something. Ever notice how many socially conscious brands end up being talked about? Customers love knowing that their money is doing some good. It not only reinforces your brand personality to stand for something –what do you love?- but will help you narrow down your target market even further. Moreover, people who identify with your cause will be more persuaded to shop or do business with you over a competitor. It’s a win-win either way.
Don’t just network -- host an event! The number one complaint I always hear from small business owners is: “Well my store is not ideally located so….”. Here is a secret: No shop -unless you are on 5th avenue in NYC- is ideally located. Host an event at your store or organize a pop-up shop to gain brand and product awareness. Theme your event and run a raffle to increase attendance. If this is the first event you are hosting you might want to ask for help. Running events is not as easy as it look.
Make it Pop. If you have a store it’s important that you constantly update your storefront. Quarterly changes are ok but monthly changes are best. People are curious and if you constantly change your window it gives them the impression that there is a lot of turnover in your store. Even if you have a small budget try to make your displays as interactive as possible. Don’t have a store? Update your website frequently and remember to stay up-to-date on your blog. Your website and your blog acts like a storefront –It’s the first thing people will see and the deciding factor on if they will do business with you or not.
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