If you are looking to up your marketing strategies in 2019, this article gives you the best marketing tactics for any business, be it B2B or B2C and regardless of the industry.
1. Cause Marketing
Customers are drawn to companies that have social responsibility in their DNA. Let’s face it, when you buy something from a company that is big on CSR, it gives you a feel-good moment that you are also contributing to public good in your own small way. The same goes for your clients, and this is not likely to be a passing fad. 87% of consumers say they would switch to a competitor if their preferred brand does not back a social cause.
When you start a marketing company, align yours to a not for profit organization or a social cause and see how best to support the cause.
For this to work:
- Pick an organization to partner with and formalize your partnership. This entails discussing how your partnership will be beneficial both ways.
- Pick a cause that your employees agree with and that they are genuinely passionate about. The best CSR efforts go beyond signing a check.
- If possible, align your core business to the cause you pick. For example, a clothing store can provide clothing to homeless veterans. Conversely, a restaurant can partner with soup kitchens to feed the homeless and street families.
- Have a call to action. This should clearly state what you want your audience to help you with, be it financial donations that you much dollar for dollar, volunteering food items, clothes or even time.
2. Social Media Marketing
The potential of social media to a marketer is unquantifiable. No other advertising platform gives you millions of instantaneous views on a low budget. The key here is to create actionable, valuable content that your audience will enjoy and share. This increases your brand visibility and awareness.
In addition, social media allows you to use tactics such as storytelling to create emotional connections with your potential customers. Use this to tell people who you are as a brand, what you stand for, what your values are and why they are important to you. You do not only want to get one-off customers but also you want to develop loyalty. Customers will keep coming back if they find shared values between themselves and your brand.
3. Google My Business
Ranking your GMB listing is among the most powerful marketing tools available. If you are able to get a top 3 ranking on GMB, your business will pull in numerous strong leads day in day out without having to spend money on adverts. To achieve a good ranking, work on optimizing your profile and collect as many reviews and citations as you can possibly get.
4. Coupon Deal Sites
Coupon deal sites have massive audiences that are grouped in locations to offer limited-time discounts. The benefits of placing your business here is that you get mass exposure to customers in your locality. Granted, the discounts offered will take some dollars off your sales revenue, but the benefits your brand gets will be more than worth it.
5. Email Marketing
Email marketing is at the core of digital marketing and is quite an affordable option. While most people that visit your website will not convert, email delivers an extra marketing push and provides an avenue to convert leads. Ordinarily, to get email addresses you have to offer something. This can be a free trial, a coupon, a space in your upcoming webinar and so on.
6. Promote Free Consultations
Free consultations get people through the door; it’s upon you to impress them by displaying your credibility and authority as a market leader. Show how you are the best company to solve your client’s problems. To get people through the door, you can advertise the free promotions via pamphlets, newspapers, your website and social media tools.
7. Give Incentives
Sixty-five percent of new business comes from referrals. Further, 92% more likely to trust their peers over advertising consumers are . This shows the power of referrals as a marketing strategy. To do this successfully, onboard both customers and staff. Your employees know your products better than anyone else and probably already know who to target. Follow this up with a good reward system.
The incentive should not necessarily be monetary. A spa voucher, an extra day off and so on can also be rewarding and motivating. For existing customers, you can give referral cards where they get discounts on subsequent purchases per referral and so on. Anything that motivates them to spread the word, use that to reward them.
8. Form Partnerships
Look for complementary businesses in your location and partner up with them so that your visibility and brand awareness comes from both quarters. Here are some examples:
- A catering company can team up with a photographer and offer their clients a referral to the photographer at a discount.
- A law firm can partner with an accounting firm, and they can give referrals of each other.
9. Apply For Awards in Your Niche
Being excellent at what you do is good. Having an award to prove it is even better.
For one, the glitz and glamour attract attention to your brand, which you can capitalize on. Two, an award gives you an edge over your competitors. Apply for awards in your niche market and bag as many as you possibly can, this will give you leverage for months.
10. Leverage Micro Influencers
Micro influencers are normal, everyday people. The difference between micro and macro influencers is that the former are knows as authorities in certain niches and they have the friend to friend appeal that lacks with celebrity types. Their endorsements also come off as more organic and genuine as the products they endorse are ones they believe in. Again, align your products to an influencer who is known to believe in the same values. A natural juice producer, for example, can partner up with an influencer who is big on health and fitness.
Conclusion
Marketing is a fast-paced, dynamic profession that requires you to constantly evaluate strategies, change and adopt the way you do things to keep up with your competition. These strategies will get you halfway there, the other bit of it is to work smarter not harder to transform your brand into a market leader. Click here for some actionable tips on how to get more done by working smart.
