Marketing plays a huge role in the success of your small business, and, thanks to the Internet and social media, it's never been easier. While bigger businesses can rely on notoriety and pricey ad campaigns, smaller businesses need to employ more targeted, personal marketing practices. Keep reading for our top three tips to improve your marketing strategy.
1) Create an Email Campaign
If you're reading this blog post, there's a good chance you found it via our email blast! While you never want to inundate people with excessive emails, well-curated email content can really help reel in new clients and keep them coming back. We highly recommend keeping your own email list (using a lead magnet or subscription opt-in) as a way to keep in contact with past, current, and future clients. We've heard too many horror stories from small business owners who conduct all their contact via Facebook. Without warning, Facebook finds an issue with their page, shuts it down, and causes the business to lose all of its contacts. That's why it's crucial as a business that you own your own data--emailing is one way to do that. Go for a software like MailChimp or MailerLite to automate your emails. This makes things easier for both you and your recipients, who are then able to easily opt in or out of email blasts. Using an email service will also prevent your emails from getting lost in the spam folder. Be sure to regularly export and save backups of your email list.
2) Curate Reviews
According to a 2022 study, nearly 100% of the 6,000+ US consumers surveyed reported that they read reviews when shopping online. 98% feel that reviews are "an essential resource" when making purchasing decisions. Ratings and reviews have even surpassed other purchasing factors such as price, shipping, branding, and in-person recommendations to become the number one reference point while shopping around. As a small business, be sure to ask customers and clients to leave reviews wherever applicable. Whether it's Google Reviews, Etsy, LinkedIn, your own website, or anywhere else a client can find your business, you want your reviews to be easily accessible. Aside from written reviews, video testimonials are a great way to build trust with new clients and consumers. We've worked with small businesses and some of their most loyal clients to create video reviews that leave lasting impressions.
3) Build your Social Media Presence
According to consumer research giant GWI, the average social media user spends almost 2.5 hours on their social app(s) each day. Small business owners can use this as an opportunity to reach new clients and consumers where they already spend their online time--just think of all the brands you've accidentally stumbled upon while scrolling through your feeds. In addition to helping you reach new users, having a strong social media presence keeps your brand top of mind for those who already follow you. Daily posts mean your audience sees your brand every day. The key is to create interesting, relevant content (check out last week's blog post for our top three tips for marketing with social media). When it comes to social media, video posts tend to be the most effective way to get recognized by the algorithm and reach new users. We love collaborating with brands to make exciting, creative video content for their social media accounts--check out our blog post on brand video ideas to get more clients.
Angela Wolf Video offers corporate video production services near Philadelphia, PA. Do you have a specific video question? Schedule a free video analysis call at bit.ly/callawv