Guest post by Nancy Evans
Small businesses don’t have the resources held by larger firms in many areas, and marketing is certainly no exception. As small business managers we can’t afford a dedicated advertising team, an expensive ad campaign, or the services of a reputation management company to protect and guide our brand. Instead, we are left to use our available resources and our ingenuity in an attempt to maximize our exposure while minimizing the cost of obtaining it. For this reason, many small businesses use social networking sites as a marketing platform. These sites are free to use and can connect a company with countless potential customers. It’s a win-win in the small business world.
But the increased focus on social networking and on internet marketing in general has caused many managers to neglect a potentially lucrative arena for advertising their product or service: the real world. Marketing offline is not for every business, to be sure, and it often carries with it a level of cost that dissuades those with tighter budgets. But offline marketing can be done without breaking the bank. Moreover, a successful offline strategy can cut through the clamor and commotion that increasingly hamper online advertising campaigns.
Here are a few tips for those looking to take their marketing strategy offline:
Get Free Press:
Buying a print, radio, or television ad is an expensive proposition for many small businesses these days. But there is a place to go in the offline world where you can get exposure without coughing up any cash: the newspaper. Getting mentioned in the press requires generating a story. If you want that story to be a positive one, you are probably best off offering a unique promotion or making a commitment to a social cause.
Follow Your Target Market:
Most small businesses sell products or services to a niche target market – a market that either shares similar interests or a similar geographic location. If your business appeals more to the former, you can benefit from following and interacting with that market. Go to conventions or gatherings, take part in bulletins and forums, and work so that consumers can connect your business with your face.
Engage Your Community:
For those businesses that provide services to a local community, partaking in (and sponsoring) community events can be a great and cheap way to generate publicity. You can help sponsor the 4th of July festivities, set up a booth at a local fun run, or put your logo on the uniforms of the local Little League team. These approaches are usually cheap and can generate exposure in the geographic area that matters most.
These are just a few of the ways your business can find marketing success – and do so cheaply – in the offline world. The internet certainly offers countless opportunities for advertising your business and gaining consumers, but most small firms would be amiss to concentrate their efforts in an increasingly crowded online marketing arena.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
TV ads, hmmm that is normally a lot of money for local business and sometimes it don’t help much, I have plenty of reviews about that from actual customers… But well, buying a printed ad on a newspaper or printing brochures/flyers to hand out to people will always work straight out for any big or small business
Thank you for this offline marketing tips article!
Charity events are so overlooked in marketing today. They do incredible things for SEO through the media, boost sleas through free advertising, and create long lasting local and political ties locally. Our blog talks about it frequently: Great post! http://imprinsic.com/
Do you have any suggestions on how to target the niche market on social media? Are there any special tips or techniques?
The distribution of flyers with your website link and attractive cartoon on it is also a good online marketing strategy.
These are some useful strategies for using as offline. I can say that taking part in forum or bulletin can work a lot to boost your small business. But make sure that you find the your niche for doing that.
I heard that using popup domination will increase traffic to your site. I haven’t tried it before but would be willing to spend just to increase traffic. Thanks for the tips!
very good suggestions about redusing over expenses. It is very usefull especially for the small business.