Proper promotion is a key part of a business’ success. Your business may offer the best products or services in your industry, but this isn’t enough if your target customers don’t know about it. Promoting your business properly can help you not only keep your loyal clients, but reach new demographics you may have not thought to address before. A solid promotion strategy opens new opportunities for your business, allowing for profit and growth.
Comprehensive business promotion looks different today than it did even a few years ago. Keeping abreast of new technology for promoting your business can put you ahead of your competitors. Combining new technologies with classic promotion strategies can get the word out about your business effectively and economically.
Promotional Methods
1. Brand. To pull in new customers, your business must be recognizable. If you’re advertising your business on several different fronts but with a different logo or font on each, your business isn’t going to make an impression on people. Your promotion strategies must work together to grow your business, and a key aspect of that cooperation is branding.
Branding is complex, as it is essentially a psychological strategy for creating patterns in the minds of your customers. You don’t need to understand all the ins and outs of branding to start building your business brand. Create a logo or brand image for your business. Hiring a professional designer is typically the best strategy for creating a recognizable and effective brand for your business.
2. Get social. Social networks have grown explosively over the last decade. Facebook has an estimated one billion users worldwide, making it an excellent medium for advertising your business. Business without social media profiles are simply less likely to attract new customers. Chances are your competitors are socially linked; it’s time for you to get on board.
One great way to promote your business on social media is to post information and news your customer base will find educational, poignant, funny, or otherwise worthy of sharing. When your customers share your posts, all of their friends become exposed to your brand. Your business can reach hundreds or thousands of new customers at no extra cost to you.
3. Get physical. Some reactionaries today claim physical advertising is dead, and all your promotion should be on social media. While social media is certainly an important part of your advertising, neglecting physical promotional materials is neglecting a comprehensive promotion strategy.
There are many mediums for physically promoting your business. Flyers, billboards, signs, direct mail, and banners are all excellent ways to get the word out about your brand. These methods can sometimes have a steep initial cost, so do some research to determine how best to invest. When investing in physical promotion, be sure the materials you use can withstand inclement weather. Durable, well placed advertising can help your business reach entirely new demographics.
Conclusion
Promoting your business takes time and money. However, these investments will bring great returns if done smartly. Greater business growth and profits are within your control — start promoting today.
Originally posted on February 11, 2015 @ 8:49 pm