In today’s competitive marketplace, it’s more important than ever for small businesses to have a strong marketing strategy, and to live by that strategy. A well-thought-out marketing plan can help you reach your target audience, build brand awareness, and generate leads and sales.
But what does it mean to “strategize” your marketing? Simply put, it means taking the time to plan and execute your marketing efforts in a way that is aligned with your overall business goals. This includes defining your target market, setting measurable marketing goals, and selecting the right marketing channels.
When you strategize your marketing, you’re more likely to save money and time in the long run.
That’s because you’ll be able to avoid wasting resources on marketing campaigns that aren’t effective. You’ll also be able to track your results and adjust your plan as needed.
Here are some of the benefits of strategizing your marketing as a small business:
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- Increased brand awareness: When you have a clear marketing strategy, you can reach more people with your brand message. This can help you build brand awareness and attract new customers.
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- Increased leads and sales: A well-executed marketing plan can help you generate more leads and sales. This can help you grow your business and increase your profits.
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- Improved customer relationships: By building relationships with your customers through marketing, you can create a loyal customer base. This can help you retain customers and boost your bottom line.
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- Increased efficiency: When you have a marketing plan, you can be more efficient with your marketing efforts. This can save you time and money.
Did you know 97% of businesses that don’t have a marketing plan fail within 10 years. This shows that having a marketing plan is essential for small businesses that want to succeed.
INC. Magazine
If you’re a small business owner, don’t wait any longer to start strategizing your marketing. By taking the time to plan and execute your marketing efforts in a thoughtful way, you can save money, time, and grow your business.
Here are some tips for strategizing your marketing as a small business:
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- Define your target market. Who are you trying to reach with your marketing? Once you know your target market, you can tailor your marketing messages and campaigns to appeal to them. There will be many target marketings from customers, to vendors, to family members. Anyone can be in a position to refer your business to others. Don’t be too narrow in your focus. Also don’t be too broad. “Everyone” is not usually an effective target market niche. Think about who your customers are and where they are and what they do and what they have in common……and more.
- Set measurable marketing goals. What do you want to achieve with your marketing? Do you want to generate leads, increase sales, or build brand awareness? Once you know your goals, you can develop a plan to achieve them. If your goals are vague and unspecific, i.e. “drive more traffic to the website,” I’m going to say you won’t be able to tell if you’ve met that goal or not without making it measurable. “Drive 15% more traffic to website in 2023 than in 2022” is measurable. Likes and follows are vanity metrics—meaning they just exist to make you feel good about yourself and your business and don’t provide much in the way of marketing ROI. Focus on the data.
- Select the right marketing channels. There are many different marketing channels available, such as social media, search engine optimization (SEO), and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. Choose the channels that will reach your target market and help you achieve your goals. Too many time, new businesses will try their hand at ALL the marketing channels, when, in fact, their target audience is very clearly NOT using X or Snap or TT, but they feel like they have to be there. Start with the big ones: Facebook, Instagram (depending), Google Business Profile (anything but mobile businesses), email marketing, and a robust website. Then, as you find your people, go to those platforms and continue doing what you’re doing on the others.
- Find your voice and brand. What are you going to say to people and how will they know it’s you? Consider what people will actually search when naming/branding your product. A business called “Quick and Hot” doesn’t tell you it’s a 30 minute yoga studio. Say who you are and what you do. Vanity comes into this step often as well. Yes, cheribales.com is catchy and easy to remember, but not if you don’t know my name (or can’t spell it). Try to name your business as if you knew nothing about it, but wanted the product or services you offer. What would you call it in your search?
- Track your results. It’s important to track the results of your marketing campaigns so you can see what’s working and what’s not. This will help you adjust your plan as needed. Every platform has data analytics, insights, reports, and some even have dashboards. Look at them every month. Learn what they mean, and more importantly, what they mean to your business. Then act accordingly. If it works, do more of it. If it fails, either tweak it and try again, or move on.
Marketing is a strategic, data based, scientifically supported, skill (some might say artform), that can bring you such great rewards when done well, and such sad faces when not done well at all.
For reference, check out my other blog on Why to Hire a Marketing Professional (aka: Please Don’t Hire Your Cousin to do Your Social Media) here: https://hannahgoldcommunications.com/why-to-hire-a-marketing-professional/
If you like to talk marketing, I’m here to help! Click to schedule a free 30 minute call to look over your tools and strategy and measure your performance against your goals. Let’s see what we can do together!
