So, you have had an excellent business plan and gathered enough resources for your start-up? One of the hurdles new businesses encounter at this point is market growth. Unless you have obtained a large investment fund, it is likely that you don’t have much money for marketing your business. If you spend all your time and money in building your new business, nobody would know that it exists. Hence, there is a perpetual need for marketing in a start-up. You need to market for money, and you need money to market.
Most start-ups don’t have enough funds to hire a marketing expert or consultant. Effective marketing doesn’t always require a ton of money. Here are nine marketing tricks for a start-up:
1. E-Mail Marketing
E-mails are the most efficient way to convey the proper information to market your products to potential customers.
Keep delivering good, attractive content and work on expanding your e-mail list. Attract the user’s attention using pop-ups, and do not forget to remind users of the value of your newsletter. Inform them of any latest trend in your content or discounts on your product.
2. Social Media Marketing
Social media is the holy grail for every new business. The need for a social media presence of any start-up cannot be stressed enough. Social Media Marketing is emerging as the most effective technique for marketing products. It brings your product in the eyes of not only local but also national as well as global consumers.
Start-ups can benefit by building a marketing base online, without any cost. Moreover, for a minimal amount of money, you can invest in sponsored content as well. Sponsored content in social media will help you gain a big audience for your market. The key is to know your social media channels. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are the three most popular and most crucial Social Media Marketing channels for every business.
3. Referral Network
For many businesses, people tend to trust the ‘word-of-mouth’ especially if suggested by their close friends and family. Recommendations are the most trusted form of advertisements for they bring everlasting consumers.
To build your referral network, deliver top-quality services to your clients. Ask for honest reviews and observe and improve through them. Next, use your clients as a referring network. For example, you can give incentives to your clients like huge discounts or cashback for every referral.
4. Freebies
Freebies help phenomenally in generating customers. Giving away free bands or t-shirts with every purchase, or perhaps giving away coupons and discounts will make customers flock towards your firm. Freebies aren’t for selling your product. Instead, they are for helping you build a relationship with a potential long-lasting customer.
Customers show an inclination towards free products. Giving out free stuff might seem counterintuitive in the case of small businesses, but in the end, it helps in building a better client-business relationship, as well as in getting people to know your company.
5. Regularised Content
Content marketing is one of the best options for marketing. Manage an on-site blog, adding new content every week that informs or entertains and engages your client base in a unique and practical way. Focus on a catchy headline, powerful introduction, organized sub-points, and engaging content. Images and videos will help to enhance your article. You must build an effective team that actively promotes your content through various online and offline mediums.
6. Search-Engine Optimisation
SEO is a must for any start-up looking to improve on its market quickly. Most users usually stay on the first page of a Google search and do not go ahead. Hence, it is important to ensure that your content remains on the first page.
With a bit of reading and research, one can master SEO basics. Make sure your website and content have all the relevant keywords. Cost-wise, SEO is extremely cheap, when compared to outbound marketing. Note, that the longer content has a better chance of being picked up by search engine spiders than shorter content.
7. Target Audience
For your start-up business, it may seem favorable to reach out to the masses. Although this will undeniably help your market grow, yet it will require more time and money to pull it off. A better idea is to start small. Target a specific audience you might want to reach out to, preferably an audience with similar interests. Doing this will not only reduce your marketing expenses, but it will also make it easy to convey information.
Short surveys and polls can be created and shared on social media, and their responses will help you choose who your target audience will be. Getting to know your clients better will surely help your company. You must frequently ask for their feedback and experience. Try to win locally in a smaller market first.
Marketing is inevitable for any business to grow. You must begin with these basic marketing strategies. Once you’ve established a strong stream that raises consistent revenue, you’ll have the freedom to invest in higher, more expensive marketing strategies. All it requires is dedication and commitment towards the end goal to reach out to everlasting consumers.
Written by- Pratik Thakur
Edited by- Shelton Cephas
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