If you want to grow your business how do you get the word out about your product or service? – You need to go to where the market is, and these days, most of your customers are now online.
This article reveals 3 essential fail-proof strategies that not are only easy to understand but are simple, affordable and effective.
Establishing Credibility and Authority In Your Field
When you take your business online, you are entering a very competitive arena. Therefore, it is vital that you position yourself as am authority and expert in your niche if you want to grow your business.
For the first time, it is easier than ever for small businesses like yours, to compete on a level playing field with ‘the big boy’s. All you need to do is create a hook or story that resonates with your target audience and you will win over a large, loyal and enthusiastic audience who will not only hang on your every word, but will want to buy your products or use your services.
Tell them what makes you and your business unique and special. Show them who you are and what you want to be known for. You need to let them know how you are uniquely qualified to help your audience solve their biggest problems.
The more clearly and compassionately you can communicate this message, the more you will connect and engage with your target customers.
But how do you do this? Well, once you are clear on your message and the story you want to get across, you can use these valuable online platforms to build your online credibility:
- Your website/blog
- Social media
- Media outlets (PR, Media appearances, articles, interviews)
- Books (Kindle etc.)
- Speaking events (Chamber of Commerce, industry events etc.)
- Forums
Have an Online Presence (website or blog) and a System to Build and Grow Your List
As obvious as it may sound, your business needs to have a website in order to tell visitors about your product or service. Unlike most bricks and mortar businesses, the website is open 24 hours a day. It gives you a platform to connect with your potential customers and build credibility. If your business doesn’t have a website, please contact us as soon as possible. The good news is that a website does not need to be complicated or expensive.
It doesn’t matter what kind of business you are in, you need to have a system in place that allows you to capture contact information so that you can build a mailing list for new prospects and customers. This will allow you to keep in contact with them and communicate with them.
The goal is to create a list of ideal, potential and current customers that you can reliably communicate with and who will remain on your mailing list whether they are ready to buy now or not.
It is easy to do this for an online business. It simply means setting up a simple web page:
An Opt-in page
Your website should always have an area for visitors to ‘opt-in’ to your mailing list such as signing up for a newsletter, news, updates or even a free gift.
When a person opt-in (enters their name and email address), they then give you permission to contact them with news, offers and sales regarding your business. Once they have opted in, they will automatically receive a response email thanking them for subscribing, with a link to the delivery page so they can claim their free gift or download your newsletter.
Once you have these elements in place, you can then drive traffic to your site and encourage visitors to opt in to your mailing list. You can do this by using paid advertising such as Facebook ads, Google Adwords as well by organic searches in the search engines. Social media, press releases and loyal fans will also help to spread the word.
Only Promote Quality Products and Services That Solve Your Customers Biggest Problems
Take time to make sure that your products are well designed, easy to use and that they solve the biggest problems of your target audience.
If your products or services don’t reflect good value for money or don’t meet up to customer’s expectations, then news spreads very fast on the Internet. As well as social media platforms there are so many review sites where people can air their views and warn other people about your business. Most people now go online to read reviews and make their buying decisions based on these reviews.
Set Yourself up for success
Many small businesses find online marketing daunting or time-consuming and don’t have the time or inclination to put all of the elements into place that will help to successfully market their business online.
