Marketing today looks vastly different from that of ten years ago. Gone are the days where paid ads, membership of a local networking group and a presence at a local trade show were all you needed to promote your small business. To help you navigate this new age of marketing, we’ve outlined our top 8 marketing tips to promote your business in 2022.
1)Focus on your branding
Developing a strong brand is imperative if you want your marketing strategies (and business) to succeed. Your brand is what makes your business unique – it should encapsulate your values and services whilst also being distinctly recognisable. Effective branding should:
- Be visually appealing.
- Be consistent across all mediums. On and offline, your colour palette, font choices and imagery should all be cohesive. (PS Instagram is no longer just for creative people)
- Convey your services and values through slogans and taglines.
- Attract your target audience.
2) Refine your web design
Your website is the virtual hub of your business – it is the centre of all your online activity. Therefore, it must represent your business positively and professionally. If your website is unappealing and difficult to navigate, you will struggle to attract new customers and clients.
To ensure your website reflects the quality of your business, it must be:
- Informative
- Easy to navigate
- Mobile-friendly
- Linked to all of your other online platforms
3) Develop your online presence
To attract new clients, you must be active online – this means regularly posting on your website and social media channels. Posting helpful and informative content will allow your clients to engage with your business, whilst SEO strategies will ensure your posts are visible across multiple search engines.
If done consistently, you will successfully drive more traffic to your website.
A good way to see what social media platforms are useful for your business is look at your Google Analytics. Which of your social channels are bringing in the most traffic and buying customers? These are the social channels to spend most of your time creating and repurposing content for.
4) Harness social media platforms
Social media is a great way to reach new clients. It is also a fantastic way to develop brand loyalty amongst your current clientele.
Articles, captions and videos all add tremendous value to your social media followers, whilst comment sections, direct messages and re-tweets allow customers to interact directly with your team.
Social media platforms change all the time. What used to be a great platform for your business to be active on may not be as good. For example, you may find that Instagram is getting more traction and results than Facebook or Twitter now. If you are aiming to get your messages in front of teenagers then Tiktok is the place to be. So pay attention to your marketing analytics to see where you should be putting your marketing efforts.
5) Create original content
Did you know that websites with blogs attract 55% more traffic than those that don’t? Having a blog allows you to connect with your audience by sharing your expertise. By posting helpful and relevant content, you’re able to answer consumer questions, build trust and draw more people to your website.
If your business already has a blog, why not take it further and start producing downloadable templates and guides?
6) Utilise email subscription services
Email subscriptions ensure your customers and clients don’t miss out on any news, posts or updates, by delivering weekly/monthly newsletters directly to their mailboxes. Other reasons to invest in email marketing are:
- It’s inexpensive
- It has a high ROI
- It draws people back to your website via direct links
- It promotes customer loyalty
7) Encourage customer reviews
Whether you’re buying a new toothbrush or switching energy companies, we all like to do our research – and that means checking the reviews.
Reviews are vitally important to any business as they provide an honest and unfiltered response to your quality of service. So as long as you’re providing excellent service, more reviews can only encourage more customers! There are loads of places where your customers and clients can place a review for your business. Always ask them to put a review on Google, and potentially Facebook or any other important recommendation platform for your business such as TripAdvisor for hospitality and leisure businesses.
8) Sponsor local events
Not all marketing strategies are online, nor should they be. Sponsoring local events can be hugely beneficial for your business. It provides you with the opportunity to meet new clients, share your company values and, of course, promote your business to the local community.
Similarly, attending local charity events, making donations and partaking in voluntary work will also paint your business in a positive light.
Marketing made easy
Effective marketing is essential to attract new clients and expand your business. Therefore, you must dedicate sufficient time and effort to developing your brand and online presence.
The devil is in the details, so focus on upholding consistently high standards (for branding and content) across all of your platforms and watch your online traffic surge.
Marketing done well costs money. However, if you are aiming to maintain or grow your business in 2022, marketing is an activity which needs to constantly happen in your business. If you are unsure of how much of your income you can afford to spend on marketing, get in touch. We can help you see how your numbers stack up and whether you can afford to spend what you marketing suppliers are suggesting you need to spend!
