I was contacted this week by a new start up company wanting help with marketing.
This got me thinking about the different marketing opportunities available for small businesses to market themselves on a small budget…
Let me share with you some ideas that can be very effective
- Offering existing customers an incentive for introducing a friend / colleague as a new customer.
- Reciprocal referrals with other suppliers, especially those who serve your target audience with different products and services.
- Networking events
- Regularly giving news and interesting pictures about your work to your local newspaper.
- Write a regular column relating to your specialism in the local free newspaper or magazine.
- Speaking at the local college university – gives you publicity and builds your reputation.
- Local trade directories – typically monthly publications distributed to the local community.
- Targeting special offers at local big employers, through their PR and/or HR/social activities.
- Door-to-door leaflet distribution through the postal service or other suitable service.
- Posters in windows and on notice boards, and in staff rooms of local businesses.
- A promotional stall at a Christmas Fair, car-boot market or county show.
- Leafleting at a local relevant event.
- Using leaflets or business cards in dispensers where local people sit and wait or queue for example: doctors, dentists, vets, taxi offices, launderettes, takeaways, leisure centres, etc.
Sometimes these opportunities get overlooked but some of them are very simple and don’t cost that much ….
