10 Low Cost Ways to Promote Your Small Business

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic a lot of businesses have experienced a setback in their economic standing, and one of the first things to be forgotten in order to maintain customers is marketing. That’s why we have created a list of simple ways to market your business for little to no money!

Collaborate with Other Businesses in Your Area
- One way to create more awareness of your company locally is to collaborate with other nearby businesses you don’t compete with. Say for instance you own a bakery and there is a local clothes boutique that you are familiar with. You could come to an agreement to allow some advertisement for each other’s company in your storefront. This could be flyers, brochures, business cards or even small promotional items such as pens!
Build up Presence on Social Media where your Audience is Focused at
- Another way to promote your business is to focus your online efforts on the platform that you have seen the most involvement. Engagement with posts is a crucial metric for online marketing and cultivating the audience on your most active account is the best way to promote your business online. By getting rid of the accounts that you see are not as successful you are lessening your own load as a marketer and also creating a more concise image.
Focus on Organic Content
- Marketing is sometimes a daunting task. So, one way to create material is to use organic content. Taking a quick picture of a burger that is your restaurants daily special, or a picture of the house whose roof you’ve just replaced is great to display your company online! It is very important though that the organic content you create is high quality. The pictures much be high resolution and in focus in order to present the best image of your business.
Ask for Referrals from Current Customers
- People trust their peers over all forms of marketing. So, to capitalize on this you should ask your current customers to recommend you to those they know! You could also create a reward program for referrals. Those who refer others to your business get a special coupon for their next purchase or a free promotional item.
Ask for Google Reviews Online
- Even when people aren’t familiar with others, they still trust them more than branded content. So, asking them to write an online review for your company is a great way to gain more trust from potential customers. Studies show that online reviews can make or break a business since 97% of people read them! The more good reviews you have the better your chances are of attracting new customers.
Have a Giveaway for a Product or Service
- Another way to promote your company is to offer a giveaway. This giveaway could be something as small and simple as a cup, but giveaways get a ton of engagement online because everyone loves free things! Having an online giveaway and asking customers to tag their friends, repost your content to their stories, or follow you on your social media is a great way to bring awareness to your company for a very small price.
Offer Coupons for Repeat Purchases
- A way to get repeat customers is to offer a coupon for their second purchase from your company. This shows customers how much you value their purchase and encourages them to come back and shop with you again.
Invite Influencers to Experience Your Company
- Going off of the previous examples about people trusting others more than branded content, another way to capitalize off of word-of-mouth marketing is to invite well known locals to come to your company and enjoy some of your product. By showing that someone well known patronizes your establishment you are gaining the interest of all their followers.
Blog about Aspects of Your Job and Company
- Another way to gain a larger presence online is to create a blog. Writing about the intricate aspects of your work as a company owner is sure to gain the attention of those who are interested in your products or services. This is also a way to display your thorough knowledge of the subject of your work and showcased why customers should trust you with their next purchase.
Experiment with Guerrilla Marketing
- A more involved way to market your company for free is to experiment with Guerilla Marketing. Guerilla Marketing is the practice of promoting your company somewhere unexpected to surprise customers. Many times, this type of marketing can be done for free by creating an experience for the customer outside in a popular area. This form of marketing is all about being comical so the sillier and more eye catching your display the better! One example of Guerilla Marketing is the company GoldToe putting a giant pair of their branded underwear on an iconic charging bull statue to promote their new underwear line!

Source: ALT TERRAIN

Looking for a more strategic marketing plan? We would love to help you.

Smart Marketing Advertising Agency

Anderson, SC

Coming Soon – Charleston, SC

What is Search Engine Marketing (SEM)?

In today’s world one of the first places consumers look for a product or service is on the internet through a Search Engine such as Google, Yahoo, or Bing.

That’s why being the first thing they see when they search for a business like yours is so important!

What is Search Engine Marketing?

One way to reach that coveted number one rank on Google is through the use of Search Engine Marketing, which entails using pay-per-click ads to boost your company’s webpage to the top spot. The wonderful thing about using SEM is that your company is only charged when a customer actually clicks on your link, so you are only paying for results!

Getting Started with SEM

SEM uses keywords to ensure that your listing only shows to those customers who are interested in your product. It is very important to identify which keywords customers use to search for a business such as yours, because they are the foundation of how SEM works!

So, if your company is a local roofing company and you identify some of your most effective keywords as your city, county, and services, you would be sure to reach those customers who are local and on the market for a new roof!

How do I Identify Keywords?

One way to identify useful keywords is to look at the Related Search column at the bottom of any Google Search. This is where Google lists phrases commonly searched that relate to what you’ve searched. So, by searching yourself you can look at this Related Searches column to identify keywords that will be useful for your SEM strategy!

There are also programs online to aid you in your search for keywords, some that are even free!

Keywords that indicate a strong intention of buying a product or service are known as high commercial intent keywords. They are keywords such as:

Buy
Discount(s)
Deal(s)
Coupon(s)
Free Shipping

Including these keywords in your campaign is useful in finding customers who are more likely to purchase your product!

Once you have identified your most effective keywords, you will then begin the process of entering your company into the Search Engine Marketing Ad Auction.

Search Engine Ad Auction?

The Search Engine Ad Auction is the process Google uses to determine which listings are going to appear first for their search engine results.

Google evaluates companies based off the Quality Score of their ads and also their maximum bid. The maximum bid is the amount you have set as the most you will pay for each click to your website through your ad. Your Quality Score is based off of many factors including:

Your click-through rate (CTR)
The relevance of each keyword to its ad group
Landing page quality and relevance
The relevance of your ad text
Your historical Google Ads account performance

One of the best ways to increase your Google Ads Quality is through optimizing the keywords you use and effectively organizing them into groups!

Need Help?

Still unsure where to begin to effectively use SEM? Allow us to help. Smart Marketing Ad Agency has been helping businesses create effective marketing plans since 2010!

Located in Anderson SC

Monthly Archives: November 2020