Marketing tips for small budgets

Quite often clients tell me that they know they need to do marketing but the cost of marketing needs to be considered first as common perceptions are that it is expensive. Marketing is often overlooked in favour of other needs within the business which makes me sad as not all marketing has to be expensive. Since marketing is so important to businesses, here are a few ideas that you can implement to help with your marketing that will keep you within your budget, and therefore keep the Directors happy.

Start a blog

At Happy we live by what we preach, hence this blog you are reading. Whilst we enjoy writing blogs, there is a reason that we do them. Any type of business can have a blog as every business has its own particular area of expertise. Sharing your knowledge and expertise confirms to your customers that you know what you’re talking about which builds a level of trust and also a positive reputation. At Happy, each time we write a blog, we write about what we know so the marketers amongst us write about marketing, designers about design and web developers about well… developing websites. All it will cost you is the time spent writing your blog and uploading it to your website. Make sure you throw in plenty of key words.

Optimise your website

You can’t get very far on the internet without falling victim to SEO and PPC strategies. Whilst PPC does cost money SEO doesn’t have to. SEO helps you to improve your rankings on search engines and as a result direct more traffic to your website. How often do you go to the 2nd page of Google? Put yourself in your customers’ shoes, if you were searching for your company what words would you use? Now make sure you include those words within the content of your website and don’t forget to name any images. If you have a WordPress website, there is a great free plug-in called Yoast that is easy-to-use and will help you with your SEO.

Be a social media butterfly

Social media doesn’t have to cost a penny but for it to work for your business you need to use it effectively. Social networks are a great way to drive traffic towards your website and build relationships with existing and potential customers. Hot tip: Every social media network needs to be treated differently so do your homework about how to utilise them. If you’re still struggling read Happy Simon’s blog on improving your social media: 5 Reasons Why Your Social Media isn’t working

Create case studies

Chances are you’ve done some great projects in the past so shout about them. What better way to sell a service than to prove you’re pretty awesome at it. Start by explaining the brief from your customer, then how you went about the project and what you did and finishing with the results and a great testimonial for your customer. Then share them on your website, include in e-newletters and put onto your social networks.

Network, network, network

Networking is a great tool for building relationships with people in the same industry or location as yourself. As with any relationship, it takes time to commit to attending the same groups on a regular basis. Networking is great for just making friends in the business world and getting advice but really great for planting seeds to get new opportunities. Opportunities include new contracts but also new resources/ suppliers, partner opportunities and invitations to speak at future events.

Build your email list

Building a quality list of contacts takes time, but here are a few tips to get you going:

– Place a subscription form on your website so people can sign up easily

– Drive traffic to the subscription form

– Give an incentive to sign up. The incentive has to be right for your audience

Those that do sign up to your list will be interested in what you want to say. Segment the data so you can send targeted emails with the right content for that audience to keep them interested.

Linked In Groups

Linked In groups are great. It is like networking but you don’t have to leave your desk. LinkedIn gives you access to an audience that is interested in connecting with like-minded people in a professional environment making it more effective for some businesses than other networks so utilise it as best you can. Joining groups enables you to share content that is relevant, join in discussions and answer others questions. It helps you to been seen as an authority and expert within the industry.

So, there you have it, a few of the many examples out there that prove you don’t have to have a huge marketing budget in order to have a marketing presence, although with that being said the more you pump into marketing, the more you get out of it. I know an agency that can help!

Rachel Sutton is a Creative Thinker and Happy Account Executive at Happy Creative, a full service marketing agency based in Blackpool, Lancashire. To learn more or contact us please go to www.happy-creative.co.uk or follow us @happy_creative. budgets