There is one arena where small businesses can compete against larger companies within the same field; it is online marketing. In the “real” world the size of a budget does influence the amount of money that can be directed towards marketing, but online, all businesses compete at the same level.
Wandering around the web this morning, I was hoping to find some new, unconventional and bright ideas, on how to improve the performance of the business using an online environment, get more, bigger clients and multiply the profits; but it seem like the web marketing field is pretty much standardized, strict rules does apply and the inspirational “It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction” by Albert Einstein, doesn’t really apply here.
So here are some tips which even though not innovative, may prove to be very valuable for those who want to get bigger and richer.
1. Build out Your Brand
To assure the growth of your company, it is absolutely critical to establishing a consistent and recognizable brand image. A key feature of a brand building is associating the name and image of the business with high values and quality, in the minds of your customers. Once you take care of that people will know the reasons they trust the company, they will have no other choice than choose your products or services over those of your competitors.
2. Make the Most of Your Marketing Budget
To compete against larger companies you must choose your marketing avenues wisely. There is no need for throwing large amounts of cash at paid search campaigns for example; there are plenty of other strategies like content marketing or search engine optimization improvements, which will definitely stretch the value of your marketing dollars. Don’t pay social networking channels to advertise on them, instead, use them to speak to the customers directly.
3. Stay Ahead of Search Engine Updates
When a search engine updates the way it returns search results for keywords, the amount of traffic directed to a site from search results can change substantially; businesses everywhere can experience massive losses or impressive gains in rankings. To avoid being on the losing end when Google releases an update, it is essential to keep the content on your site fresh and interesting. Your pages should be updated frequently, and optimized according to best industry standards. Quality content never goes out of style, it is invaluable and search engines will reward you for making it up to standard and enjoyable for visitors.
4. Engage Your Customers
Use Twitter or Facebook to open up a dialogue with your customers, to find out what they want from your company and get feedback on the services you offer. When your company releases new products or has news to share, post the updates on social networking sites. Customers that find the information useful may share it with others, and you can use this to your advantage by announcing sales and deals to people – for free.
5. Combine Strategies
Even the best looking, functional and accessible web page, on its own, won’t assure your business to succeed with web marketing. It is great to inform customers about the services you offer, but without marketing they will never find your page to know about your company in the first place. It is essential that you combine social, search and content strategies to reach your customers in every possible way.
6. Include Testimonials
A great portfolio is one thing but glowing testimonials of your company will make the potential customer curious about products or services you provide. Google reviews are also important to building trust in your company. It is a good idea to stay aware of the reviews your company has received, so you can make improvements and learn what is working for you and what needs to be changed.
8. Test New Site Features
The changes you make to your site by incorporating new web marketing strategies should be tested for viability, usability and accessibility. Customers become used to the way a site operates, and changes often cause a temporary drop in sales as people learn to interact with your site in a new way. Testing of all the new features is critical.
9. Try Different Approaches
As the online marketing industry grows, new and innovative techniques are being developed to help you expand your business. Even if the tried and true methods are working well for your company at the moment, you can stay one step ahead with a willingness to try out new ideas and take different approaches to the same problems. Be inspired by Albert Einstein.
Damian Budny is a Creative Thinker and Web Developer at Happy Creative, a full service marketing and creative agency based in Blackpool, Lancashire. To learn more or contact us please go to www.happy-creative.co.uk
