The thing all startups have in common is money, and more specifically the fact that money is tight. This makes growing your business a tough gig and will force you to come up with innovative ways to stretch what you thought was possible to do on a shoestring budget. The best place to start is marketing and thus coming up with innovative ways to successfully market your company.
To help you with this, we have compiled a list of proven marketing strategies that will help your startup bring in new business without breaking your bank.
Fail To Prepare Then Prepare To Fail
Before spending any money on any marketing strategy, you must know who your target audience is, and then decide how to best reach them. The more detailed you are at this point the better. Do your research, find out who the decision-makers are that you need to approach because the difference between getting to the CEO of a company and a 33 year old mother of two could be huge. It could be that Twitter will be more useful than email shot, or Pinterest could be more suitable than hiring a marketing agency. So do your research.
Get Yourself A Website
This will be your first impression. It’s how people will find you, it is where people who hear about you will go first and it is where your marketing campaign will point people, so make sure you have a professional website. Luckily, websites are now extremely cheap to make and very easy to design. Just head to somewhere like Wix or RedSquare and they’ll help you do the rest.
Make Yourself Known On Social Media
We’re not just talking about Twitter or Facebook or Instagram. We’re talking about Google+ and LinkedIn and even the more niche ones like Pinterest. Social Media is the biggest success of the internet since search engines like Google, so make sure you know how to use them. The most important thing is having a detailed description of your company and what it offers, as well as a link to your website. Once this is done, look for discussions boards or groups you can join that will help you spread the word.
Go Old School
Why not use the marketing techniques of yesteryear? You know, get your business details printed on things that people use. We’re not talking about flyers, we’re talking about pens, umbrellas, notebooks, water bottles or even lanyards. These are proven to be an effective marketing tool so why not browse now and see what options best suit your business.
Email Services
Signup for an email service in your area to start with. This is a really effective way to send out a newsletter or promotional offer to your current customers and clients, whilst also serving as a good way to increase new business. One tip to increasing your chances of success is to include a giveaway. It only has to be something cheap like an e-book, but this is a clever and cost-effective way to encourage your target audience to check you out.