Small Business Marketing

Create Your First Small Business Marketing Plan

Create Your First Small Business Marketing Plan

One of the main reasons why small businesses fail is due to unsuccessful or ineffective marketing. Using strategies or tactics just because other businesses do it is not a good plan.

Having a small business marketing plan that includes all the important pieces needed to consistently market your business out there is something every business, regardless of size should have. Think of the marketing plan as your map guiding you towards your goals.

You may have the best product or services but no one will know about them unless you promote them, right?

This article outlines the most important elements you need to include in your plan. Regardless of how it is organized, your business marketing plan should be easily understood and straightforward document. It should provide you with a clear direction for your goals and efforts for the whole year and give a quick look into your company.

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How to Market Your Small Business Online

How to Market Your Small Business Online

Small businesses today have more places and ways than ever to market themselves. Deciding on a marketing method, especially when starting out with a small budget can be challenging. While social media marketing is free, it is time-consuming. Traditional advertising, on the other hand, can be expensive.

So how to market your small business online? Which channels are best to use? Dozens of successful small business owners and marketing pros share the following list of strategies for startups and small businesses.

Use Social Media
If your small business isn’t present on social media, it is time to be. Mike Volpe, CMO of HubSpot says that social media produces double the marketing leads of telemarketing, trade shows, and direct mail.

It is best to choose one social media platform that your prospects, customers, and industry leaders engage with the most and start building a stable presence there. Once you have set up an account, start connecting with your audience by joining discussions, sharing original content, etc. Keep your efforts frequent and relevant to your audience.

Post to Instagram and Pinterest
If you are selling an interesting and highly-visual product, you should be regularly posting photos on Instagram and Pinterest. Posting is free on both platforms.

Eric Elkins is SEO at WideFoc.us and according to him you can drive traffic to your website via Pinterest and there is no better platform to build audiences than Instagram.

Mindy McCarthy is the owner of MinMac and her favorite place to sell handmade jewelry is Instagram. This platform is the queen of virtual markets. Customers can scroll through your product collection and purchase directly.

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9 Elements for Small Business Marketing Plan

9 elements for small business marketing plan

Having a business marketing plan is very important for any business of the company in order to achieve organizational goals. The right marketing plan identifies who your target customers are, how you will get to them, and how you will retain your current customers so they always purchase from you.

When done properly, your small business marketing plan will the road map you follow to get customers and improve the success of your company. Here are 9 elements every successful business marketing plan should include.

Summary of the Business Model

The executive summary of the plan should define the details of what your business is all about including your goals and objectives.

The overall summary should be clear with the core values and positioning in the market. Also, it must explain how the brand will enter the market, first locally and then internationally. Further, it focuses on financial and generation resources.

Clear Strategy that Must be Followed

When it comes to your product strategy, you should be as clear as possible. You may survey the situation using details of your customers. For example, the product or company mission, resource availability, marketing and financial objectives, cash flow analysis, and competitive analysis.

Availability of Products/Services

Business owners should have an understanding of how their products will reach their potential customers.

Having high-quality products is just one part of the marketing plan for small business. You must make your products available in a cost-effective manner. This should be the ultimate goal of the entrepreneur and it can be accomplished by making the best use of promotional activities, team, advertising methods, and other tools used for communication.

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