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Turning Back the Clock on Marketing Strategies
Zoom CEO Seth Godin is quoted as saying, “The secret to marketing success is no secret at all, word of mouth is all that matters.” Another great quote is attributed to advertising exec Fred Barnard back in 1927: “A picture is worth a thousand words.”
Finding new customers and retaining the ones you have are the basic goals for all marketing strategies. You can do this by following some simple but effective steps like constantly adding something new, separating yourself from the competition, and anticipating change. These are proven, effective steps for building any business. Read on for some ideas from entertainment and media company We Are Jersey.
Make a Plan
Before you spend a cent on any advertisements or branded materials, it’s best to craft a marketing plan. You want to have as much information about your target market as possible in order to make the most specific plan you can. Don’t spend on marketing without knowing what you intend to accomplish. Set goals and track your progress toward them. Over time, you’ll collect valuable information about the effectiveness of your marketing plan.
The Oldest and Most Effective Way to Advertise: Networking
You may have been told that slick, targeted online ads are the way to go, but if you limit yourself to only that, you’re limiting yourself to a small segment of the population. How to get those customers in the door and spreading the word requires marketing on all levels, even the basic ones — especially the basic ones.
BigCommerce notes that word of mouth, the oldest form of advertising, is still the most effective. As with other ideas for marketing your business, referrals spur trust in your business, which leads to converting the prospect to a customer. Ever since people began selling their wares and services, they had a need to let people know who they were, where they were, and what they were all about. What is a simple storefront sign but a marketing tool? How about incentives for referrals? That’s definitely been around a long time. That customer telling another about you was worth more than gold then just as it is now.
Who is more qualified than you at word-of-mouth advertising? That’s why networking, getting out there, and honking your own horn is the most sincere form of marketing. Chambers of Commerce, charitable, community, holiday, and special occasion events are perfect opportunities for you to meet other business leaders as well as future consumers. It’s what they call retail politics in the election business. All politicians do it because it works and it will work for you too.
You’ll need a lot of business cards for all those meet and greets, and the most cost-effective and speedy way to do that is to create them yourself. There are online templates that allow you to design your own card using the colors, fonts, and designs of your choosing. You can create different types for different campaigns or different audiences.
Use Your Storefront for a Great First Impression
The front of your business is one of your biggest advertising opportunities. Whether you house a corporate office or a retail establishment, let everyone in the vicinity know who you are and where you are located. One great way to accomplish this is through a high quality sign. Take a look at these beautiful metal signs. You can feature your business’s name and address on a classic bronze plaque that no one will miss.
Depending on your location and business, you may have a walkable business district available to you. Consult a Walk Score map of your area to see where there are high concentrations of businesses. It can be worth your time to take a walk down main street, stopping into other businesses to hand out cards and make connections.
Use Good Old Fashioned Communication Practices
And don’t discount the appeal of other tried and true tools like yard signs, which should be bright and eye-catching, coupons that offer discounts or BOGO, and mailers, and postcards thanking previous customers and asking them to return. They add a personal touch that appeals to a lot of people, not just those that aren’t familiar with online ads, but for those who are and have become jaded or immune to them. Besides, there’s something nice about holding something tangible in your hand.
Image is King
People don’t care what you have to sell, they care about how what you’re selling will benefit them. Nothing conveys that better than a picture of someone using the product. A person on a jet ski, smiling and waving as sea spray flies out behind them, has a far more powerful impact on a consumer than a sentence describing how much fun jet skis can be.
Hiring a professional photographer or purchasing professionally made images is a must. Poorly done images can put your business in a bad light. All professional images are of high quality and resolution, which makes sharing them a bit tricky if you don’t have the right tools. Using an image file type converter will retain the high quality of the image while allowing you to compress it for transfer and sharing.
Don’t Ignore the Classics
Everything old is new again, including marketing strategies. Using modern tools to make old-fashioned methods work for you is the best of both worlds and that’s exactly how businesses grow.
Are you a thriving entertainment and media company in New Jersey? Then check out We Are Jersey!