Marketing expert, Michelle Gamble from
Marketing Angels shares her top ten tips on how
to market your business to remain competitive
and survive the economic downturn.
- Don’t stop marketing: Make sure that you continue to keep your brand awareness up. Don’t get caught up in the negative media hype. Stay focussed on learning about the positive things you can do to adjust.
- Talk to your customers: Talk to as many customers as you can and find out how the changes are affecting them. What stops them from using certain products or services? What could you change to help them? Perhaps you can offer a different payment solution. Businesses that adapt to changing times and offer products and services more suited to the changing spending habits and needs of their clients will not only survive but many will thrive.
- Use the web: Make sure your website is up to date with exciting content relevant to your audience. Find ways to get a link to your URL on as many other websites as possible: a. Contribute articles to newsletters and other sites that include a link to your website and some information about your business. b.Investigate the use of social media to have more people engage with your site. For example: Start a blog Contribute to other relevant blogs on topics you feel passionate about Do regular polls to find out what customers want and need Use sites such as Linked In, Plaxo, or Facebook and keep your profile up to date. c. Get yourself in any relevant business directories and keep your profile updated. d.Keep on top of your search engine optimisation – find as much out about it as you can and make it a daily task. e. Send email newsletters out regularly with content your customers care about – not just what you want to sell to them.
- Use the media: Good publicity is the best advertising there is. Seek every opportunity you can to get in the media. Stunts, charity work, conducting and publishing relevant research are all useful measures for getting the media’s attention. Start to develop some relationships with journalists and maintain regular contact.
- Develop channel/ referral relationships: Look at how you can increase referrals through relationships with channel partners (industry associations, affiliate businesses) to see how you can do some mutual back scratching to support each other through tougher times. You may be able to do a joint event with an associated business targeting the same customers and share the costs and the rewards.
- Make sure all your marketing is measured: Investigate how your customers find out about you. Track your conversions and how much each lead and sale costs you. If you can’t measure what you are doing – don’t do it. Mediums such as direct marketing, telemarketing, search engine marketing, and PR are all highly traceable.
- Have good sales processes: Focus on increasing your conversions and not just the number of new leads or enquiries. Do some research on unconverted leads to find out why they aren’t buying from you. Invest in some sales training for your sales team. Do some mystery shopping to find out what your customer is experiencing and what opportunities there are to increase the number of products you can sell to them.
- Add value and over deliver: Thank your customers and find ways you can add value. When times are tough, trusted relationships are really important. Great service will ensure your customers stick with you and don’t take any risks with new business relationships.
- Don’t give up: Keep listening to customers, reading media, books and relevant business articles to keep you thinking about your business and how you can adapt. If you keep learning through customer feedback and constantly thinking about how you can innovate your offering you will survive and quite possibly prosper.
- Get paid – It’s not really a marketing tip, however you have to make sure people pay you. Stay on top of your receivables and follow up as soon as a payment slips. Happy customers generally pay their bills so constant communication is the key. Happy marketing and keep on learning.
Michelle Gamble, Founder, Marketing Angels. Marketing Angels are proud to be working with the ARA to deliver marketing that works to ARA members via ARA Marketing Services. ARA members will receive a 5% discount on marketing services. ARA Marketing Services will support growing businesses with access to a talented team of marketing experts, helping members determine the right marketing approach and working with them to implement it. For more information visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041.
Article courtesy of Australian Retailers Association 