Business promotion is to
running a successful business as practicing scales is to playing the piano
well; it may not be a thrilling activity in itself, but you just have to do it!
You should spend at least an hour a day on business promotion or planning how
to promote your business (and more is better, if you can fit the time in)!
You
promote your business by getting the word out. The first axiom of business
promotion is that you have to do this consciously. You can't rely on other
people to do it for you, no matter how great your product or service is.
1) Use every outgoing piece of paper, and every electronic
document as business promotion:
You
have business cards, but you also put out a lot of other documents in the
course of doing business. Check these to make sure you're using their
promotional possibilities to full advantage.
For
instance, business stationery is an ideal business promotion tool. Is your
business name, logo, contact information (including URL if you have one), and
slogan on your envelopes as well as on your letterhead? Or are your envelopes
only printed with your business name and return address? What a waste! Your
phone and fax numbers, your URL, and even a memorable slogan should be there,
too. It's not just an envelope, it's a business promotion tool! You're sending
it out anyway, so why not make it work for you?
The same goes for outgoing faxes,
bill payments, receipts; whatever paper you send out should carry your full
company message. And don't forget to make sure that your email has a complete
signature that provides all your business information and a promotional
tagline.
Electronic documents, such as email,
are also easy to update with your latest business promotion information,
whether it be a special price on your product or service, or letting people
know that your company has won an award. If you need information about using
signature files with particular mail programs, visit About Email Guide Heinz
Tschabitscher's Signature links.
2) Writing articles on topics related to
your business expertise is an excellent business promotion technique:
Well-written articles can provide
free advertising and build positive word-of-mouth. If you're a realtor, for
instance, you could write a piece on preparing your home to be shown. If you're
a website designer, you might write a piece about assessing website usability.
The more specific your topic, the better. Write a short biographical note, or
"blurb" about you and your business to go with the article. Then send
it out!
Where? As the goal is to promote
your business, ideally you'd like it to appear in a publication that your target market will be reading.
1) Blogs/websites - There are an astronomical number of these that are hungry for
content! Many accept, even seek out, "guest posts", blogs or articles
from people not employed by the person or business running the site.
These can be great promotional
placements for you as long as you choose the blog or website you allow to
publish your work carefully. Having one or more of your articles on a site that
gets little traffic isn't going to help you and may even hurt your business if
it's a spammy looking site. Ideally, you want to get your piece published on a
blog or website that has high traffic and has a good chance of being visited by
your prospective customers.
You also have to choose carefully in
terms of your target market. If you're selling baby clothes, getting one of
your articles published on a blog about SEO isn't going to be seen by many (if
any) of the customers you hope to impress. Getting your work on a popular blog
directly related to bringing up baby would be a much better fit.
2) Magazines - The magazine industry isn't dead yet and many of them are always
looking for content too. Once again, the trick is to get your article published
in a magazine that your target market is likely to read. Search for these
online by specific topic (i.e. baby magazines).
Freelance writing sites also provide
a great deal of information on all kinds of publications that might publish
your efforts.
3) Newspapers - are also excellent places to place your business promotion
article. Try contacting the Business editor of your local paper and pitching
your article. If this approach fails, you might be able to get your piece into
the paper by sending it in as a letter to the Editorial section.
3) Sending out press
releases is another great way to get some free business promotion:
The caveat to using press releases
as a business promotion tool is that your press release has to actually contain
information that is newsworthy, and be engaging enough to get people's
interest. Has your business recently expanded? Do you have a new product? Have
you been involved in some promotional activity such as sponsoring a charity
event? Have you or your company recently won an award? All of these are
examples of "news" that you can capitalize on to get some free
promotion for your business.
Press releases can also be published
online.
4) Spend some of your online time on
business promotion through social media:
Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are
great ways to promote your business through social media. A good example of how this
can be effective was illustrated to me recently when we had a power outage that
affected some areas of our small community. One of the local restaurants
posted on Facebook that they had power and were open for business and within an
hour they were packed with customers.
5) Use buddy marketing to promote your
business:
For example, if you send out
brochures, you could include a leaflet and/or business card of another
business, which had agreed to do the same for you. This gives you the chance to
reach a whole new pool of potential customers.
You might also plan and carry out
business promotions with complementary businesses. A pet store and a pet
grooming business, for example, might use shared advertising, or run a contest
together. This can considerably cut down the cost of business promotion, and
allow each business to use promotion techniques that would be too expensive to
implement alone.
6) Give out freebies as business
promotion:
We're all familiar with hearing or
reading advertisements that promise that the first 50 people to visit a
particular store will receive a free You fill in the blank. It could be
anything from a red rose through an ice-cream cone! We're all familiar with
this kind of spot promotion because it works. People love to receive things
that are free.
Besides using freebies as business
promotions, you can also use them regularly as customer "rewards".
For example, I recently had a picture framed; the framer had attached a free
picture hanger to the painting's wire, with a small card thanking me for my
patronage. It's only a small thing, which certainly didn't cost him much, but
as the customer, I appreciate not having to rummage through my home looking for
a suitable hanger, and can't help thinking positively about the service he
provides. What small, inexpensive things could you give out with your product
or service that will get your customer thinking good thoughts about you?
Combining business promotion with customer rewards is definitely a win-win
situation.
Still looking for more low-cost
business promotion ideas? Continue on to the next page, which discusses being a
talk show guest and giving seminars as ways to effectively promote your
business.
7) Promote your business on a talk show:
Your
local radio station or cable TV station may have programs that are looking for
guests - a great low-cost way to promote your business! Business-related
programs are ideal. Find out who the host is, and approach him or her as
willing to share your expertise on a particular topic.
Call
in programs are popular; you may be able to appear as a guest expert. If you're
a mechanic, you might offer to take call-in questions on car maintenance; if
you operate a health store, you might market yourself as an expert in herbal
remedies. Have your proposal clearly worked out before you contact the program
host, and make sure the parameters of your appearance, such as details about
plugs, are clear beforehand.
8) Promote your business by giving a seminar or presentation:
You
have expertise that other people are interested in! (You couldn't be in
business if you didn't.) Why not share that expertise and promote your business
at the same time?
For
example, a local carpet company advertises a free seminar on installation
techniques for a type of laminate flooring. Participants not only learn how to
install this type of flooring themselves, but are offered special discount
prices if they wish to purchase laminate flooring. Another local retailer who
sells goods made of stained glass offers courses on working with stained glass
on-site.
If
there's no direct tie-in to your product or service, you can still give a
presentation on a related topic. Nursery people or horticulturalists, for
instance, often give demonstrations on topics such as tree-pruning, or slide
shows of famous gardens they've visited. Although most of my business involves
providing specific writing or training services to businesses, I give
presentations on general topics such as "Promoting Your Business On A
Shoestring".
If it's not feasible to
present the seminar at your site, because you're a home-based business or just
don't have the facilities you would need, arrange to give the seminar
elsewhere. Many government-sponsored organizations, such as Business Service Centres and Economic
Development Centres, and non-profit programs are always looking for experienced
business people who are willing to give presentations. You may also be able to
arrange to present your topic through the Continuing Education branch of your
local college or university.
Scared?
Start small and start building a name by making a presentation to one of your
local groups such as your Home-Based Business Association or Business Women's
network. If public speaking terrifies you, I can't recommend Toastmasters highly enough; this organization has helped a great
many people get over this fear and be able to address groups of people. The
link I've given here will lead you to Toastmasters' groups throughout Canada.
9) Use your vehicle to promote
your business:
Mobile
business promotion isn't just for white delivery vans. Where I live, one in
every four vehicles has the name and phone number of a business decorating one
of the windows or doors. Think of all the people who see your vehicle when
you're driving around - especially if you live in a place where people often
get stuck in traffic!
You
should be able to get a pair of magnetic signs from your local source for less
than a hundred dollars. Or, for an elegant promotional look, you could order Promo Plates, which are quite inexpensive at $29.95
USD plus shipping and handling.
10) Promote your business
through your leisure activities:
One
savvy businessman I know relaxes by being part of a rock band. Guess what?
Every time his band's gigs are mentioned in the newspaper, the piece also
mentions the name of his business!
You
may not be part of a band yourself, but everyone does something for
"fun". Whether your chosen leisure activity is working on a Spitfire
Restoration project, rock-climbing, or shopping, there are all kinds of ways to
promote your business while you do what you love to do.
Where's
the harm in shopping or rock-climbing wearing a T-shirt that has the name of
your business prominently displayed? Or in taking your business cards
everywhere you go and clipping your card to the slip when you pay for a
purchase by card or cheque? Get in the habit of doing business promotion
wherever you go and you'll be surprised how word-of-mouth builds.
If
your leisure activity involves a group, you might ask if you can include your
business information on all of their out-going paper, or ask if you can at
least give everyone a brochure.
And
with any kind of group activity, there's always the opportunity to promote your
business by letting other people know what you do and how it could benefit
them. This doesn't mean that you talk about nothing else, but there are bound
to be chances to talk about your business that crop up during normal
conversation.
These
ten business promotion ideas are just some of the ways you can promote your
small business without spending a small fortune. With a little experimentation
and time, you'll find out which of these ideas work best for you - and best get
the word out about your small business.
Source : http://sbinfocanada.about.com
