Another year is rapidly drawing to a close. As you look back on what your small business has accomplished during the past nine months, you see that there are a few gaps in your marketing plan of things you meant to do but somehow never quite accomplished. Well there are still three months left in the year, so here are some fourth quarter marketing strategies you can implement now to set a solid foundation for business growth next year:
• Quit isolating yourself: One of the big draws for some entrepreneurs is the chance to work on their own, but this doesn’t mean you can hide either. Get out of your comfort zone and do one thing that involves other people by the end of the year. Speak to the local business club or chamber, place an ad in a local publication, or attend a local trade show – whatever puts you out in front of a new audience that could use your services.
• Study your competition: Looking at what your competitors do is a great way to learn how to improve your business. If you don’t know your competitors, that is a crucial first step. Then study what they do for their marketing, and determine whether any of their tactics could be helpful for your business. Definitely try to find out what kind of competitive advantages you have so you can incorporate them into your communications.
• Be mobile: If you already have a website, that’s a good first step. But, in this day of digital technology you have to make sure it is also mobile friendly. Ask your friends and customers to look at your website using their smartphones and give you an honest assessment. If it takes too long to load, doesn’t format properly, or can’t provide instant access to necessary information, you’ve got your work cut out for you. Businesses which have a retail component have an even bigger job to do to make sure prospective customers can find them at a moment’s notice.
• Get visual: Prospects are very interested in getting information in short visual bursts, and video is just the tool to achieve that goal. There is really no reason you can’t produce a short video with today’s technology. You can post it on your website, Facebook page, and even YouTube to give prospects a chance to get to know you using sight, sound and emotion.
• Start and use that Facebook page: You must be on social media in order to communicate with your prospects and customers, so take advantage of the many opportunities Facebook offers to communicate. Post a daily tip, upload a short video, conduct an interactive session, and provide links to informative articles. Think about using the new “boost” strategy to send your message out to targeted demographics in your market area.
Time may be short, but there is still time. Get started now and watch your sales grow in 2017. Good luck!