When you run a small business and are responsible for everything from customer enquiries to making the brew round, finding time to focus on marketing can be difficult. Never the less it is essential to ensure that your brand image is maintained, your customers have access to the latest information and potential customers discover and choose you over the competition.
To help you get started, we have pulled together a few recommended ways to not only maintain but also grow your business if you still can't find the time or lack the know-how then Little Acorn Digital Marketing is always on hand to help!
Re-brand
The chances are, your small business already has its own brand image, including a recognisable logo and a specific ‘tone of voice’ with your personality shining through. Whilst a consistent brand image is essential, it is also important to update it every once in a while.
Invest in an updated logo which is based heavily on your existing one and uses a similar colour pallet so that you are instantly recognisable to your existing customers but try to adopt a more modern look.
You may also want to introduce a new tag line for your business to reflect its main ethos and objectives to help potential customers get a feel for what you are all about.
Website Re-design
If you don’t already have a website for your small business then you are one step behind your biggest competition and you really should give us a call!
If you do have a website and it was built more than 2 years ago then it is likely in need of a sprucing up.
First of all, update your website with your new logo, tag line and colour pallet and you will be surprised by the instant improvement.
Secondly, ensure that all of the information regarding your business, services, products and pricing are up to date to avoid frustrated customers.
And lastly, find ways to make your website more modern, slick and functional for it's users. Technology is developing at a fast rate meaning that there are always new and exciting features available for your website from contemporary layouts to apps and widgets which will set you apart from the competition and improve your chances of securing new business.
Create or Update Your Google My Business Listing
Again, if you don’t already have a Google My Business listing (the information box which appears in the right hand side of Google when you search your business name) then you really should get this set up. Not only does it provide your business description, services, location, contact information, opening hours, reviews and photographs for people searching for your business but it also puts you on the map (literally the Google Map) when people are searching for the products or services you offer in your location.
If you do already have a Google My Business Listing, ensure that all of your business details are up to date and if you want to make sure that your business is visible to as many potential customers as possible then enquire about having your listing search engine optimised for all of the terms that those savvy searchers are using.
Send an Email Campaign
If during your time trading you have been clever enough to collect email addresses from your existing and potential customers in a way which complies with data protection regulations then make the most of them!
A new year is a great time to send out an email campaign to let your customers know about your exciting business plans for the year ahead, the amazing products or services you will be offering and also any special offers.
Run a PPC Campaign
In this day and age when a person is looking for a product or service, their first port of call is often Google. As I’m sure you have noticed, the largest businesses and those who have invested in search engine optimisation dominate the search engines organic listings. If you haven’t yet invested in search engine optimisation or you have only recently done so and are waiting to reap the rewards then PPC is the perfect solution to bridge that gap.
PPC stands for ‘pay per click’ and refers to the paid adverts in Google which you only pay for when somebody clicks on your advert. The great thing about PPC is that businesses of any size get to be seen, putting you right up there with the big players.
With PPC you are also in full control of what you spend. You can set, adjust, pause and play your monthly budget in suit your businesses cash flow, needs and seasonality.
If you would like further information any of the digital marketing services above or wold like a bespoke business review, recommendation and quote then please feel free visit our website or drop us an email today -