Online marketing is a boon for small businesses.
It’s wonderful that smaller businesses can compete with larger firms on a level playing ground. Modern marketing is more than just advertising. There are many ways to increase exposure for your business with expertise and time, as well as hard cash.
On the flip side, however, there are so many options that it can be overwhelming and you may feel lost.
This article will help you do that. This article outlines a variety of online marketing strategies for small businesses. Some of these require ongoing work. Others are tasks that can be picked up and done in an hour.
These ideas don’t require a large financial commitment, making them both time- andcost-effective.
Let’s get started.
Register for a Google My Business Account
It’s easy to create a Google My Business Account. And it’s totally free.
Google My Business connects with what Google calls an “Business Profile”. These panels will no doubt have been seen before. These panels show important business information, such as location, hours of operation, customer reviews, and other details. This profile can also be linked to Google Maps so that your business appears on that platform.
It is worth taking 30 minutes to “claim” your business. Provide accurate and complete information. You can even include keywords related to what you do for SEO (more details below).
Increase your website’s SEO
SEO can seem daunting and complicated. For most businesses, however, there are simple, quick wins that can be both cost- and time-effective.
A simple audit of your website can reveal missing meta descriptions, need for site maps, or opportunities to include more keywords in your content. These are all relatively easy tasks to do if they are separated. SEO software can be used to assist with keyword research and site audit.
It’s important to mention Google’s growing focus on “Page Experience” when discussing SEO. This refers primarily to your site’s speed. It’s worth taking the time to resolve this issue if you haven’t already.
Start a blog
It can seem like everyonehas one today – and that’s true for most businesses. Many companies make a mistake when they blog, publishing poor content or worse, publishing just a few posts before letting everything go.
Two key elements are frequency and quality. Your customer base will be most interested in what you have to say, so focus on writing the best blog articles on these topics. You should keep them coming in a regular fashion so that both your readers andGoogle are aware of your blog’s activity.
Good blog content requires a lot of time. There is no cost if it’s created by you or someone else.
Create a Referral or Affiliate Program
It is always a good idea to have others sell your business for you.
Referral and affiliate programs work for any type of business, regardless if you sell physical products or services in person or online. There are many methods to implement these schemes. You can use automated affiliate networks or make bespoke arrangements with other professionals in your industry.
It is logical to see this from a blank sheet of paper. Is there an audience that is interested in what you are selling? Then, find a mutually beneficial way of tapping into this audience.
These arrangements allow you to only spend money on the revenue you generate, which makes this strategy very cost-effective. You can set up an automated affiliate platform in a matter of minutes.
Get involved in Facebook groups
Facebook marketing, like blogging, is something many companies do but don’t do very well.
Facebook groups can be a great place for marketing your products and services. This doesn’t mean you have to create your own groups. It is worth taking the time to learn about the most active and active groups in your industry and participating in them.
It is crucial that you participate in these groups in a manner that is truly beneficial to the community. It is easy to become unpopular and be ignored by the community if you jump in and try to sell.
Playing longer games is acceptable and fair. You can offer genuine advice and support for a long time, so neither moderators nor members will mind if you occasionally promote. You’re also building your brand and increasing your visibility.
You must set aside time for this, but not too much.
Collaborate with Influencers
Many people are left cold by the world of “influencers”, and it isfair that some businesses find working with influencers more appealing than others.
Influencer marketing can be a great way to make a big impact in certain niches, such as fashion and skincare or healthy living.
It’s better to consider genuine partnerships rather than just financial relationships if you choose to take this route. Influencers who are passionate about your product are better than cynical and money-driven pitches. Modern internet users are able to see through most of the former.
A quick boost of sales can be achieved by a endorsement from the right person and the right audience.
Connect with LinkedIn
LinkedIn is an important platform that many businesses don’t understand. Many people visit LinkedIn and have a look around but don’t know how to use it.
This opens up a world of opportunity for anyone willing to put in time. Another example of online marketing in which you can pay for your efforts rather than the money.
This is not about self-promotion. LinkedIn members tend to ignore this. If you create useful, authentic content such as videos or informative articles, people will notice.
Start Email Marketing
Companies that are the most successful and wealthy never miss an opportunity to get customer email addresses. They know that the money is in the list.
Email marketing allows you to have a direct conversation with your customers. It is a medium that continues to be popular despite the many new ways of communicating online. Statista predicts that there will be another half-a-billion global email accounts by 2025.
Email marketing is easier than you think. Email marketing software is easy to set up and many offer a free tier to help your company grow its email list. Once you have 500 or more members, the charges will increase.
This is one of those projects that you can do in a few hours.
Use Leverage Curated Content
Utilizing curated content serves two purposes. First, it allows you to engage your audience with more information than what you can produce. It also helps you stay on the pulse of your industry.
Curated content will help you provide more information in your blogs and newsletters, and show that you are at the forefront industry developments. Scoop.it is an automated platform that allows you to keep a large volume of content flowing with minimal human intervention or cost.
Repurpose and recycle content
You don’t need to only use good content once. Take this example:
- You can use quotes from your articles to create social media posts.
- Video slideshows can be created from key points in articles.
- Blog posts can be expanded and compiled into courses.
- You can use snippets of longer content to make your way through anything, from Linkedin posts and Instagram stories.
The most successful internet marketers know how to reuse content repeatedly. Different media have different audiences so it’s notthe case people will notice (or even mind) that you do more than one thing using your content.
This strategy can also have a significant impact on time and cost. For example, a blog post could be used as the basis for a video series or a collection posts for different social media networks. It is worth investing more time or money if that’s the case.
Make sure to do it once and make sure you do it again.
Host webinars
Another example of how technology can help small businesses compete with large players is the webinar.
Consumers are enamored with getting something for free. Webinars allow you to offer that while also having a captive audience for the product you are selling.
One thing is really important: You must make the webinar worthwhile no matter whether someone buys what it’s selling. Share your most valuable insights and advice, and make the webinar so worth it that people will want to know more.
Although it may seem daunting, hosting a webinar is another example of how technology can simplify things. You can host a webinar if you are able to handle an online conference call. You may not need to do much preparation if you have already considered the point above about reusing content.
The Final Word
These small business marketing tips are just a few of the many things you can do online to help your business grow. You won’t want to do them all, so it’s less likely than you think.
It is important to only focus on one couple at a given time. We’ve found that none of them require a huge time commitment or financial commitment. These tasks can be completed in a few hours and fit into your day. Which one are you going first?
Scoop.it Blog: Online Marketing for Small Businesses: Time- and Cost-Effective Tips
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