In order for any business to reach out to its customers effectively, they need a sound marketing plan in place, and a good execution plan in practice. Meanwhile, with limited budgets many small businesses find it challenging to come up with solutions that will help them make the most of their marketing budgets. In this article, I will point out a few facts that can help small businesses address this challenge.
Let’s get started.
Since our goal here is to find a solution that will place your business in front of your customers at a low cost (and make the most of your marketing budget), we First need to find out where a majority of your customers go to for the information they want including information about your business. Second, we need to identify what tools customers often use to access the information they want. Third, we need to find ways to connect the first and second steps above to place your business in front of customers.
First, today the Internet is where a majority of consumers (including yours) are going to for the information they need. Second, mobile devices like smart-phones, smart-pads and laptops are the popular tools consumers often use to access the information they need online. Third, in order to get yourself in front of the customers, you need to list your business information on the web.
At this time, the popular options you can choose from to place your business in front of the customers are: Google PPC Ads, Guest Banner Ads, Email Marketing, Text Message Marketing, Internet marketing/SEO and Website Marketing. Each of these options can help you reach your customers and you can use multiple tactics at once if you like, but if your budget is limited, your first priority should be to invest in website marketing.
Besides being a low-cost and effective marketing channel, website marketing will make your business information available to customers 24-7. If you have a provider custom design a content management system (CMS) website, you can easily make changes to your website content anytime without needing any coding experience. Your provider can also register a domain name for your business; you will own your website, as well as your domain name, as your own “online properties.” With a limited budget, website marketing is the most affordable and effective marketing channel for a small businesses to start with.
If you have some additional money, the next step should be to add Internet marketing/SEO to your online marketing campaign. This option will help your site gain more exposure to customers, and more sales to your business. If selecting a qualified SEO provider, you should expect your return on investment (ROI) to be between 300%-500%.
Since more and more consumers rely on the Internet to communicate, shop, and socialize, investing in a website marketing campaign for your business is a wise move. You should keep in mind that the next generation of consumers will be much more tech savvy than us; thus, in order for you to keep staying in front of the consumers, you have to establish a strong web presence for your business soon. Don’t wait until your competition is light-years ahead of you, to have to start playing catch-up. If you want to start and/or want to get an idea about web design costs but don’t know where to begin, contact our Minneapolis web design firm today at [email protected] or (612) 590-8080. We will prepare your business for online marketing success.