Setting up a business for the first time is exciting. You will have spent many hours dreaming up your business idea and nurturing it into fruition. Rather like preparing for the birth of a baby! Once you have your niche and registered your new business with the necessary authorities, your next step is to market your business. Marketing will ensure your business reaches your target market. Unsuccessful marketing techniques may mean that your business becomes non viable, as without sales there will be no profit.
Marketing is a complex business, but essential for success. There are many marketing experts available and lots of them specialise in a particular niche. Digimax Dental are a marketing agency focusing on helping dental practices stand out from the crowd. Research your niche and take advice. Any investment made will be money well spent.
Here are some marketing strategies you could consider.
Traditional advertising methods
With everyone appearing to be connected online these days, it’s easy to forget the usefulness of traditional forms of advertising. The visual nature of traditional advertising and having information customers can refer to again and again, still has importance. You could consider placing an advert in a newspaper, magazine or a card in your local shop. Many areas in the country have community magazines which reach thousands of potential customers, they are also relatively cheap to advertise in.
More expensive forms of traditional advertising include television, radio and billboards. Although expensive your brand will be “seen” by many people and your investment will benefit your business tenfold.
Online presence
The majority of people search for products and services online in today’s climate. Most sales and communication also takes place online. It is essential therefore to have a fully functioning, professional website which features high on search engines. Your business should feature on the first page or two, as this is where customers will make their choice of business to use.
Make sure your website has the latest cyber security installed. Customers need to be able to trust your business in the safe transfer of money and data. Cyber security will also lower the chance of data protection breaches from occurring.
Social media platforms
Never underestimate the power of social media as a marketing too. Although a fairly recent phenomena, used effectively your brand could potentially reach thousands if not millions of people!
It is important to be consistent in your interaction on social media and it is actually quite time consuming. The more you engage with your followers the better return you will see. Social media platforms enable you to get your brand “seen” as well as allows you to respond to questions, queries and potential sales leads. You should aim to build up a friendly rapport.
Take amazing photos of your products and explain your services effectively. Try to display your brands logo at ever opportunity so that it becomes recognised within the marketplace.
The very nature of social media means that you will experience negativity on occasions. Always remain professional in your respones, if you respond rashly without thinking you could potentially affect your business reputation.
This is just a small snapshot of marketing methods. Research the best one for you.
