Have you ever wondered if you could think of a marketing idea that can take your business to the sky? Like the 1980s Wendy’s commercial ‘Where’s the Meat?’, Coca-Cola’s ad for ‘The Real Thing’ and Nike selling tennis shoes spreading the word ‘Just Do It’. How clever of these companies.

When people think of marketing, they tend to think of advertising which can be expensive and ineffective image-based advertising. There are many ways to position yourself as an expert and build a personal connection to attract new customers, consumers, and patients.

Effective marketing is not cheap; however, there are strategies you can implement for little or no cost.

A basic low-cost way to do market research is to get a poster and put up a picture of your ideal customer, then list your prospects’ fears and frustrations, then list your customers’ wants and aspirations. Then focus on the emotional event that caused it and the irrational dream behind it, this is where the power and advantage lies in solving the customer’s problem with your product.

Develop a customer persona profile that identifies where the customer gets information such as magazines, websites, and key people they follow on blogs. Find out what ‘watering hole/bars’ they frequent, the neighborhood they live in, the college they attended, their hobbies, favorite TV shows, associations and church they attend. Use websites and ask your target audience to collect this information.

Ideally, a small business owner should spend 35-50% of their time marketing their product. To avoid giving little importance to the marketing of your products. Write a schedule of marketing outreach events for 6-12 months. Identify marketing opportunities, what methods you will use, and when you will take action. With a timeline crafted in advance, opportunities won’t sneak up on you while you’re busy paying attention to other aspects of your business.

If you have a marketing department to support your business, make sure it looks like the customers you serve. The power of recruiting people from many different cultures, products, and industries to come together and create products for your consumers is powerful. The depth of ideas, understandings, knowledge, creativity and blending of cultures can provide the best solutions for your business to make more money.

Below is a list of 10 low-cost strategies that can help you improve your profits.

one- Join the Chamber of Commerce in your area and participate in community service events. Get involved in your community by volunteering, donating and/or sponsoring local events. It gives you the opportunity to network with other business owners and perhaps cross-promote with other locals. These monthly meetings let you know what’s happening economically in your area.

two- social media: the ability to provide information about your products throughout the web.

• Share what you do and what traders you love. Completed a new project, offered a new product, and earned a customer testimonial.
• Offer tips, advice and information on your website. Show customers how to repair, modify or improve your products. Provide product usage advice. The more customers enjoy your products, the more likely they are to buy. If you sell services, a question and answer column is a valuable addition to websites, as are “Frequently Asked Questions” pages that address simple topics related to your services. A little free advice will encourage clients to come to you with thornier problems.
• Write about it on Twitter, website, Facebook, LinkedIn, or on an industry blog. Photos and videos help others understand who you are, what you do, and how you can help them solve a problem.
• Include your website link in all company emails and other correspondence. Display the web address of your company or business prominently in your email signature. Do the same in stationery.

3- Tell your story in 90 seconds.

• has. Develop an elevator pitch story to inform others about your business. Your story should contain the following elements.

1. Who are you
2. What do you do
3. Why are you different from your competitors?
4. Why should they care about your products or services (what’s in it for them)?

• Does your message create an emotional response from your target audience demographics? Tip, use plain language when creating your message

Example: We help make your life easier by (explaining your product or service).

• Use customer testimonials to persuade your customers to buy from you. Order them from happy customers and use them, make sure they are genuine and go into detail with real names.

4- Develop a simple marketing plan for your business

There are (4) secrets to marketing commitment, investment, communication, consistency. It’s hard to maintain all four (4) without a basic plan.

• Do you make sure your plan describes how well the product or service meets the customer’s need or problem?
• Make sure your logo and marketing message uses words that represent an experience of using your product that creates an imagination in the customer that generates a profit (makes them want to buy your product or service).
• It could be ordering business cards, attending networking opportunities, booking speaking engagements, and sending out press releases about your product offerings.
• Create an email signature, with web links to your company website and a Twitter link. Also, include your company name, most recent achievement, phone number and email address, and tagline if your company has one.

5- Gather a list of previous clients and send them new information and promotional offers to reactivate some of them.

• Reward loyal customers with discounts. It will keep them coming back and help generate referrals. Good references from satisfied customers are often more effective than expensive advertising.
• Use social media to offer SMS (text message) marketing to provide existing customers with new information on discounted or clearance ‘must have’ items.

Improve customer service

Customer service is a form of advertising. You are advertising that you care, that shows

use your vehicle

Vehicle graphics are viewed by thousands of people every day. Turn your vehicle into a mobile billboard.

6- Offer free public seminars or workshops for the general public to come and find out how you can solve a problem for them and show them how approachable and helpful you are.

Golden Rule:

Your target customers need to hear your marketing messages at least 7 times to influence purchase decisions. For example, you can craft your message as a radio public service announcement to be played for free on radio stations and small Internet radio stations.

Get a piggy back

Participating in another company’s marketing can save your small business time and money.

Example: Locate near a Wal-Mart to be close to price-conscious consumers on a budget.

7- Stimulate the customer’s senses

• Talk to your customers about how they feel about your product and store experience, why they buy from you compared to other stores, they will be honest with you.
• Continually educate your customers on the benefits of buying your products.
• The more comfortable we keep our customers, the longer they will stay, the more memorable the experience they will have, and the more they will spend or pass on positive word of mouth.

Example:

Do you think the smell of freshly baked bread wafts through the entire grocery store, or does the music play by choice? (duh)

Retailers have done their best for years to stimulate shoppers and keep them looking. Scented bath spray works better than sanitizer.

8- Make yourself newsworthy

Get your company mentioned in the right media

1. For doing a good deed in the community or a humorous link to a sporting event.
2. Develop a relationship with your industry trade publications (magazines), they are always looking for ‘free relevant content’, write and write for them. It can help you appear as an “expert” to others in your industry.
3. Contact the local media. Newspaper and television reporters need reputable sources for their stories; While you may not make “news,” you can add color to a story. For example, if you are a lawyer, you can explain how the new legislation will affect local viewers. Get on as many reporter contact lists as possible.

9- Form a joint venture

• By forging an alliance with a group of small businesses or a large company, you get “the most value for your money.” Reduce your costs to enter new markets and create new distribution opportunities.
• Make offers to other businesses that serve people in your target markets to pay them for referrals or share their list with you
• Support Fundraisers

1. Donating your products or services to selected charitable events is a great way to get your name out there in the community. Make sure your target market is in attendance and your brand is well represented.

10- under your nose

• Are your suppliers doing business with you? No, call them and everyone you do business with. If your product doesn’t currently match your needs, chances are you know someone who should do business with you. At a minimum, ask to display your business cards and flyers in your office. Oops, I forgot, take a moment and make sure the people in your immediate personal circle understand what you’re selling.

go out and walk

1. Look for underused storefronts in high foot traffic areas. Approach the owner and offer to pay a small fee to advertise your business in their window or reverse it, and do the same for another business owner.

2. Scan your friends’ social networking sites Facebook, Pinterest, etc. Ask them to post an ad on the friends page about your business. Ask a friend if you can place an ad on their company website.

3. Put flyers, catalogs or brochures in each order. Make it easy for customers to buy from you. Don’t assume that a particular client knows about all the services he provides.

It can take a lifetime to build a business reputation, but 20 seconds to bring it down with the wrong message in your marketing campaign or an employee doing something that reflects negatively on your business. You, a small business owner, are the “keeper” of the image of the company you are trying to build. Monitor all press releases about your business, you and someone else review all media coverage and commercials about your business image to make sure it’s consistent with what your business is about. Most importantly, be honest in all communications, dishonesty can boomerang on you in a frightening way.

Ultimately, marketing is about making the customer aware of your product and building a trusting relationship with the customer and hopefully growing with the customer’s needs, as they expand.

Easy benefits in your pocket!