It is important for small business owners to work on their marketing strategies. Small businesses usually do not have the budget for advertisement like big companies, so they tend to miss out on reaching out for wider clientele. Thus, they tend not to make profits because they lack in sales. To make sure that your business will flourish, here are some of the best strategies to use to come up with a marketing plan that will work well for your small business.
A marketing strategy is an important tool for any business regardless of its size. The importance of marketing strategy for small business is to create awareness about your product or services and convince your customers that your product is the best option for them. A good marketing strategy ensures that you are able to reach your target audience effectively and helps to differentiate your brand from others in the market. So, before you venture out to create a marketing plan for your small business, make sure that you know what exactly works for you
Creating Campaigns That Respond Quickly to Consumer Preferences
Companies that respond quickly to consumer preferences raise consumer awareness and increase brand satisfaction and loyalty. Netflix, for example, uses other media, such as The New York Times, to spread and increase consumer awareness with lists of upcoming films and series.
Finding the Shortest Path Between the Consumer and the Brand
As social media has evolved and has become an important part of the consumer experience, successful companies have demonstrated a continuous involvement in social media, participating with timely campaigns aimed at their audiences. Oreo, for instance, rated highly by AdWeek for social media use, has campaigns that tie into major social events, such as their Vine video series, which featured Oreo cookies starring in classic horror films.
identifying Consumer Need
Marketing encompasses not only determines consumer need, it also helps create consumer need. It really begins with understanding your potential consumer. One well-known 21st-century marketing failure had to do with U.S. companies’ attempts to sell deodorants in China. What these U.S. companies failed to realize is that, biologically, ethnic Chinese do not have the same body odor issues as Westerners. They also failed to take into account that Chinese consumers commonly regard sweating as a healthy activity that – among other things – purifies the system and not, as is common among Americans, as a social problem.
It is a truism of marketing education that marketing can’t create a need, but many marketing campaigns are based on creating an awareness of a product and the desirability of owning that product. What is important is that this _awareness creates the need. S_ome common strategies for creating an awareness of the product and giving it a context that stimulates a desire to own it are:
- Demonstrating scarcity. Apple, for instance, increased the demand for the Apple 5 by cutting off further shipments of the phone for two weeks immediately after announcing the release.
- Developing a “we” bond between consumers and product, often by announcing the product first to a selected audience, and inviting consumers to participate in the development of the product or product launch.
- Interacting with social media, such as responding to consumer comments, whether favorable or unfavorable.
Responding to Consumers With Ongoing Product Development
Successful companies don’t release products and then move on to new products. They stay involved with their current products, continually modifying and improving them. Apple has been particularly adept at this strategy, with frequent updates of existing software, backed by extensive, clear information releases about the updates. This keeps customers involved. Apple has one of the highest loyalty and customer satisfaction ranking among all major brands.
Helps you identify actions needed to achieve your goals
This is where your day to day marketing activities and efforts come in place. Strategic marketing planning is a very useful activity to set your overall marketing goals, but furthermore, it helps you take a planned approach to your actions that need to be completed in order to achieve your goals.
In summary, taking a strategic approach to your marketing planning can have many benefits for your business, among which it ensures that your company is prepared for the constantly changing markets. SMART goals and a good plan for your marketing activities are key to build on your competitive advantage.
Your strategy is how you choose to introduce yourself to the world and how you continue to present yourself to your audience; building relationships, growing your business and increasing market share. Not only for your existing and potential customers but for your internal stakeholders. At Relative, we start by outlining the strategic marketing outcomes you’re looking to achieve. Next, we’ll identify who your customers are and the best way to reach them. Then, through a combination of effective, impactful creative work and the most appropriate mix of media channels we’ll make sure your audience is soon on board with your brand and message.
Assists with Marketing Communications
Your market research will help you create your brand, or image you want to establish about your business. Without marketplace research and a strategic marketing plan, you might respond to solicitations from advertising salespeople on an individual, reactionary basis, sending messages that don’t fit in with the brand identity you’ve created based on your product development efforts. A marketing strategy lets you determine if a particular magazine, radio station or website fits into your selling plans.
Helps Determine Optimal Prices
Part of a marketing strategy is setting the right price for your product or service based on what you learned in your market research. If you learned that customers want a high-end product in your category, your pricing strategy might require you to sell at prices that create a high-end perceived value. If your target customer is bargain conscious and is willing to accept fewer bells and whistles on your product in exchange for paying less, your pricing strategy will require you to sell at or below the competition’s price
Conclusion
Businesses can have a tough time thriving in today’s global economy. Small businesses need to be creative and aggressive in order to survive. Marketing strategy is a very important part of a small business’ life. A good marketing strategy will help a small business grow from an idea into a successful business.