You’re on a mission to amplify your brand, showcase your products and services, and tell the whole world about what you do.
The problem?
Your marketing budget is more in the red than a swarm of Manchester United supporters.
We totally get it; it sucks when you have a lot of marketing to do and no money to do it with. Nearly 40% of small businesses spend less than £1,000 on marketing each year. When a full-page ad in a trade magazine can cost that much, it’s a very sobering thought.
The good news?
There are still a lot of small business marketing ideas that are low-cost and no-cost.
If you’re hovering over your piggy bank with a hammer like a character in a Looney Tunes cartoon, here are 12 ways you can market yourself and still have money left over!
1. Get set up on social media
When it comes to small business marketing ideas, getting started on social media is one of the best things you can do.
Setting up a basic account on most social media platforms is free, and you can use your account to build your customer base. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn come with free analytics too, so you can find out more about what your followers like and dislike.
So, what do you need to do when marketing your small business on social media?
Pick one or two platforms your target audience uses, and post regularly. Also, engage with your customers and answer their questions – social media is a two-way street, after all.
2. Film a video
Back in the day, it took a lot of time and money to create and edit a video. You needed a massive camcorder and an expensive computer loaded up with high-tech editing software.
Nowadays? You press ‘record’ on your smartphone, and you’re all set!
When considering digital marketing ideas for small businesses, a video always works well. They’re cheap to make, you can edit them on the go, and quickly upload them to social media or YouTube.
Customers love videos too. They currently account for over 80% of internet traffic, so if you’re not creating videos, you’re definitely missing out!
What can you make a video about?
It’s entirely up to you! For example, you can interview one of your team, do a case study with your best customer, or create an explainer video about your product or service.
3. Start a blog
If you have a website, starting a blog is one of the best things you can do to attract new customers. Writing regular, thought-provoking content helps with your search engine optimisation (SEO) efforts and can establish you as a thought leader in your industry.
You can also repurpose your content as social media posts and videos, meaning you save lots of valuable time when it comes to implementing your small business marketing strategy!
Not sure where to begin when it comes to blogging?
Here’s how you can plan months of titles in eight simple steps!
4. Organise a competition
After all, we all like free stuff!
Hosting a competition is a fantastic way to generate lots of engagement for your business, and introduce your brand to new people.
For example, let’s say you run a restaurant and want to offer a free meal for four as a prize. You could post a message on your social media platform of choice, asking entrants to tag the three people they’d invite with them if they won. This means that with each competition entry, you’re introducing your brand to three new potential customers.
Don’t be afraid to think outside the box when it comes to promotion, like this caption competition!
5. Optimise your local SEO
We talk about local SEO services a lot at Bubblegum Search, and with good reason!
If you’re looking at how you can utilise digital marketing for your small business, a tactical approach to local SEO is essential.
Local SEO is the smaller sibling of regular SEO – however, just because it’s smaller doesn’t mean it’s not as effective! As a small business marketing idea, local SEO is about making your business stand out in search engines so local and regional customers can easily find you.
According to HubSpot, over one in four local searches end up in a purchase – we like those odds!
Some ways you can optimise your site for local SEO include optimising your pages for local terms, creating a Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business), and making sure your website is mobile-friendly.
After all, many of your customers will be looking for your website while they’re out and about!
(And remember, if you need a little extra help with fine-tuning your local SEO, you can always count on us.)
6. Create an email marketing list
We’re halfway through our list of small business marketing ideas, and it’s time to talk about all things email!
An email marketing list is a cost-effective way to keep customers up to date with what’s going on in your business, let them know about new products, and even offer them exclusive deals.
Plus, most marketing automation platforms are free to use.
Not convinced that email marketing is the way?
Email marketing has one of the best returns on investments going. For every pound you spend, you can expect to receive £36 back!
7. Jump on a podcast
Whether Spotify, iTunes, or Audible, podcasts are big news right now. And the best thing, there are podcasts available for every niche going.
Featuring on someone else’s podcast is a great way to get free publicity for your business. The key is finding the right one. While you’re probably not going to get a guest slot on ‘Diary of a CEO’, there are still lots of cool podcasts to pitch to.
Search your podcast streaming service of choice for podcasts in your industry and see if they accept guests. You can then send the host a personalised email letting them know how you can add value to their show.
(If you do end up featuring on a podcast let us know; we’d love to check it out!)
8. Set up a referral scheme
It’s all very well and good doing your own marketing, but what if you could get other people to do it for you?
Enter stage left, the humble referral scheme.
A referral scheme (or programme) is when an existing customer receives a reward for recommending your products or services to someone else.
As an example, let’s say Andy encourages Betty to sign up for your subscription box scheme. You give Betty a free box to welcome her to the business, and give Andy a free box to say thank you for bringing in a new customer.
You win, Andy wins, Betty wins… everyone wins!
The great thing is that referral schemes work in pretty much every line of business. You can even use them when it comes to hiring new staff!
9. Write some guest posts
We’ve talked about writing blogs for your website, but how do you feel about writing blogs for other websites?
Guest posting is an excellent way to get backlinks for your business. A backlink is a link to your website from another website.
High-quality backlinks from reputable sites show search engines like Google that your company is reliable and well-trusted, giving you a welcome boost in the search engine results.
Look for websites that allow guest posting and editorials, and pitch an article that you think will work well. Then, if you get the nod, it’s time to get writing!
10. Send a press release
When it comes to marketing for small business ideas, sending a press release will make more people aware of your brand.
Got a new product or service?
Press release. Promoted a member of staff? Press release. Took part in a charity event. Press release. Won an award? Press r…. you get the idea.
One of the main challenges regarding press releases is knowing who to contact. You’re more likely to get somewhere by sending an email to a specific person rather than a generic inbox.
It’s always a good idea to make friends with journalists on social media – LinkedIn is probably the best place to do this. That way, they will let you know if they’re on the hunt for interesting stories!
11. Do some influencer marketing
Like referral schemes, influencer marketing works so well as you’re using other people to endorse your business on your behalf, on either social media or their own websites.
And given that 61% of people trust recommendations from influencers, you’re more likely to grasp that all-important sale.
Before you send that DM to Kylie Jenner and ask if she’ll promote your range of sandwiches, remember that anyone can be an influencer, regardless of how many followers they have. As long as they’ve got a loyal following and are trusted in their niche, you’re good to go.
A few things to remember when it comes to doing influencer marketing right. Some influencers will work for free products and services, while others will want payment.
Giving the influencer a unique discount code is a helpful way of seeing how much revenue they’ve driven to your website. And remember to do everything in line with ASA guidelines; otherwise you and the influencer will get in trouble.
12. Promote your website everywhere (and we mean everywhere!)
Our final tip on our list of small business marketing ideas?
Publicise your website everywhere you can.
Your website is your digital shop front. By encouraging as many people to visit it as possible, you’re increasing the chances of some of them converting into leads and sales.
Think about all the different places, both digital and in the real world, you can show your website off.
For example:
- You can add it to your email signature
- You can include it on your invoices and letterheads
- You can pop it on your business cards
- You can whack it on your vehicle livery
- You can embroider it on your uniforms
(If you really want to, you can get it tattooed on your arm. But that’s definitely a last resort, and you didn’t get that idea from us!)
Bonus tip! Get someone to manage your digital marketing for you
There’s a lot you need to think about when running a small business. There’s sales, supplies, customer support… and payroll isn’t going to sort itself out!
If you want to focus on the day-to-day running of your business, it’s worth getting an agency to look after your marketing for you. A good agency will drive traffic to your site, ensure you rank in the search engines, and provide you with a healthy return on your initial investment. What’s not to like?
We hope you’ve enjoyed this introduction to small business marketing strategies and that this article has given you lots to think about!
Ask Bubblegum for small business marketing ideas
At Bubblegum Search, we specialise in digital marketing for small businesses.
Our team of experts will create and implement a marketing strategy that’s unique as you are. So whether you need help with SEO, content marketing or getting those all-important backlinks, we’ve got you covered.
Get your free marketing plan today and see how we can help grow your business without breaking the bank!