There are many ways in which to market your business. Much depends on what kind of business it is. For instance, if you have an online business you run from home, you will need a website to showcase all your goods, or to describe your services if that’s what you offer.
A bricks and mortar business may also have a website in order to help with branding, to showcase goods or services and to get the word out about its existence. However, the fact that it can be seen from the street as people walk past is also a good advertisement. It is essential that your store or business facade is attractive and eye-catching and tells people exactly what you offer.
You can also have brochures to drop in letterboxes and ads in the local paper or one that goes further afield, such as a national paper or magazine. For instance, if you offered accommodation such as B&B, you could advertise in a magazine that was available nationally.
Word of mouth is one of the best ways to advertise, so giving quality service and interacting with customers in a friendly and helpful way is a wonderful way to advertise that will cost you nothing.
When advertising online there are several ways to go. Offer comments on your website and be sure to reply to them. Offer a freebie of some kind in exchange for an email address, then send out regular emails – not all of them need to push for a sale. Often, customers appreciate pertinent information.
Then there are online ads known as pay per click (PPC) adwords that can bring in a lot of custom if they are done right. Social media can also play a big part in advertising your business. Facebook offers both a business page and PPC ads. One way to use these ads is to send potential customers to your website so you can get their email address. You can then contact them with your offers. A business page on its own is free and can be a good way to start off, especially if you have lots of friends that will be happy to ‘Like’ your page to get the ball rolling.
One thing to remember about advertisements is that they need to be clear and concise so that the reader knows exactly what you have to offer and how to contact you. In addition, it has to be eye-catching and make the reader want to click. Without this the ad won’t perform very well. If you do PPC ads, it’s a good idea to have it done by experts who have had lots of experience in setting up and testing these kinds of ads. It can really mean the difference between success and failure, important when you have to pay for each click whether it brings in a sale or not.