Competition is fierce for modern business owners, regardless of their niche and industry. Whether you’re looking to compete with other small businesses or major international brands, it can be tough to get your message to rise above the noise.
Of course, this is precisely what you need to do if you hope to find success. This is why it’s crucial to take a strategic approach to branding and marketing. From working with a creative design agency to crafting the customer experience, here are five easy methods for small brands to rise above their competitors.
Bring in the Professionals
As a small business owner, you’re often the sole member of the departments in your enterprise. Trying to be creative on top of all your other responsibilities is a big ask, especially when that creativity needs to be data-driven and perfectly in tune with your target market.
Since branding and marketing are so central to your success and profitability, these are some of the most important aspects of your business to outsource to professionals. With a creative design and marketing agency on your side, you’ll have access to top talent and data-driven strategies. You’ll also be free to focus on what you love and do best.
Focus on quality
No matter how perfectly orchestrated your marketing plan is, if you don’t have the quality to back it up, your customers won’t stick around. You’ve probably heard by now that word-of-mouth recommendations are the most effective way to win new customers. While you do need to get those first few customers before you can hope to benefit from word-of-mouth promotions, the key thing to worry about is ensuring your products or services are so stellar that people can’t help but praise you to their friends and family.
Encourage Loyalty
There are many ways to devise loyalty programs that reward customers for returning to your brand. You can offer a free product after every 10 purchases, discounts at certain milestones, birthday gifts, early access to new product releases, and so much more. You’re limited by little more than your imagination.
If it fits your products, you could also offer a subscription service. For example, if you sell specialty coffee beans, you can offer a discounted price for customers who sign up to automatically receive a new bag every month.
Encourage Reviews and Referrals
While many people love leaving positive reviews and recommending brands they appreciate, there are just as many customers who’ll keep quiet unless prompted to take action. So, to get the power of referrals working for you, actively encourage it.
To do this, you don’t need to provide incentives (in fact, it can be unethical to do so if you design the incentives to favor positive feedback). Instead, simply ask for reviews. You’ll be pleasantly surprised to see how many people will happily review a product after receiving an email asking them to leave feedback.
Become an Authority in your Niche
Your first step here is to include a blog on your website and keep it updated with relevant, helpful articles. It’s also worth publishing a monthly newsletter as this will also keep your brand front and center in people’s minds. Finally, seek out opportunities to speak at relevant events and offer expert insight to journalists. To get started, you can register yourself as an industry expert on sites. Above all else, remember that brand-building takes time. You don’t become a trusted industry expert overnight. So, put the work in, remain authentic, have patience, and most importantly, have faith in yourself and what you have to offer the world.
Jason is the Marketing Manager at a local advertising company in Australia. He moved to Australia 10 years back for his passion for advertising. Jason recently joined BFA as a volunteer writer and contributes by sharing his valuable experience and knowledge.
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