If you’ve just started a business, you may have discovered how difficult it can be to promote your services.
Selling your business is difficult. Not only do you have to perform your task at hand, but you also have to worry about getting the word out in a profitable way. You have to compete with others for someone’s attention, which, even when you have a superior product, can be difficult.
Fortunately, if you put the time and effort, and maybe some money, into promoting yourself locally or nationally, you’ll be surprised at the good results.
Here are five ways to gain a leg up on the competition and sell your business:
traditional advertising
Although traditional advertising is quickly being replaced by newer, more trackable forms of advertising, it can still be an incredibly powerful way to sell your business if done right. Whether it’s on TV, the newspaper, the radio, or a billboard, you can really get the word out about your product or service. Traditional advertising is better if you’re trying to reach consumers rather than businesses, but it can work regardless of what you’re doing.
Facebook/Google/digital advertising
Digital advertising is rapidly absorbing a larger percentage of total ad revenue at large companies. There are a number of reasons for this. First of all, digital advertising is extremely trackable. If someone finds out about your website, they know exactly where it came from. You know how many people clicked on your ad, how long they spent on the site, and whether they converted to a sale. It’s also intuitive enough that someone with basic social media knowledge can figure it out.
search engine optimization
Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, is a very powerful tool for increasing your website’s online presence. SEO works very well if you have a product that doesn’t have very tough competition locally. For example, if you wanted to rank for “hose protector in New Orleans,” you might rank number one because not many people are trying to rank for that term. Something like soccer, which is much broader, is harder to come by.
Sales/Group
Traditional sales are always a good way to attract people to the store and spread word of mouth. Although you might take a hit that day, you’ll likely get it back through word of mouth.
public relations campaign
Simple PR tactics like press releases, blog spreads, and media buying can work extremely well with the right effort and a little knowledge of the field. Especially if you already have some relationships with news stations or reporters, getting an interview or even a mention can do wonders for your brand. Even better, if you get picked up by one station, you have a better chance of being picked up by several more and getting coverage in newspapers or on the radio.
If you can promote your business through word of mouth, you have a great chance of beating your competition. Even if you don’t have money to spend, if you get creative, you can do a great job.