Marketing can be one of your largest business expenses, particularly if your business is unknown and you’re just starting off. If your business has a storefront on a well-traveled street here in Alameda, you’re in luck. If not, you have some work to do.  

New business owners who haven’t tackled marketing for business before may be shocked at the amount of work needed to be successful at digital marketing (the kind of marketing that helps people get to know, like and trust you through virtual techniques). It seems like it would be easy just “hanging out” on social media talking about your business. But to move the needle you need more than just time spent.  

You can accomplish a successful marketing campaign through digital and content marketing that requires very little money. Twenty years ago a new business would’ve had to invest huge amounts of money in an ad campaign and radio spots to drive traffic. Today, you can create a cult following through social media and digital interaction with a minimal financial investment, outside of time.

Here are three additional ideas to get you started. 

Content Marketing 

It’s estimated about 70% of customers perform research independently before making a purchase. This is one of the many reasons content marketing is so effective. Content marketing aims at producing content your audience finds valuable. It can be in the form of a blog, podcast, webinar, e-book, infographic, article, or other format.  

Providing this valuable content does a number of things such as: 

• Drives traffic to your website 
• Encourages people to share your content 
• Helps your customers with their buying decision 
• Promotes you/your business as a thought leader in the industry you serve 
• Helps people get to know you and like you (two important points when trying to close a sale) 
• Shows Google and other search engines (including social channels) that your business is legitimate and worth ranking highly in organic search 

That’s a lot of marketing bang for your time to produce content in an area you are an expert in.

For even further reach, you can create a larger piece of content that your audience is really interested in and place it behind a “gate” on your website. Visitors can have the free piece if they sign up to be “in the know” and receive periodic (and helpful) information from you. All they need to provide is a name and valid email address. The content is theirs and you have a way to stay in touch. 

This is referred to as a lead magnet and it is a great way to stay connected while your future customer makes their buying decision. Keep reading to see how the lead magnet fits into a drip campaign.

Drip Campaigns 

This is particularly effective marketing tactic if you have a long sales cycle or you are a business that wants to build its repeat customer base. Create an email marketing campaign that provides your list (those who have requested to be on your mailing list or have signed up for content.) with helpful information. This could be tips, things to consider, best practices, discounts, flash sales, etc.  

You can begin an email marketing campaign with an inexpensive service like MailChimp, mailerlite, or ConstantContact.   

Create a Group (on or off social)

Birds of a feather flock together. Depending on the nature of your business, you can work with existing community groups, or create your own, to entice more people to your place of business. For instance, a coffee shop might approach a local writer’s group or book club to start meeting at their location.  

You can also start your own MeetUp and host it at your business after hours (or stay open later just for your group). Enticing people to walk in the door is the first step to getting people to remember you. The price to do this is minimum (MeetUp groups have a maintenance fee to be on the MeetUp site) and may even yield a source of revenue for you when people come to your business. 

Some businesses also create Facebook groups to encourage their customers to talk about what they have in common or the type of information they need. For instance, an acupuncturist may start a group about alternative medicine ideas or healthy living, while a plumber may start a group for new homeowners on home maintenance. To do this successfully, you want to understand what your customers need and what interests them.

These marketing ideas yield results through consistent practice. They take time but they also build loyal audiences because your customers get to know, like, and trust you. For the greatest success, they should be implemented alongside your paid marketing.