Social Media Marketing Blog

Has your business growth hit a wall due to the lingering recession? If so, continue reading.  Two years ago, did you see this economic monsoon coming? Maybe you did, your business adapted and you remained unscathed.  Chances are, however, you did not see a recession on its way and you and your business have been wounded by the economic conditions and environment. With that said, companies have to gain leverage and position themselves in their respective markets by becoming the number one choice to consumers through cost effective Social Media Marketing.
With traditional advertising costs through the roof, companies need to find more effective ways to target their markets, specifically through online media outlets PR, banner advertising, SEO, blogging, and branding.

Here are some low cost ways of effective non traditional advertising:

1. Research and understand the goals, values, and behaviors of your market and market participants. Once you have a thorough understanding of your market, you will know how to deliver messages effectively.

2. If you decide to hire an agency to manage your advertising, make sure you are the only account they are managing in your market. If the company manages any competitors, look elsewhere.  If not, this could cause competitive problems and the level of service and performance within the market will suffer.

3. Explain what your USP (unique selling proposition) is and why you are better than all the rest of your competition. A USP is the one element that makes your business better than other businesses (superior customer service, late hours, 24 hour customer service, best prices, or highest quality, etc).

4. Find the right online avenues to advertise. There is nothing worse then placing an advertisement in an e-magazine with little or no relevance to your market.

5. Create an irresistible offer. You want to attract prospects and make them contact you immediately. In recessionary environments, offer a discount for first time buyers; offer an introductory period, or a gift that has a high perceived value.  Be careful to promote this offer as “limited time” only as customers could tend to expect lower prices and better deals, even as the economy as a whole improves.

6. Diversify your marketing efforts. Use online advertising, blogging, social media marketing with branding and public relations to get the best results. When working with a low budget, you should determine where your marketing dollars are generating the best Return on Investment (ROI) to prevent careless spending.