Do small businesses really need a marketing strategy?
TL/DR version: Yes.
Of course there are going to be exceptions; those rare beasts who have escalated through the marketing funnel layers to the hallowed ‘word of mouth’ boss level. There’s a pub in North Wales perched on a beautiful bay, which barely has a website, whose Instagram account is set to private and yet features consistently in best pubs lists and is, by all accounts, always packed. But actually, you could argue that no noticeable online presence is a strategy in itself, adding to the allure and sense of stumbling across a hidden gem for your customers. So there are anomalies, and lucky them.
However, I’m going to take a punt and say that you’re probably not on my website because your small business is gaining so many new clients that you don’t need marketing advice. So let’s take a look at how a marketing strategy is going to be key to helping you hit your targets.
The word ‘strategy’ can feel a bit intimidating, conjuring up ideas of lengthy, formal documents that must be followed to the letter and create a whole lot of extra work.
The good news is that for most small businesses, you should really be able to distill your strategy down to a simple one-page plan. It’s something you can use to keep your efforts on track, but not a prison outside which you can’t be responsive or creative.
My hope is that by the end of this blog, you’ll be able to define your strategy with more clarity and have an idea of the ways in which you can put it to use.
Some signs your business might be in need of a clearer marketing strategy
You’re posting on social media but not getting any enquiries
Your website gets traffic but few leads
You’re relying heavily on word of mouth
Marketing feels overwhelming
When you do get new customers, you’re not sure where they’re coming from.
Small business owners are already spinning a ridiculous number of plates, adding marketing to the mix can feel overwhelming. So often you can find yourself scrabbling around trying to share your business online without much of a plan.
Without a strategy in place, your marketing efforts might look something like this:
Instagram posting for a few consistent weeks, then the odd LinkedIn post, but running out of things to say and time to say it in
Social posts featuring your products or services in a range of different locations with the odd photo filter whacked on the top of it
Sending out emails only when you have a special offer on
A static email list that doesn’t really grow and is filled with people you don’t have much information about
Not understanding which of your activities is effective, so continuing with all of them in the hope that you’ll hit the target somehow.
Here’s what a simple but effective marketing strategy should include:
A marketing strategy will be different for every small business, but will answer the questions:
Who do you want to reach?
Think about the demographics of your ideal or most likely customer. There’s an extra strand to this for small, local businesses, and that’s an emphasis on location.
Why should they choose your business?
What problems are you solving and what makes your business different from your competitors? Again, this is a great point to shout about your location and capitalise on your proximity to your target customers. Small businesses in West Sussex competing in busy local markets - visibility matters.
Where are you going to show up?
Website, Google Search, social media, community networking, local press, ads etc. You don’t need to be everywhere - focus in on the places that are going to the most relevant.
What do you want your potential customers to do next?
Call you, book a consultation, visit your premises, request a quote, download a brochure etc?
How are you going to measure success?
This is one of the most important aspects of your strategy. Setting up your objectives and parameters is going to help you determine what activities are working well and what needs more work.
If you want to push traffic to your website, then you’ll want to check this regularly and report on where the traffic is coming from. A positive growth in visitors from Organic Search indicates that your SEO is doing its thing. An influx from social media can indicate that your posts are performing well. If you want your follow base to grow or your email database to increase, keep an eye on the subscriptions and how those correspond to your activities.
Once you’ve answered all the questions, make your strategy into a document that is going to be easy for you to reference and present your key information. This could be a Word document, a spreadsheet, or a flow chart if you’re more of a visual learner.
A marketing calendar is a really useful tool to help you map out all your activities and to tie in with relevant dates in the wider calendar. Check against your strategy and ensure that everything you’re doing is furthering your goals.
And then, make sure you actually use it! Even the best strategy in the world isn’t going to do much if it’s tucked away in a folder and never looked at again. Keep your strategy in mind whenever you’re building content, tracking your engagement, reporting on your performance and tweak as you need.
So what next?
Hopefully by now I’ve made the case for you to have a strategy in place, and have persuaded you that it doesn’t need to be complicated. You’ll need to spend a little time thinking it through, but a strategy will simplify your efforts to reach your customers.
If you feel like you’d like a bit of help to find the right direction, I specialise in marketing support for small businesses in West Sussex and beyond, and my Marketing Audits and Strategy Sessions are designed to put you in the right place to deliver professional and effective marketing.