Friday, November 30, 2012

3 Tips and Tricks for Stimulating Your Small Business Growth

By Carey Stirrup


Sustaining growth for the small business can be challenging for reasons unique to the size of your business. One of the most common issues is that there aren't sufficient funds to implement an adequate marketing strategy. But the small size of your company also means you have quite a few strengths. One definite strength is the ability to take action faster since you are more flexible and agile. Campaigns can be tested on a small scale and then expanded if they prove profitable. Another strength is making faster decisions since there are fewer people to interfere and slow things down. Therefore, if you want to succeed, you will need to determine what your strengths are and capitalize upon them.

There are all sorts of businesses competing for the same marketing audience. When you do too much blending in, you're going to have problems getting attention. Have you ever watched those late-night infomercials with spokespeople who are just absolutely crazy? They aren't as common as they were a few years ago, but you can still find them once in a while. Those people act crazy on purpose because they understand that it helps grab attention. You don't have to be crazy too; what you need to do is find your own way of setting yourself apart. You can do whatever you want to here but your best bet is to actually find a way to benefit your customers.

Getting your buyers to give you feedback can provide you with plenty of fantastic insights into your business. It won't take long for you to figure out that the best feedback is given when you are able to ask the right questions. Don't just give people a card or something asking a general question. Avoid asking people to tell you how you are doing; this question gets asked far too often. Put some thought in your feedback request because you need specific information. Write up a list of 5-10 questions your clients and buyers can respond to with brief answers. In order to improve your response rate to these questions is to explain your motivations and to ask your buyers and clients to help you. That approach appeals to their sense of empathy and is known to work well.

One example is your contact page and it needs to have a phone number on it. It's possible to optimize your calling by employing a link that, with just one click, helps people call you. The "click to call" is a smart phone feature that encourages people to call you.

If your business isn't online, then you need to do more offline advertising locally. You should use ad tracking, which is a more precise approach. It's not difficult to do and there are many ways to do it. One approach is to publish offers specific to each publication you are using. Just about every town and city have the weekly shopper papers mailed free to residents. Simply place your different offers and maybe a coupon in each paper. This way you will be able to discover which strategy is getting you the best results. Your test will be even more effective if you invite people to visit your site to discover more about the special deal.

If you want to expand your business, regardless of the tough economy, then you need to decide to do it. There's always a solution to any business problem and as long as you are convinced you will find the solution, then you will. If you read the news every day you will find it filled with the negativity that is characteristic of the business community. You want to avoid ending up in the same boat because it will ruin your confidence and creativity.




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