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Surviving in today’s business world isn’t like it used to be. While it once was completely acceptable to set up a corner shop downtown, stock your shelves with goods, and call it a day, it now takes a little bit more to be successful.
The world is thriving with entrepreneurship. Although this is a good thing for our economy, it also makes for a highly competitive industry.
The key to your success is learning how to increase business awareness. You must get your name out there in the mind of consumers where it will stay. Keep reading to find out how.
1. Build a Website at the Top of Its Game
To compete in this world of business, you must have a formidable online presence. While this statement is much more complex than it may seem, your starting point is not.
Start by creating an amazing website. If you have to hire the job out and spend a little extra money, do it. Your website will be the face of your company for more than 92 percent of consumers who shop online.
Your website must be user-friendly in several ways:
- It must be attractive/visually appealing
- It must load quickly and run smoothly
- It must be intuitive – people shouldn’t have trouble finding what they need
- It must be a shining example of SEO
2. Learn and Incorporate SEO
What is SEO?
SEO or search engine optimization is a complicated algorithm used by search engines like Google, Yahoo!, and Bing. This algorithm scours the internet for relevant websites based on a user’s keyword search. SEO determines who quickly and easily consumers find you when looking for the products and services you offer.
You can improve your SEO by incorporating a blog into your website full of on-topic articles full of keywords. This serves as a hub of information for users as well as a way for SEO algorithms to pick you up. Additionally, make sure you’re using internal links leading to other parts of your website, as well as external links leading to data-source websites and/or affiliate websites.
Make sure your website clearly states your contact information in multiple places, primarily on a “contact us” page. Finally, use multiple forms of media including pictures, images, videos, and headers that are all embedded with metadata (more SEO boosters). SEO is one of the best ways to increase business awareness organically online.
3. Create Thriving Social Media Accounts
While the older generation of adults may not appreciate the world’s obsession with social media, as a business owner, you need to get behind it, regardless of your personal feelings. Facebook has 2.4 billion users worldwide and is, therefore, a central hub of business.
To be successful on social media, you need to follow a few basic rules:
- Post regularly (once a day or so)
- Post relevant, yet entertaining and engaging material
- Don’t be too “sales-pitchy”
- Link your social media back to your website and vice versa
- Encourage your followers to spread the word (like, share, and comment on your posts)
- Run competitions, contests, raffles, and more to give people a reason to follow you and engage
- Use pictures, images, and videos
4. Start Networking with Local Businesses
Next, to increase business awareness locally, affiliating with other businesses is one of the best things you can do. A great way to get your foot in the door is by joining local networking groups like Biz to Biz or Linked In.
Regardless of how you go about it, business affiliations can work in numerous ways. You can serve as a simple referral system to one another. Each business promotes the other by having on-site business cards or fliers, or by word of mouth.
However, you can also team up and offer discounts for clients who come to you from an affiliate. Alternatively, you can sweeten the pot and encourage your affiliates to send people your way by giving them a commission for each paying client you get from them.
5. Get Involved with the Community
Another way you can make an impact locally and increase business awareness is by teaming up with a local charity and hosting an event.
This is also a great way to find new business affiliates. Call any businesses you might be interested in affiliating with and ask them to be part of the event. Ask them to be a sponsor and in return, they can set up a booth and have their brand printed on t-shirts, flyers, posters, etc.
The event can be anything from a 5k race to a giant community pot-luck. Regardless, start advertising for the event months in advance to create as much hype and ensure as much attendance as possible.
6. Revert to Traditional Marketing Techniques
While the world of business marketing is certainly changing, there are some traditional marketing techniques that still hold true.
For example, many people still listen to the radio in the car, at work, and even at home. Some people know it’s safe for work and others to enjoy early morning talk shows. No matter the reason, the public tuning into local radio stations make it an ideal platform to increase business awareness.
Alternatively, you could try TV ads, getting a small shoutout in the newspaper’s business section, direct mailing, etc. The key is to let your community know you exist.
7. Try Social Media Paid Advertising
One of the biggest struggles in business marketing is closing the marketing and sales gap. How do you make your marketing dollar retain the best value or ROI (return on investment)?
This is why many business owners are opting for paid social media advertising. You can choose which demographics of people see your ads based on age, gender, location, hobbies, and more. It also gives you feedback, showing you how your ads performed.
The more you can learn about marketing orchestration and closing the marketing and sales gap, the better.
8. Experiment with Digital Marketing
Owning a business, including increasing business awareness involves a lot of trial and error. Not all marketing tactics work the same for different businesses. Ultimately, it comes down to your business and your targeted audience.
Who are you trying to target? What do they respond best to? What is the best way to reach them?
To find the answers to those questions, you’ll have to lay the groundwork of research and experimentation. Try various tactics for a few months at a time and track the results. Then, determine which types of marketing give you the best ROI.
Here are some suggestions for digital marketing that aren’t previously mentioned:
- Content marketing
- PPC marketing
- Email marketing
- Influencer marketing
- Viral marketing
- Landing page marketing
Want More Advice on How to Increase Business Awareness?
Learning how to increase business awareness can be slow-going, especially at first. But don’t give up. Every business owner has been where you’re at now.
Stay consistent in your efforts and never stop learning. Before you go, be sure to check out some of our other helpful and informative articles. Good luck!