Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
By Rayanne Morriss
The brand you present to the world says a lot about you. Whether corporate or personal, your potential customers are constantly curious about the real image you present to the public, which they most likely won’t continue doing if the brand presentation is not catchy.
Developing a brand entails a lot of craftiness and ingenuity to be able to touch and induce a reaction in your customers since the strategies involved take time to mature. What’s the way forward when it comes to expanding your medium or small enterprise beyond its current status? There are many strategies available for you to use and grow your enterprise. Here are important tips you can take advantage of to expand your small business.
Showcase what you can do for your customers/audience
Most marketing and branding strategies heavily concentrate on self-promotion – their clients, their products, their credentials and so on. What potential customers are really interested in is; what can you or your products do for me? Consider answering that question without much jargon. Try to keep it direct and reduce or do away with unnecessary words or images.
Focus on making each client feel important and heard. People want to feel like their needs and wants are taken seriously and that you will do your best to make them happen. Conveying this to them will likely make them more comfortable in potentially doing business with you. They are also more likely to refer a friend or family member to you in the future.
Develop a strategic marketing plan
The returns from a small business are minimal. It takes time to accumulate enough to be able to expand your enterprise. Consequently, this is why having a marketing plan beforehand can be quite handy. A marketing plan ensures that you stick to your expansion time tables. It also enables you to wisely allocate your marketing resources.
A good marketing plan will analyze everything regarding the target market. This may include evaluating the level of competition in a particular market and how to successfully access that market. It should also entail the production costs to reach the desired outcome within a limited time frame.
If you have the budget, consider hiring a marketing company or professional to help you get to your business marketing goals. This can save you a lot of time as well because a professional will have a better idea of what it will take for you to get to your goal.
Increase your network and social media presence
Social media has become a major asset for reaching out to potential customers and enriching your brand recognition. Small and medium enterprises can upload digital recordings of happy clients on YouTube and Periscope. Tag them to popular keywords and connect them to videos on their official website. Make sure you have a page or profile on a few different social media platforms. This will help more people to find your company and to see what your business is all about. Consider what photos or videos will best showcase your most popular products or services that you have to offer. This way potential customers will be able to see why they should check out your business.
Hire an agency to cultivate your brand recognition
A branding agency can greatly benefit your business. You can expand your brand recognition by working with a professional who can guide you through the process. Your company will likely grow more quickly and easily because you will have experts with the right tools and experience to expand your brand recognition.
Do your research to find the best branding agency for your small business. This will be highly beneficial in marketing your startup. This type of company can also assist marketing teams, visionary CEOs, and effective entrepreneurs develop realistic, memorable and iconic brands.
Use the latest technology and keep a competitive edge
Technology usually brings one of two things. It will either improve on the growth of the business or it will damage it. Therefore, make sure you keep up with the most recent technology and also check on the particular type of technology that better integrates with your business. Make sure you listen to your employees in determining what technology might be most effective and beneficial to your company. Finding out what areas you can develop and fine tune can help you in narrowing down what options your company should invest in.
Introduce different variants of your product or service offerings
You can slightly alter the product or service you are offering to enable it to smoothly integrate to the new intended group of customers. On the other hand, you can introduce a new service/product and start selling it to them. If well done, you will potentially expand into new territories and propel your business into a new trajectory.
Diversifying will also help in maintaining new and existing customer base plus it will help generate several income channels that are occasioned by the frequent lows. This will also increase sales and profit margins.
Connect with your community
In order for your small business to gain momentum, you should go out and connect with your community. This can be done in a variety of ways. For example, sponsoring a local team or school, volunteering, or donating to a local cause. This will not only get your brand out there, but it will also attract more business to your company. People will be more interested in what you do because you are showing that your company cares about the community. This can go a long way for small businesses and their level of success.
Conclusion
Making your business grow is exciting. Having a plan in mind before you initiate the expansion will enable you to maintain your values, keep your employees, intrigue you consumers and draw new ones. This ultimately leads to the success of the start-up.
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Rayanne Morriss is currently working towards her BA from Oregon State University. She loves to write, read, travel, and paint. She enjoys finding new coffee shops with friends and expanding her cooking skills with her husband.
