Once you have a website, or other online business, the hardest part is yet to come. In short, you need to market your website so as to attract more readers and, hopefully, more revenue. Online marketing tips are, of course, absolutely vital. These allow you to find and entice customers from all over the world. However, as you want your business to constantly attract new customers, it’s important to learn how to promote your business offline as well. This guide is here to suggest some possible marketing tips that will allow you to promote your business offline.
Word of Mouth
One of the simplest, yet highly effective, ways to build brand recognition is simple word of mouth. Just by talking to someone at a social event like a local sports game or a church gathering can really reap benefits. Don’t beat this person over the head with your business but, if he asks about your career, you can tell him what you do. While he may not need your particular service someone else that he knows might.
Sponsor
Being a sponsor, for a local baseball team or other organization, is a great way to build brand loyalty. Not only do you get a good feeling for helping others, but people see you and your product as being an important part of the area. This, in turn, is great public relations and can really help you sell your product.
Bulletin Boards
The power of a bulletin board is not to be overlooked. This simple technique is an excellent, and cheap, way of targeting a specific audience. For example, if your website sells books, you could put up fliers in libraries. If produce, in a supermarket. This is an excellent way of building recognition and will, hopefully, lead to an increase in sales.
Contests
A great way of drumming up business, and bringing in new customers, is having a contest that revolves around your product. Whether it’s offering your product as a prize, or just having the contest obviously sponsored by your product sales, it’s a good way to build brand recognition and increased sales.
Print Ads
Newspapers, while in trouble, still offer excellent exposure for those willing to shell out for ad space. Newspaper ads are cheap and can reach a pretty wide audience. This is perfect for building brand recognition in a local area.
Customer Appreciation
Another great way to build brand recognition is to treat your current customers well. Perhaps offer them discounts, or let them know of special offers, or let them enroll in a “members-only” contest. Treating your customers well will result in a loyal reader base. Not only that but, if you treat them well enough, they’ll tell their friends and family’s about you which can really boost your sales.
Conclusion
While there are many effective ways of raising brand awareness, not to mention loyalty, online there are just as many offline. These techniques can, actually, inspire more brand loyalty due to the human factor. In a local area you aren’t just a picture on a screen, you’re an actual known human being. This, in turn, makes people more comfortable with you and that much more likely to buy.
