When coming up with marketing plans for your business, social media has become a given. But what else can a business do to reach people? Here are some ideas that don’t involve likes, shares or tweets:
- Ambassador programmes
An ambassador serves as representation for the brand and can help spread the word in his or her immediate community. Implement a point-reward system where volunteers can complete activities, such as giving a presentation on your organization, in exchange for points that they can cash in at the end of the month. Figure out if there are particular communities that use your product (and will be vocal about it!) and create an ambassador programme to help spread the word about your business.
- Trade shows
Trade shows can get pricey depending on which ones you attend, but the return can be worth it. The biggest advantage to trade shows is relationships. It’s one of the few scenarios where you can shake the hands of your consumers and also build relationships with other brands. This can be a great way to meet representatives of stores and write orders-on the spot. Find out if your industry hosts any conferences or trade shows you can attend as an exhibitor. A great resource locally is the Trade and Investment Convention (TIC), the region’s largest trade show hosted annually by the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA). Another great resource is YoPro, an organization that hosts conferences monthly on a variety of themes. If participation is too much of an expense, go as an attendee and network as much as you can. Introduce yourself to the show organizers and see if there are any “first timer” specials you can get as an exhibitor for next time.
- Bloggers
You could link blogging to social media, but you may choose to separate them. Bloggers are how some entrepreneurs got their first real customers (outside of friends or family). Think about who your target audience is and what kind of blogs they would read. Parenting? Fashion? Nutrition? Business? Find blogs that match your audience and send them a pitch for a collaboration. You may have to give them a freebie of your product and/or a fee to be featured or reviewed.
Take it a step further and ask the blogger if they’d be willing to host a giveaway on his or her site by collecting email entries you can add to your newsletter.
- Contribute
Do you have an industry-related topic you could talk about for hours? Maybe you have industry insight on hacking and digital forensics? Put it on paper and send it off to newspapers for a weekly column, magazines, blogs and websites that are looking for content. Ask them to include your bio and hyperlink it to your business site. Most of the time you’ll have to contribute content for free, but if you gain at least one new customer from an article it’s worth it. It will also help build your credentials and SEO.
- Present
Those same topics you can write about, can you give a presentation on them? Businesses, schools, conferences and organizations are always looking for speakers to energize and inspire their audiences. You can use some speaking time to talk about your business as an example of a greater lesson or motivation. Reach out to your local chamber of commerce or even high schools, depending on your target audience. Bring something with your business information on it that attendees can walk away with at the end of your programme.
Remember, any time you can get in front of people and build relationships around your business, it’s always a good opportunity.
Great ideas!