When you start a new business, actually getting yourself noticed in the first place is one of the trickiest hurdles that you need to overcome. With so many other companies out there all clamouring for attention, you may resort to shouting just to get yourself heard. But if you are all saying the same thing, you will never be able to differentiate yourself from the competition. Here are a few ways that you can get your business noticed.
Don’t Copy the Competition
It may well be a good idea to check out what your competitors are doing, but there is no point copying them directly as you are not making yourself stand out from the crowd. Instead, you need to come up with your own ways of getting noticed. Try a unique PR stunt that you share widely on social media. Come up with a unique promotion or competition that will get people talking about you. Create a referrals scheme that will encourage word of mouth. People are always on the lookout for something different, so that it exactly what you need to provide for them.
Create Advice Videos or Blogs
Whatever type of business you run, remember that you are the expert in that field. If you offer people some helpful content that they can actually use in their everyday lives, then you are much more likely to establish a following. To actually get the word out there, you may need support with web marketing, design and education services, but the message itself is coming from you. You don’t have to give away all your secrets, but simply showing that you know your stuff can do your business the world of good.
Be As Social As Possible
In today’s fast-moving world, people are a lot less patient than they ever were before. This means that they won’t waste time on a company that doesn’t respond quickly. You should try to open up a dialogue with your customers whenever you can. Use all the tools that are out there at your disposal including social media, email marketing and an instant chat service on your website. When you are using your social accounts, try only to share content that will generate some sort of response.
Try to Get a Leg-Up From Bloggers
While magazines and newspapers are slowly losing their advertising power,bloggers seem to be getting stronger and stronger. Research the top bloggers in your field and find out how to get in contact with them. Next, you need to find out a way of getting your business mentioned. This may be through offering them a free product or service to review, or even offering to write a guest blog post for them yourself.
Don’t Underestimate Traditional Marketing
While everything seems to be done online these days, there is still a lot to be said for traditional marketing techniques. Indeed, this could be the way that you differentiate your business from the competition. Try mailouts, outdoor advertising and merchandise for example.