Like many other small business owners across the world, your business may have been affected by the restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Maybe you’ve had to make changes to your business plan to adapt to the different business climate. While there are many setbacks that the pandemic has created, there are ways you can effectively market to continue reaching your target audience(s). Luckily, online marketing is incredibly powerful and entirely pandemic safe. Maybe you haven’t really developed your online presence. You have a website, but don’t run email campaigns or have a vibrant community on social media. Now is the time to capitalize on digital marketing as well as other safe marketing techniques to connect with your audience. Here are a few tips on getting started!
Get Familiar with Email Marketing
Sending scheduled emails is a great way to keep your existing customers informed on the latest news for your business. Whether you’re launching new products and/or services, changing shop hours, hiring, or whatever else, an email can easily update everyone interested in your brand. Capture prospects’ information with an email sign-up form on your website. This way, you’ll be sending emails to those who are actively interested in what you have going on. Email marketing is also useful to alert prospects of abandoned carts. You can use a variety of services that help automate drip campaigns to help them through the purchase funnel. This might mean that you send a small discount or free shipping their way as a special incentive to finish their purchase. You can also reward existing customers by allowing them to be the first to know of new releases, sales, pop-up shops, and more.
Send Postcards to Reach Local Prospects
Alongside email, another great way to safely reach your target audience is with postcards. You might flinch at the idea of direct mail, but when postcards have an eye-catching image, your recipients are more likely to read them. Postcards let existing customers and prospects know that you’re thinking of them. Some of your cards can simply be thank yous or “Welcome to the community!” types of messaging. Community is everything, especially during a pandemic. When they feel a connection with your brand, they’ll be enticed to engage with your online community and make purchases on your site. You can even take it a step further and pen personal messages on these postcards instead of pre-printed phrases. This will feel even more special, and that can really go a long way.
Plan Social Content
With a little creativity and an authentic approach, your brand can find incredible success on social media. Sure, it isn’t a perfect fit for some brands, but most find that social media exists as a hub for their communities. No matter what type of business you have, there are ways to capture those products and/or services. One mistake some businesses make when starting out on social media is posting any and everything. To successfully capture the attention of followers, your Instagram or Facebook pages should be built via planned strategy. You can study others operating in your space to see what type of content they typically post. Then, you can make posts that feel relevant to your target audience. It’s crucial that your content is original and authentic. If it feels phony, people will notice! Snap some shots of your latest brunch specials or seasonal products. Have a member of your staff send in a photo of themselves for you to post as an employee spotlight. Run a fun contest for followers to stir up engagement. There are so many ways you can utilize social media to generate growth and revenue for your business!
Focus on your Website
Since people aren’t going out as much as they used to, being able to find information online is crucial. This is where SEO comes into play for your brand. You or a hired marketing agency can determine which keywords are relevant for your business. With these, you can optimize your website’s pages so you’re able to rank higher in organic searches (meaning when someone types in something like “coffee shop near me,” your daytime café is one of the first options they see). Your site also needs to be as accessible and engaging as possible. New customers should be able to find essential information quickly without having to dig for it. Your business hours, customer service number, FAQs, sizing guides, menus, and hiring page are all examples of information that must be easily found within a few seconds.
Many of the above tips can be used without spending money. They instead require sizable amounts of time to flesh out and implement. While it may feel like a burden, email marketing or refining your website can promote serious growth for your business. These are not all the ways in which you can make the most out of the current pandemic situation, but they’re an excellent start!
