By now, your company has made it through Small Business Saturday and is fully immersed in the busy holiday season. But an entrepreneur’s work is never done. It’s time to look ahead to the new year … and we have several small business marketing tips to get you started.
A brand-new decade is waiting just around the corner. 2020 is packed with potential — you just have to unlock it. And the best way to do that is through a few tried-and-true strategies that have helped small businesses throughout the years … as well as a few that tap into today’s newest technologies.
If you’re looking for ways to hit the ground running in the new year, fortify your to-do list with these small business marketing tips for 2020.
Audit Yourself
No, we’re not talking about an IRS-level financial shakedown, though we won’t dissuade you from getting an early start on tax time. What we mean is that the end of the year is a great time to take a long, hard look at your marketing budget and determine what’s working and what isn’t.
Don’t start off the new year throwing good money after bad ideas. Do you need to trim the fat in some areas? Should you be spending more on certain things?
It’s hard to devise a marketing strategy if you don’t know where each dollar is going and what kind of return it’s generating. By auditing yourself now, you’re in a better position to make the best financial decisions possible in 2020.
Make Voice Search a Priority
Among the more progressive small business marketing tips for 2020 is jumping into voice search.
While traditional internet searches haven’t gone the way of the dodo just yet, there’s no denying that voice search is the hot new way the cool kids find what they’re looking for online. And if you don’t play nice with Alexa, Cortana and Siri, you might be missing out on as much as half of your potential business.
Optimizing your small business website for voice search isn’t nearly as difficult as it sounds. It’s simply a matter of changing the way you think about keywords, utilizing a free Google My Business listing and making a few tweaks to your website. Small changes can have a big payoff!
Up Your Social Media Game
By now, any small business owner knows that they need a social media presence. But simply having one isn’t enough. Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages need constant attention. Instagram gets lonely when it’s left to its own devices for too long. Your YouTube channel can only sit dormant for so long before your followers jump ship.
Even if you’re only implementing one great marketing tip per platform, something is always better than nothing. Be sure you’re regularly checking your social media analytics for clues on what you could be doing better!
Connect With Your Customers
It’s a fast-paced world out there. So much of our communication is done impersonally out of convenience. It’s easier to send a text than make a phone call; far more efficient to handle a problem by email than face-to-face.
But for all the good technology does us, it has created a lack of human connection — and it’s time to take that connection back!
One of the best small business marketing tips we can give you for 2020 is to prioritize connecting with your customers. Take a personalized approach to marketing. Instead of a mass mailing, send targeted postcards. Make a point of taking the time to understand each customer’s needs. Create a loyalty program that rewards them for their patronage. You’ll never regret going the extra mile!
The Best Small Business Marketing Tip for 2020? Ask for Help!
The new year holds potential for every small business owner, but you’ll only get out of it what you put in. Now is the time to map out your marketing plan and set yourself up for success in 2020 and beyond!
Do you need a bit of help starting off the new year on the right foot? Is all this marketing talk making you anxious? Could you use a partner who can help share the load? Mischa Communications is on your side! Let’s talk about how we can make 2020 a banner year for your small business!