Online Marketing for SMEs

There are lots of inexpensive ways to market Small and Medium Enterprises even with modest budgets thanks to free online tools and the help of local communities.

As an affordable marketing starter package, you should have an impressive website, some unique business cards and flyers and, most importantly, one-to-one coaching on how best to plan and use marketing when starting a business.

Here are the most important tips to make sure you get the most out of a limited marketing budget. And you’ll find research, planning and evaluation always pay off.

Plan

Research your competitors and your market and develop a thorough understanding of the people you want to trade with and the issues they face. Work out which social networks you should concentrate on.

Utilize your free options

Services such as Google My Business, Facebook groups, local business directories and LinkedIn all list and promote businesses for free. The type of post or listing that you choose will depend on your target audience.

Set objectives

This isn’t a one time job. Set objectives for every bit of marketing you do, and give very specific timings and measurements of success. For example, your website’s success may be measured by how it generates inquiries or sales. Don’t be shy about rapidly assessing and amending things in order to keep on track for your objectives and also, don’t forget to determine what you need before spending.

Become an expert

Social networking is perfect for establishing yourself as an expert in your field. Give high value content and create a strategy for releasing it and set up a blog as a medium for this release. And always remember that marketing is one of the more fun aspects of running a business – ultimately it’s about telling people how great your business is – but don’t try to do everything at once.

By putting in the necessary research and planning, tapping into affordable expertise and utilizing free online tools and help, you can make sure you’re seeing that all important return on investment from your marketing right from day one.