As a small business owner, one of your main concerns is always going to be increasing customers, boosting sales, and growing your company. Marketing, as you should know, is a big part of this. Before launching a marketing campaign, most entrepreneurs do a little research and see what works for their competitors.
While this is fine, it’s important that you don’t try to mimic or copy what they’re doing. Instead, you should find your own voice and do something creative and unique. With that in mind, here are seven creative marketing ideas you should consider.
1. Run A Competition
Thanks to social media, it’s easier than ever to connect with and talk to your customers. A great use of this power is to run regular competitions and giveaways using your platforms. People love to get free stuff, so this will build hype around your business, at least for a short time. To increase your exposure even further, you could ask your audience to share posts related to your competition. This way, all of their followers will see your posts too, and may also follow you.
2. Sponsor Local Events
It’s important that potential customers see that you care about more than just money. There are many ways to show this, but one of the best is sponsoring local events. This indicates that you’re truly a part of the local community and care about those within it. Of course, sponsoring such events can cost a fair bit of money, and there’s no guarantee that you’ll see a return on your investment, but if you work hard and handle things carefully, things should work out well.
3. Organize A Flash Mob
If you’re a fan of Step Up and other dance movies, then this could be the marketing strategy for you. Although it’s a little out there, organizing a flash mob can be a fun and rewarding way to raise for your company. You can either throw it at a random place and time or at an event you’ve organized or sponsored. Either way, it will get you plenty of attention, especially on social media, and this attention should drive traffic to your business.
4. Design Customer Inflatables
Balloons, bouncy castles, and other inflatables are a hit among those young and old. Because of this, you may want to consider designing your own advertising inflatables. These could include promotional and beach inflatables that you get out at events, entire inflatable buildings where you can host these events, or simply balloons that you give to children who visit your store. Either way, you’ll generate plenty of interest and will boost brand awareness in a fun and unique way.
5. Start A Podcast
These days, blogs are absolutely essential for businesses of any shape and size. This is because they boost SEO, provide value to potential customers, and give followers a reason to return to your site. That being said, there are millions of blogs out there, so you should consider other ways to get your content out there too. A podcast is a great way to do this, and all you really need to get started is a website, a phone or computer, and a microphone to talk into.
6. Offer Free Merch
As I’ve already mentioned, we all love getting free stuff, so when a business gives us a freebie of some kind, we remember it for a little while. If you want this attention to last a bit longer than a little while, then you should make sure that whatever you give them lasts too. Business merch, like pencils, drawstring bags, and stickers are all popular options as they’re useful, fun, and easy to put your logo on. Because of this, you should consider offering merch with every sale.
7. Host Scavenger Hunts
Offering discounts to customers is an easy way to pique their interest, but there’s something more useful that you can do than simply giving 10% off when you feel like it. Hosting a scavenger hunt in your store and offering a discount as a prize is much more beneficial, as it means that customers have to actually have a proper look around. This means they might spot something else they want to buy, which will boost your sales.
Marketing is the lifeblood of all businesses, but don’t think that copying what everyone else does is going to work. You need to find your own voice and do things that actually make you stand out. Hopefully, one of these marketing ideas will help you do just that.