Small Business Marketing Basics

 

Small Business Marketing Basics
If you have an existing business or are starting one you'll need to know all about effective marketing.

 

What is marketing ?
Marketing is "simply" identifying and satisfying customer need.

The word customer is extremely important as these are the folks who are going to pay your bills.

You will need to work out exactly what the need is before you communicate anything to your current or future customers.

 

Marketing Demographics
Swap marketing for customer and your half way to effective marketing for your own small business.

First off, think about the people who buy your product or service today. For all of them write down the following:

Physical location
Age of customer
Payment made
The need that your product satisfies
Knowledge of the need your product satisfies
Why they have this need
Can you see patterns at all? Can you group customers by, say, age?

By doing this you'll not only understand your customers better but also why they buy from you.

 

Marketing Communications
Communications is all about telling your customers about the benefit of your product and service and how it satisfies the need they have.

Perhaps it's ease of use, giving one portion of fruit per day in 2 seconds without having to peel fruit, instant expert advice because they don't have it ... etc.

Sell benefits -- not features (unless your audience is very knowledgeable or all techies !). People can't be bothered to shop around stores -- home delivery provides convenience at a time that suits and saves time (OK, you can have all 5,000 products off the shelf but that's a feature). You normally pay for these benefits so price is not an issue here.

See our free marketing communication ideas to get yourself started.

Branding is important so check out branding your business section.