Marketing is evolving regularly. With constant research and development, new marketing techniques are being introduced every year to strategise the growth of companies. With the fast-changing consumer behaviour, the companies’ marketing strategy should also mature. And for a small business, understanding the changing market landscape is of utmost importance to streamline their workflow and hit their target audiences.
6 Marketing Trends that are Critical to the Success of Small Businesses
Here are the 6 incredible marketing trends that are critical to the success of small businesses.
Data-driven marketing
With the latest technologies, there is no dearth of data. Smart players exploit their data to attract and retain customers through email campaigns, social media engagements, website analytics and others. Various reports show that over 50% of marketers use no less than 21 platforms, each having individual metrics and data. Small businesses should also use these methods, maybe fewer, to understand how different channels are impacting the business objectives and goals.
Email marketing
Many might think that email marketing is archaic and no longer useful for branding and attracting customers, however, the impression is wrong. Though social media and other trailblazing marketing tools have overshadowed email marketing, yet it has continued to hold its ground and proved effective and simple for reaching customers, especially for small-sized businesses. Soon, email marketing will be used as a sophisticated tool enhanced by consumer behaviour.
Video marketing
Video marketing is one of the top marketing tools in the current scenario. In the coming days, it will grow further, making a frequent appearance on the homepage of company websites. With unique content, videos are now creating a mark on the hearts of the audiences. Small businesses are seen gaining traction with Q&A videos demonstrating tutorials, storytelling, etc.
Social Media Marketing
Around 2 million medium to small-sized businesses advertises on Facebook. This is one of the most inexpensive and effective ways to virtually appeal to the audience. Facebook ads target a specific audience, based on various categories like location, age sex, behaviour, etc. Moreover, with a strong visual component, Instagram ads are also equally helpful. Social media platforms have tweaked their algorithms and have started giving better results than before. Almost 67% of consumers use social media as a customer support tool and around 33% prefer using social media instead of a telephone.
Google My Business (GMB)
For a small business, GMB is one of the most powerful ways to manage their online presence. GMB combines Google+ profile, Google Maps profile, Google Reviews, Google Analytics, Google Insights and more into one Google platform, giving business credibility and visibility. With a decent GMB listing rank, a small business can get large numbers of highly suited leads day in and day out without needing to spend on ads.
Google Adwords
Google Adwords is a highly important tool for online marketing today. It is expensive and takes time to show the result, but if one knows the exact ways to make the best out of it, then it is extremely beneficial, especially for start-ups. Although it is a paid channel, yet it aims to deliver relevant search results to the users. Hence, proper on-page SEO can give good results. Google places a quality score on your ad depending on click-through rate, landing page, and relevance. This quality score determines the visibility of the ad. This paid marketing channel enables immediate results and enhances the budget.
With these channels, a small business has the potential to skyrocket its growth. One thing that remains constant is the need to gain the trust of the customers by creating relationship prospects to make ways for repetitive purchases. And these marketing strategies are all that the small businesses need to succeed in today’s hyper-competitive markets.
