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If you’re an SME, finding the time to market your business can be a challenge. However, marketing should never take a back-seat – and should form an integral part of your overall business plan. After all – without marketing, how will your customers find you?

If you’re struggling with marketing, here’s a few useful tips to help you.

15 Great Ways to Boost Your Marketing

1. Get social. Social media does take time and effort – but it’s free! Get a profile page for Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and whatever other social media sites you feel comfortable using – and set aside 15 minutes a day to keeping them updated.
2. Create a Google+ page. It makes good sense to get on Google+. Not only will you be able to reach more people, it’ll also help boost your SEO ranking too.
3. Send regular newsletters. Make sure you gather the email details of every person who buys from your business or gets in contact; then send out regular newsletters to them. It’s a great way to ensure your brand isn’t forgotten – and once again, it’s completely free.
4. Get blogging. If you’re a good writer, blogging is a fantastic way to connect with your target audience – and even better, you can use your posts to reach more people on social media.
5. Create a referral network. Do you know other businesses in your area? Create a referral network! Refer clients to them, in exchange for them doing exactly the same for you.
6. Hold regular events. Events like sales, exclusive giveaways and competitions create a buzz about your business – and if it gets people talking, it’s only a good thing.
7. Send out press releases. Has your company done something interesting or newsworthy recently? If so, create a press release and mail it out to your local press. Chances are, they’ll be happy to cover your story.
8. Distribute business cards. Whenever you attend a networking event, distribute your business card. The more people who know about your company, the better.
9. Guest-blog. Want to attract more attention? Select a site with serious amounts of traffic and offer them a guest blog, sharing your expertise with the world, in return for a link back to your site.
10. Incentivise people. Encourage site visitors to share their details by offering them something of value – like a free eBook or 20% discount voucher against their first purchase.
11. Collect testimonials. Fact – good reviews help sell products. Ask all customers to leave a testimonial for you, and make sure you display it somewhere prominent on your website!
12. Check out the competition. It’s always a good idea to know what your competition is offering. Visit their site, sign up to their newsletter, and work out what they’re doing This will provide invaluable inspiration for your own marketing.
13. Sponsor a local event. Looking to drum up more local business? Sponsoring a local event or charity is a great way to get your company name out there.
14. Create a YouTube channel. Share your knowledge with customers via video – which generally attracts more visitors than plain text or photo content.
15. Create social media groups. It’s fairly easy to set up groups on social media sites like Facebook – and this provides you with a wonderful way to interact directly with relevant businesses and even customers.

Online Marketing in North Yorkshire

If you’d like additional help with your marketing, get in touch with Shark Bait Studios! We’re expert marketing strategists, and can assist with your campaigns, both online and off. To find out more, simply give us a call on 01748 900321.