What is the most effective marketing for small businesses?

This is an often asked question and is a constant challenge for start-ups/small businesses on a tight budget. Having spoken to many SME business owners the same word keeps cropping up…..Referrals.

Why? well for a start the cost of acquisition is virtually nil, unless of course you have had to provide some form of incentive to get the referral. Secondly you have been recommended so your prospect hasn’t been given the hard sell but has received a more gentle approach. You can actively seek out referrals, the marketing guru Jay Abraham actually wrote a book that details 93(!) referral systems that you could, and should look to implement in your business.

The other area to look at is existing business. How often do you communicate with your customers? Do you communicate with your customers? What triggers do you have in place to monitor if a regular buyer stops buying? Running a business is a time-consuming thing and our best intention is to make regular contact but this normally slips. Many business owners ask “Won’t my customers get fed up with me keep sending them stuff?”. Potentially, yes, but you can minimise this. How? Make sure your communications are relevant, informative with a genuine and compelling offer.

Category: Marketing