No one expects that acquiring customers will be easy. Still, they also probably don’t expect it to be so difficult. Regardless of which industry or sector you’re in, you’ll have plenty of competitors, all of whom will just be just as eager for success as you are. Plus, you’ll likely also have to deal with businesses that are much larger than you are.
As such, it’s important to leave no stone unturned on your journey towards growth. One often overlooked strategy is real-world marketing which, done correctly, can be a perfect accompaniment to your online marketing strategies.
Whether you’re an online or real-world operation, marketing your brand out there in front of real people really can help to strengthen your brand and build more awareness. We’ll take a look at some of the most effective real-world marketing approaches below.
Attend Industry Trade Shows
Exhibiting at a trade show doesn’t just provide an opportunity to build brand awareness and perhaps make sales. It’s also a terrific learning exercise that can help you understand more about what it takes to succeed in your industry.
But let’s focus on the marketing benefits. By exhibiting at a trade show, you can come face to face with potential customers, which will give you an opportunity to share all that’s great about your product/services in a direct way. Even if you don’t make any sales that day, the contacts you make can give you something to work with moving forward.
Wrap Your Vehicle
You’re going to be driving around town anyway; why not use your vehicle as a way to promote your brand? There are multiple ways to advertise your business via your car. You can keep things small and just include the key details about your business (name, website, phone number), or you can go big, and wrap your vehicle in your branding. Deciding which option is right for you will depend on a few factors, such as the type of business you run, whether you use your vehicle for work, and how much branding you’re comfortable putting on the vehicle.
Give Out Branded Freebies
Growing your brand doesn’t always involve making sales. By growing awareness and making your brand memorable, you’ll be increasing the chances of making sales further down the line. One smart way to have your business stick in people’s minds is to give away branded freebies.
After all, people are usually happy to receive free products, especially if they’re ones that they will use. Custom tote bags that feature your brand’s name/logo are particularly recommended, since not only will the person receiving the tote use it, but they’ll also become what is, in effect, a walking advert for your brand. But many other products will also work. So long as it features your branding and stays with the recipient, it’ll work.
Invest in Business Cards
Business cards were once declared done and dusted. After all, who needed business cards, when the internet was taking over? But business cards have undergone a bit of a resurgence recently, and we think we know why. With people so saturated with digital content, being given a small piece of paper that contains nothing other than need-to-know information is refreshing.
Business cards won’t be your entire marketing strategy, and there are some businesses for whom they might not work. But give it some thought, and you might just find that you actually can make some use of them.
This is a classic, tried-and-tested approach that again, in the digital age, many businesses seem to have forgotten about. It works best for local businesses, but even digital operations can find some success. The basic principle is this: your local sports team needs a bit of money for equipment (think, jerseys); you provide that equipment — or at least contribute to the cost — and your business name is slapped on the side. Whenever they play, your name will be seen by everyone in attendance. It’s not a slam-dunk that they’ll become customers, of course, but your name will be remembered — and when they do need the products/services you provide, they’ll likely come to you.
Make Friends With Newspapers
OK, so most newspapers are all online now rather than printed, but we still class this real-world marketing. Working with a journalist to come up with an interesting story that somehow relates to your brand can be a good way to enhance brand exposure. Plus, some journalists will simply be happy to do it if the story is interesting enough since they need ideas.
So, what does it look like in practice? It works best for local businesses, and for local newspapers (plus, it’s next to impossible to get a national paper to write about small businesses). An example article might be how climate change is affecting the local area (it’s getting more) and the steps locals can take to protect themselves (including upgrading their HVAC system, which you provide).
Get Into the Street
Looking for a fun, engaging, and effective way to market your brand? Look at holding a pop-up street stall in your local area. What this looks like will depend on the type of business that you run, but it could involve offering free samples of your products, hosting games, giveaways, or anything else. It’s best to get creative if you’re going to take this approach since you’ll need to make it worth people’s time.
Besides simply building brand awareness, this kind of marketing approach can also help to understand your brand better, making it especially recommended for young businesses. You’ll develop a stronger sense of which type of people are interested in your brand based on who comes up, is positive about what you do, etc. This information can help inform other marketing and business strategies.
Leaflet Marketing
The humble leaflet seems outdated and unnecessary in an age when everyone’s looking at their phones all the time. However, the fact that everyone’s spending their time online is perhaps a reason why it does work. Again, leaflets won’t work for all types of businesses. If you’re a new cafe/restaurant/bar, then handing them out in the area around your establishment will work. It’s also good for service businesses — for example, handing out massage service leaflets outside a gym. In any case, it can be worth playing around to see how you can use leaflets since they’re highly affordable, so you don’t need to have the most robust strategy behind them. Simply get some printed up and see what happens.
Know When To Open Your Mouth
Running a business is not the time to be bashful. If you feel awkward about bringing up your business (i.e., self-promotion), then it’s best to get over it. You’ll come across many people just through the course of living who might be interested in your business.
However, it’s important to remember that there’s a time and place to promote your brand. Being a guest at a dinner party with friends of friends is not an invitation to get people to sign up for your newsletter. But if the theme of your business comes up naturally, or you’re outright asked what you do for a living, then you can absolutely give your elevator pitch.
Conclusion
The digital world is still king for marketing, but don’t entirely discount marketing in the real world. Done correctly, it can build brand awareness, help you understand your customers better, and even drive sales directly. Plus, it can be a whole lot of fun.