September 2021
Starting your own business is scary. Whoever tells you otherwise is either lying or started with a nice chunk of change to throw around. In fact, tech.co reported 1 in 5 business fold in year one. The bright side is, you’re not alone and you’re also not the first one to start your own business.
Statistic provided by tech.co
Whether you’re disrupting the food industry with your new vegan products, or revamping operational systems in tech,there’s a common marketing mix that can be applied to a variety of different businesses to help you finally catch the eye of that angel investor or target a larger audience.
There's a common marketing mix that can be applied to a variety of different businesses to help you finally catch the eye of that angel investor or target a larger audience.
Here are 10 Marketing Methods to Elevate Your Business
Create a Style Guide
So what exactly is a style guide? Why would you need one? A style guide is a culmination of different examples on how your brand will look and feel on different platforms like your website, social media platforms, email blasts, Twitter feed, etc… Style guides are important because it will allow you to have consistency amongst all marketing platforms, which is how we speak to consumers. In the next section I’ll also elaborate on how to create consistency within your style guide.
Photo by Grammarly.com
Style guides are important because it will allow you to have consistency amongst all marketing platforms, which is how we speak to consumers.
Be Consistent
Having a consistent tone of voice, branding, and writing style can allow you to build a strong foundation with your target market; allowing you to start building trust with your audience. This is because being consistent allows your brand to be viewed as dependable, thus eliciting the feeling of trust to the audience.
Here’s a breakdown of how you can create consistency throughout different aspects of your business.
Create a Consistent Tone of Voice
Having a consistent tone of voice across all marketing channels and social media platforms allows you to build a strong relationship with your consumers. Some ways you can create a consistent tone of voice is by creating a style guide that includes samples for how you’d want to come across to your audience. For example, try listing bullet points for how you’d like your brand to come across, like the example for a compostable bin that turns compost into soil, below.
● Friendly
● Helpful
● Approachable
● Vibrant
● Eco-Minded
Photo by Grammarly.com
Create Consistent Branding
Another way to grow your relationship with your consumers is by creating consistent branding. This means keeping the same color scheme, and if you want bonus points -- matching it with your logo. A good rule of thumb is having one main color and two secondary complimenting colors in several different shades. This allows you to give depth and variety within your content while still staying congruent with the overall branding style. Just like the example below for Women In Business’ and Kayo Marketing Agency’s Instagram account:
Photo provided by Instagram @WomeninBusiness
Create a Consistent Writing Style
Having a consistent writing style is beneficial for several different reasons. Like stated above, a consistent writing style or tone of voice can cultivate trust between the consumer and the brand. The writing style you choose to emulate also speaks volumes about how your business matches your branding tone. Do you come across as friendly and approachable? If you’re in B2B tech you might want to test out a more professional and informative tone. Try testing out a few different writing styles or create a Pinterest with other competitors in your market to get inspired.
Photo by Grammarly.com
Creating a consistent branding image, writing style, and tone of voice aids in building a strong relationship with your consumers from the get go. Consistent branding can also elicit trust in the brand.
Know Your Target Market
Have a great idea for a new product in the vegan food market? Maybe it’s a new solar-powered way to automatically water your houseplants with collected precipitation and rainwater. With any idea, you need to know who you’re speaking to. Great ideas have been lost in translation time and time again, by having watered down messages or CMO’s not understanding who their target market is.
Tech.co comments about how not knowing your target market can be detrimental even if you have a great product lined up.
Photo provided by tech.co
Know Your Who, What, Where, and Why?
Remember in English class where you had to do these types of writing prompts? Speaking to your target market is actually quite similar. Knowing who you’re speaking to, how they’d respond to different kinds of stimulus, what they tend to do in their spare time, where they’re located (and if it aligns with your product) and why they’d need it. These are all questions that will help you narrow that funnel for your target market.
Here are some questions you and your colleagues can ask yourselves to create a beautifully curated message for your target market.
Who are you speaking to?
What would they want to see in your product?
What can you deliver? (in your product or service)
Why is there a need for this product or service?
How can you show the consumer that there is a need for this product or service?
CB Insights found that lacking the adequate target market is one of the leading reasons why startups fail.
Photo provided by tech.co
Find Your “Perfect Consumer”
So you’ve just jotted down a few notes on where your target market is located, why they’d want to purchase your product or service, and what they like to do in their spare time. Next up is to create the perfect consumer for your product or service. This will be the ideal consumer for you.
Here’s an example of the perfect consumer for a new compostable garbage that turns your compost into soil in a matter of hours.
Name: Jill
Age: 27 - 55
Sex: Female
Profession: Stay at Home Mom
Hobbies: Gardening, Cooking,
Single/Married: Married
Has Kids?: Yes
Creating your ideal consumer can help hit the nail on the head when it comes to speaking to your audience. This is because when you create your ideal customer, you know exactly who you’re speaking to and have a better idea on how to get their attention. This can also aid in creating branding colors, finding your writing style, and how you market to this audience.
Great ideas have been lost in translation time and time again, by having watered down messages or founders not understanding who their target market is.
Discover the Best Channels to Market Yourself
Now that you know your target market, have an idea of who your ideal consumer is and a strong sense of who you are as a brand, it’s time to discover some different channels to reach this specific audience. One way you can do this is by looking at competitors in your field -- what are they doing? How are they reaching customers? Is it primarily digital content, black and white printing, Youtube ads, Instagram, Twitter, etc…Knowing where your target market spends most of their time gives you the highest chance for your business to be noticed, by advertising on a platform your consumers will most likely be on.
Using the example above about Jill -- the perfect consumer for the compost-to-soil invention, it’d be safe to say that company could successfully advertise on Pinterest, since Pinterest’s target market are women who are in their late twenties to early forties.
CB Insights noted that one of the reasons new businesses fail is poor marketing.
Photo provided by tech.co
Knowing where your target market spends most of their time gives you the highest chance for your business to be noticed, by advertising on a platform your consumers will most likely be on.
Build Up Your Marketing Channels
So you know your consumer and now you know where they’re spending most of their time online; you’re two thirds of the way there! Next up let’s focus on building up your marketing channels so you’re able to successfully bring new customers into the fold and keep high retention rates with your pre-existing customers.
Some ways you can build your channels are by consistently posting, interacting, and adding value to the platform you’re interacting with. The best businesses are highly skilled creating a narrative that shows the consumer they’ve added value to their day by watching the content that business produces. Learning something new triggers a dopamine release in the brain, similar to receiving a reward or praise by someone we admire; this dopamine release makes the consumer want to come back to your page for more.
The best businesses are highly skilled creating a narrative that shows the consumer they’ve added value to their day by watching the content that business produces.
Starting a business can be daunting, but with the right tools, consistent hard work, and a little marketing magic, you can have a thriving startup that grows into so much more. Thank you for taking the time to read these tips and tricks for successfully growing your startup business!
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