Updated on February 2, 2016
The Ultimate List of The Best Marketing Strategies
Get Yourself Seen & Heard
When it comes to marketing, it’s all about the numbers.
Getting yourself in front of your prospective client(s) not just once but a consistently is the key here. Not only do you need to do this you need to make sure you track your effectiveness too.
I’ve compiled a list of 30+ of the best marketing strategies to help you get seen and heard online.
What you decide to use depends on what type of a business you have, where your tribe hangs out and even your personality. Not everyone aspires to be out in front of a live audience, while others may thrive in front of a crowd.
Pick what works best for you.
Here’s My Pick of the Best Marketing Strategies for Small Businesses
You’ll Want Add these to your must-do list!
#1. Blog Posting
#2. Marketing emails
#3. Newsletters
#4. Social Media – part of your basic content marketing strategy
#8. Images – a must have for your website and your posts. Images capture your reader’s attention.
#16: A Website
#21: Bookmarking – a must in conjunction with blog posting & social media to get more eyes on your stuff!
#27: Give-aways – the cornerstone to getting people on your list.
Here’s the complete list:
1. Blog Posting:
This is what comes to mind when someone says “content marketing” — writing on your blog should be the mainstay of your marketing tactics. When you commit over the long term to doing this it will pay off by helping you to build both your list and your SEO. Your posts can How-to’s, lists, tips, podcasts, videos and much more…
2. Marketing Email to your list:
This should be an email to your list that is of value to them, not selling something of yours or anyone else. Take the most popular of your blog posts and send it to your list. Make sure it is the best of your content – wow them!
3. Email Newsletter:
Wondering how this is different from your marketing email? The marketing email is meant to teach your list something. The newsletter email can do this as well and it includes more than just the article. Company news, announcements and you want to highlight or promote one of your products or services. Be sure to keep your newsletters short — 3-4 items, no one wants to read a super long newsletter.
4. Social Media:
Getting your content out and in front of more people starts with Social Media. Which platform is most effective depends on the type of business you’re in. Some businesses may do well on Facebook or Twitter, others on LinkedIn or Google + while others may get more traction on Pinterest and Instagram. Understanding where your tribe hangs out is key to your effectiveness here.
Be persistent on Social Media, don’t dip your toe in periodically. Being consistently active in Social Media is key to your success here. Make it a point to Tweet at least several times per day,Post to LinkedIn or Facebook daily or at the least, a few times per week. Like, You will also need to engage with people directly a few times a week, this is something you cannot delegate to others and is the key to connecting with people who may become clients or key players in your business.
5. Guest Blogging:
Re-purposing and recycling content that you’ve created is just plain smart! Getting your blog posts on another site will give you an opportunity to reach hundreds, even thousands, more readers. This may give you the jump start to building your own tribe that you’ve been looking for!
6. Create Videos:
Creating and adding to your website is a double whammy as it gets your content out into another platform AND it increases your SEO when you upload your videos to YouTube. Make your videos short (1 ½ minutes or less is optimal) and engaging. Need help here? Go check out James Wedmore, he’s the go-to guy for video creation.
7. Interactive game, quiz, contest:
Find different ways to engage with your readers when you offer a game, quiz or contest. This is perfect way to catch the interest of new people and give them a different sort of incentive to join your list.
8. Images:
It goes with out saying these days that you have to have engaging images and graphics on your site.. Humans are visually oriented and a well-chosen image goes a long wat to helping convey the “story” or emotion that you are sharing.
You should make it a habit purchasing good images get creative and brand them with a program like Fireworks or Picmonkey. I love using well priced images from Photo Dune at only $1 to $2 images its a great deal!
9. Infographics:
infographics are still popular, especially on Pinterest.
This is a visually engaging way to gather a lot of information into a single graphic. Check out Piktochart to help you get started building infographics and is easy to use even if you are not a professional designer.
10. Case Studies:
Incorporating case studies is a powerful way to show off your expertise at helping to solve a problem or help a client to have extraordinary results using you or your services.
Your case study should have 3 parts to it
- The problem
- The resolution
- The outcome
Use case studies on your website & sales pages to help you sell your products, programs and services. Make it into a story to engage your readers.
11. Ebook:
Writing a book is the perfect way to raise your expert status is your niche. I’ve done this quickly with a few clients of mine. One client re-purposed a weekly blog series and another took quotes and made them into a book.
Today anyone can publish a book thanks to Amazon.
12. Podcast:
Podcasts are the rage right now and this is the perfect way to get get in front of another audience. It’s very easy to get started with a podcast. I suggest beginning by recording your blog posts.
13. Webinars & Teleseminars:
Both of these are great ways to get in front of your audience and give them a taste of what it is like to work with you. And they help you to build your list, add in some promotional partners and you’ve got a powerful way to build your list and get connected quickly to your audience.
14. Live Events:
Like webinars and teleseminars, live events are a great way to connect with and give your audience a taste of what it is like to work with you. You’ll want to get yourself in front of as many people as your budget affords and give your attendees an opportunity to network with each other.
It’s harder to get people to sign up to attend live events than webinars and teleseminars so know that your lead time should be longer and that you’ll have to work harder at filling up the room.
15. Speaking In Front of Groups:
Speaking for free or being paid to speak is another way to get in front of more people. Start looking around for opportunities in your own backyard:
- Chamber of Commerce
- Local Networking Groups
- Schools
- Local conferences
Are places for you to start researching and you’ll find plenty of places to talk. Note that there is probably some lead time involved so don’t expect to get on the stage right away.
16. Website:
Your website serves many purposes:
- Allows people to learn more about you
- Sells your products and services
- Helps your to build your list
- Marketing hub for your content
You will want to update your content on a regular schedule, making sure that what you are writing about is timely and relevant to the audience you wish to connect with. Track your marketing efforts and continually work to improve your conversion rate.
17. SlideShare Presentation:
Another great way to get your content out in front of another audience. I’ve just added this into my content marketing arsenal and for a small amount of effort, I am getting more eyes on my content and on my website.
Get your popular posts out on slide share easily by making them into a pdf and uploading them into your account.
18. Press Release:
Lots of top marketers swear by Press Releases as a way to get their top content, events out there on the web.
19. Collateral & Direct Mail:
Print marketing pieces & direct mail great ways for you to stand out and get noticed.
Think about creating a flier or postcard for networking events you are attending or sending something to your list via mail announcing an upcoming event.
20. Curate Relevant Content For Your Audience
You’ll want to be a good content curator as part of your social media marketing strategy. Gather a list of the top influencers in your niche, add them to feedly where you can see what they are blogging about quickly then use buffer to curate content that you know your audience will find of value.
21. Bookmarking
Use a service like Onlywire to get your content distributed easily and quickly. You’ll see your traffic build and your SEO will improve when you add this marketing tactic to your list.
22. Be a Sponsor or Exhibitor at Events:
Want to get out in front of more potential clients and be seen as an expert? Then research and find opportunities for sponsorships and exhibit at large events. If you can speak in a breakout room or get on the stage your ramp up your expert status quickly with that audience. Give them a free gift that they can get when they stop by your booth to help jump start traffic.
23. Resources Page:
Ah, done right this can be one of your most visited pages on your website. And it can also be a source of monetizing your website if your are an affiliate for products your audience wants and needs.
Include a description of how you use these resources and you will be providing your audience with valuable information.
24. Sales and Landing Pages:
Use these to highlight a service or product that you want to give your audience more information about. Lots of top marketers keep these up for short periods of time using a scarcity marketing tactic to help generate sales.
25. Online Advertorial Advertising:
When you see an article in either a magazine or in a newspaper and it looks just like an article except it is an advertisement. Promoted tweets on Twitter and sponsored ads on Facebook are online examples of this sort marketing.
26. Packaging:
Yes your packaging on your products is another way of marketing your business. I’ve heard it said that anytime you can get on a shelf in someone’s office, that is a great way to market your business. It is good marketing to make sure your name, contact information and branding go on any sort of printed content you give to people. So think beyond product packaging.
27. Your Irresistible Free Offer (IFO)
Every online business must have one of these! If you are serious about building your list and your business, you need to offer a free gift in exchange for their name and email. Make sure what you give is some of your best content as this is their first taste of what you have offer. Done right this can help turn visitors into customers quickly.
Consider offering the following freebies
- An in-guide that shows them how to do something that will help them get results quickly
- Checklists and templates are very popular and easy to create
- A short video training series
Whatever you decide to do, make it easy on yourself and get it done! You’ll want to start building your list as soon as possible.
Pick your a few favorites from the Ultimate List of Marketing Tactics and then as you feel comfortable, add a few more tactics in!
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