• When running a small business, it is crucial to come up with a marketing plan that will make you stand out in the competition.
• There are tons of methods and aspects of online presence to include in your marketing strategy. But how do you find the best strategy that works for you?
• We've chosen the 10 greatest marketing strategies that will help you drive your business forward. Read on to leaern more.

Running a small business can be a real fight.

With larger competitors on the line, you need to be able to get your name out on the street. Marketing strategies that you develop in order to be seen are the most important aspect of your work.

What options you have in play, and how each of them benefits your business, is our topic for today.

What are the best small business marketing strategies?

So, here it is. A list of the top ten marketing strategies you can start implementing within your business (if you haven't already) to drive better results.

1. Facebook ads

With hundreds of millions of people using Facebook every day, all over the world, advertising your company on Facebook is a real hit. What's more important, you can set your target audience just as you want it.

All that's left to do is to create interesting content and publish it regularly. But don't overdo it; spamming people's Facebook feed can annoy them. This is why you should make a publishing schedule, and organise some events or calls to action from time to time.

2. Create a Google My Business listing 

This Google service is a gift from above for small local business owners. It connects all your Google accounts, ranks your business, and connects your location with the search results.

Let's say you run a pizza place in Sacramento. When someone Google’s for pizza in Sacramento, you will see your name on the list of pizza places.

3. Instagram

The social network, Instagram, has so many regular users that it's just preposterous to avoid it. Advertising your business on Instagram can generate a lot of audience and make your business grow.

Just post pictures regularly, and tag your location with a few catchy hashtags and you're good. But be aware that Instagram users are mostly younger persons.

Just focus your ad on the right target group and create content accordingly.

4. Content marketing

It involves the process of creating reader-oriented, quality content on a regular basis in order to attract the target audience. The main goal is to transfer those visitors to customers in the long run.

You can create any content, there are no limits as long as it's unique, creative and holds some informative value. But be careful not to create too much content, especially those with poor quality.

It doesn’t only make you appear as a spammer, but causes you to lose credibility or value.

5. Coupon deals

Consider this a larger investment for the future of your business. These coupon deal sites are very popular because they offer services to clients for discounted price.

But in your direction, this is a local business-oriented type of marketing, which brings you clients faster than any other marketing strategy. The only problem is that you have to cut your price and share half of your revenue with the website.

But that's how investments work.

6. Local business groups

Joining this community can help your business and you, personally, in many ways. First of all, you will meet new people with similar interests, share experiences, and create partnerships.

You will also be able to hear news related to your business, all the while promoting your business with potential local partners and customers.

7. Give your staff rewards when they refer a client

Your employees are the ones that know your product the best. They actively work on creating it and making it better, so, who better to attract new customers?

Give your employees some stimulation in the form of some money or otherwise. This will motivate your employees to dig into generating new leads for your business.

8. Email marketing

If you have a growing mailing list, you should use it to reach out to your audience. Don't allow content to end up in the Spam folder, use emails just for celebrations and special events.

Also, try to create engaging content, something that will inspire your audience to take action.

Sending emails three times a week is fine, but it still boils down to the type of business, product, services, and value of the content you are offering. Before sending an email, ask yourself these questions. What value will the content give to my subscribers? And what will the outcome be?

An example of a case study is what happened to Aviva, a UK-based insurance company. They usually send mails once every year but increased the frequency after hiring a UK mailing company.

However, they didn’t just start sending hundreds of contents all at once but did the following;

• Did some surveys to know the type of content subscribers would prefer,
• Increased frequency of mailing but slowly.

Consumers will unsubscribe or mark your email as spam when you regularly send them contents without much value. In fact, you will not only lose client base but reputation in today’s competitive market.

9. Use feedback

Organise surveys in order to get your target audience opinion on issues that matter for the success of your business. Analyse the feedback, as well as comments on your previously published content and you can see what your audience needs.

It's a great way to see what you're doing wrong or what to keep on doing. This can help you plan your future marketing and maybe get some ideas for new products or improvement of the existing.

Replying or implementing feedback from subscribers or customers can increase customer retention and loyalty.

In the customer loyalty statistics presented by accessdevelopment.com in 2016;

• 55% of customers said they will discontinue being a customer to companies that ignore their feedback.
• 97% of customers said they are likely to become even more loyal to a company that implements their feedback.

10. Distinguish your business from the rest

The point of marketing is to reach the people and get them to buy your product or use your services. One of the ways to attract clients is to present your business in a fun, compelling and unique way.

Give your brand a cool visual look, something that looks warm and friendly. It might take some money in case you decide to hire a good designer, but it pays off eventually. Creating a logo that can connect people to your brand is a great way to make yourself more visible and easy to remember.

People only remember 10% of the information they hear after three days. But if the relevant image accompanies the same information, they are likely to remember 65% of the information after three days.

Conclusion

A good marketing can give your business wings to reach the highest heights. For this reason, try to plan your strategy in accordance with your budget and your target audience.

Remember that originality is the key, as well as consistency and value. If you feel like you need help from a marketing expert, don't hesitate to hire one.

A poorly executed marketing campaign can bring more harm than good.

Let us know what your favorite marketing strategy is. How do you promote your business and how does it work for you?