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Small Business Marketing Strategies

Many entrepreneurs think that in developing their small business marketing strategies, they are best off selling to the widest possible market. They are afraid to pursue a niche because they fear they’ll lose business by turning away customers. The truth is that if you are not marketing to a distinct group of customers and offering them a unique solution, you will not be heard or found online.

Benefits of Niche Marketing When you market to a specific niche, you can focus your marketing resources. You understand the needs and language of your niche, so you can communicate better with them and speak directly to their situation.

By focusing on a niche, you become an expert at providing your service or product. And as an expert, you command higher fees and leverage your efforts to create multiple streams of income.

Above all, when you target a niche, you can differentiate yourself. You significantly reduce your competition and create a distinctive personal brand.

Niche Definition There are many definitions of niche and target market, and the two are often used interchangeably. But there is an important distinction.

A target market is the group of people most likely to buy your product or service. They are the people to whom your product is being marketed

A niche adds another dimension. A niche combines your target market (WHO) with the solution you are providing (WHAT). When you combine your “what” with your “who”, you have your niche.

Niche = target market (who) + the problem you are solving/need you are fulfilling (what)

The key to understanding niche marketing is realizing that people don’t buy a service or product, they buy a solution. That solution can help them solve a problem or achieve a goal. Being a solution provider is critical for good relationship marketing. When you become the solution provider for your target market, you are a winner.

How to Find Your Niche To identify your niche, is it best to start with your “who” or your “what”?

You can go either way, but in many cases, it is best to start with YOU.

You can’t be great at everything, but there is an area in which you have something special to offer — a unique skill or perspective or approach. What is unique about you and what you have to offer? What are your passions, skills, interests and expertise?

Once you have identified that, think about who wants what you have to offer. There has to be synchronicity between what you have to offer and what your target market wants. When you find that connection, you can identify your niche.

Remember, there is only one YOU, and you will ultimately attract those who find you compelling. Be true to yourself and you have the ability to help other people in ways that nobody else can.

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Advanced Global Marketing

It was back in the day that solely local marketing was a career, but that day is long gone. No longer does expansion refer to tentatively marketing a good to the customer in the next county over or perhaps a state away, but instead expansion now refers to forceful ventures into foreign countries. Business opportunities take flight in today’s global economy and in doing so the pressure of national as well as international competition has become more intense. While in the past businesses may have suffered if it was unable to gain access in the marketplace next door, today’s businesses will suffer permanent failure if it falls short to not only conquer local competition but global competition as well.

Advanced global marketing is the answer to the entrepreneur who understands the tide of the international marketplace and knows that the success or failure of the business will depend on taking it beyond his home town. Yet this very comprehension also requires a complete rethinking of the tried and true marketing approaches of older times. Perhaps one of the oldest tactics was utilizing an in-house sales force to circulate the product to the private and business consumer. Any marketing tool that guaranteed a company’s name and contact information display to be available to the eager consumer had proved some succession. Then there was the time of calendar marketing, mug giveaways, and other little household items that were useful and carried an advertising message.

In a remarkable twist of marketing efficiency, the global marketplace has encouraged many of the self employed to go back to the sales force method. Instead of hiring a paid in-house sales force, many companies now rely on a multi level marketing approach which only pays sales people when they’ve successfully completed and closed on a sale. Add to this the beginning of online magazines, the ability to quickly and efficiently send out newsletters to even the largest mailing list for a very low cost, the clever operation of blogs and the possibilities of the multi level marketing network approach make a lot of sense.

This methodology electronically imitates the giveaways of household items in the older marketing days and it is shown to be very effective. Naturally, like in the past, the calendar has always been more preferred and held more promise than the cigarette lighter. The catchy newsletter with the most useful information and fun facts and tidbits is read upon more often and even forwarded more than the one with less quality and value to the customer. Blogging and using articles to market your company increases its global exposure while offering the business owner the ability to create content unique to the interests of the numerous regions to which she or he is marketing a product. Cutting edge global marketing truly is a hands-on approach to claiming the worldwide profitability that is all but promised – with the help of the Internet.

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