People are more likely to buy from businesses they know, like, and trust. Unfortunately, many small businesses don’t really know how to go about building these types of relationships. That’s where marketing comes in. Marketing is the act of advertising or promoting a business, product, or service to individuals within a particular market. In the world of marketing, sometimes there are specific terms you need to know, like lead generation or conversion marketing, but at its core, marketing is the process of getting individuals to actively consider buying your product or service.

1. Build A Database

The first step in marketing is to build a database of prospects and customers. Prospects are individuals who have never purchased your product or service before, and customers are those who have. If you want to grow your business and make more sales, you need to identify and study those individuals who have an interest in your product or service.

When you build a database, you are essentially creating a list of names, emails, and phone numbers of individuals who are interested in your product or service. Depending on how you design your database, you can either do this yourself or hire an expert to do it for you.

2. Identify The Best Channels For Marketing

Once you have a database of interested parties, you can begin to look for ways to communicate with them. What platforms do they use to interact with friends and family? What are their interests? What are their hobbies? These are the types of questions you need to be asking yourself to find the best channels for marketing.

For example, if you are selling clothing, you might decide to use social media to reach your target audience. You could create a Facebook page or Instagram account to promote your clothing line. Or if you are offering catering services, you might want to try and establish yourself as a go-to caterer in your area by using online directories, websites, and social media to promote your business.

3. Identify The Best Place For Impression

When someone hears about your product or service, they typically hear about it second or third hand. That is, people either see or hear about your product or service and then, somewhere in between, think of you. The problem is that when someone hears about your product or service from someone they trust, that person’s opinion can carry more weight than if they had read about your product or service in a mass media publication. So if you want to have a successful online store, you need to make sure that when someone lands on your website, your product is the first thing they see.

One way to do that is to put the most relevant and informative content first. For example, if you are selling cooking appliances, you might want to put a video tutorial of how to cook a complicated meal or a step-by-step guide to cooking a conventional dish on your homepage. At the very least, you should put some high-quality images of the product first.

Another way to put your best foot forward is by using keywords and phrases in your content to raise your website’s SEO. If you are using WordPress, you can use the Google Keyword Planner tool or the SEMrush Keyword Finder tool to find the best keywords and phrases for your content.

4. Establish Yourself As An Authority In Your Niche

Just because someone is interested in your product or service doesn’t mean they know everything about it. Sometimes, true expertise can be acquired through a simple Google search. For example, if you are selling luxury goods and you don’t have any experience in that field, you might look for blogs, websites, and other digital spaces that deal with luxury goods to establish yourself as an expert.

In some cases, an expert can become an instant persona of the brand. If you are trying to grow your business and establish yourself as an expert in your industry, you can use your newfound authority to negotiate discounts or special deals with suppliers.

5. Use The Right Digital Tools

Depending on your expertise and the industry you are in, you might have access to a variety of special tools that can help you market your product or service. For example, if you are a hairstylist, you might decide to use an SEO tool to find the right keywords and phrases for your content to attract potential clients. If you are a dentist, you might want to use a lead generation tool to find prospects who are willing to pay for services.

Many businesses use automated email marketing tools that can help them segment and target their audience based on interests, hobbies, and demographics. If you are looking to grow your business, these tools might be able to help you get an edge over your competitors. For example, if you are selling cosmetics, you could send emails to prospects on the basis of their interests, such as fashion, style, or celebrity. If you are dealing with a product that is more expensive or requires specific expertise, you could target your email list to people who fit the bill. For example, you might send a survey link to people who have a professional background in food science.

6. Build A Long-Term Relationship With Your Audience

The ultimate goal of every business, regardless of its size, is to make sales and gain profit. But, for those doing business online, building a long-term relationship with customers comes with several advantages. First, customers are a lot more likely to come back if you engage with them on a personal level. Second, customers are more likely to be loyal to businesses they know will look out for them. Finally, in today’s digital world, customer loyalty can and often does breed trust. So, if you are looking to build a successful business, establishing a relationship with your audience is key.

To this end, you can use a variety of tactics to build a rapport with your audience. For example, you could offer them deals and discounts, be a resource for them when they have questions, or start a forum where they can talk about what is on their mind. For those seeking information on the best practices for a particular industry, you could start a blog or website to share your expertise and establish yourself as an authority in your field. If someone you know is doing well, you could ask them to speak at your next customer appreciation event or conference.

7. Use Different Channels (e.g., Social Media, Email, Telemarketing)

Depending on your budget and available resources, you might decide to use one channel or the other to reach your audience. If you are confident that your product or service will be of interest to a small audience, you might decide to use social media to attract potential customers. You could create a Twitter account or a Facebook page to share your expertise and let people know about upcoming sales, discounts, or any other relevant information.

If you are looking to acquire new customers, you might want to use email marketing or telemarketing to get the word out. With email marketing, you can use a service like MailChimp to send out regular emails with deals, discounts, and other relevant information. Telemarketing allows you to call and speak with prospective customers directly. You can use an online directory, like Yell, to find the phone number of businesses that offer the product or service you are promoting.

8. Measure The Results Of Your Marketing Activities

To determine how effective your marketing efforts were, you need to set up a dashboard with the right metrics. This includes things like website traffic, social media engagement, and email open and click-through rates. When you have these metrics, you can determine the success of your marketing campaigns and make necessary adjustments. This way, you will always be aware of what is working and what needs to change to get more customers.

To help you get the most out of your marketing efforts, we have compiled a list of marketing analytics tools that can put your efforts to the test.