Make the most of classic advertising techniques at your small business!
Promoting your small business can be a daunting task in a world filled with digital media and ever-evolving advertising techniques and trends. How do you make your small business stand out among competitors in a meaningful and effective way without annoying customers? The answer is simple and might mean going back to the most essential forms of communication: writing and talking. Check out these 4 classic advertising techniques and how they can make a big impact for your small business!
4 Advertising Techniques You Need to Use (Again)
1. Thank You Cards: The strength of a handwritten thank you card is overwhelmingly underrated. By taking a few minutes of time and the cost of a postage stamp, you can use thank you cards to reach out to current, past or potential customers while still remaining authentic and genuine. Thank you cards can easily be customized and can feature the logo of your small business and contact information without seeming overly pushy. Three Girls sends handwritten thank you cards to every journalist who covers one of our clients. We’re always amazed at how many thank you replies we get for sending them!
2. Business Cards: Although LinkedIn is a powerful networking website, there is a unique benefit that comes with giving someone a hard copy of your business card: the ability to give all core information in a compact space. Consider business cards as miniature forms of print ads for your small business and keep only the essentials: location, hours of operation, the services or products offered if you have room and links to your various social media pages. Anytime you meet or overhear a potential customer, you will have a quick and non-invasive way to plug your business. You should also always include a business card in each thank you note you write.
3. Word of Mouth: While print ads offer tangible results, word of mouth has a stronger ability to be credible, especially if coming from past or current clients of your small business. Encourage customers to leave reviews after visiting your small business’ store, website, social media sites, and your Yelp pages to increase credibility online and in-person. Consider offering an incentive program for any successful referrals or particularly glowing reviews given by past or current customers. That will encourage them to share your business – and be a repeat customer with their special offer.
4. Print Ads: Flyers, magazine advertisements and billboards are considered old-fashioned in 2014, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t effective! In fact, billboard advertising is expected to be a key strategy in marketing since we’re always on the go, and the potential for branding via billboards is still quite strong. The key to having successful print ads in 2014 is by keeping it simple: design should be clean and easy to understand. Content of print ads offers more flexibility than business cards, but using similar content is essential for customers to find your business. Don’t forget to include contact information and physical location if applicable. Lastly, repetition is incredibly important. It’s not likely you’ll get a lot of business off of a single ad in a newspaper. However, if you advertise every day for a whole month, your visibility, and ideally your business, will exponentially grow.
Finally, don’t be hesitant to mix up your ads with different images and wording throughout your advertising campaign to find which brings in the best results.
Keeping marketing efforts strictly digital is an option for some companies, but even tech-based app companies are fans of classic advertising in our digital world! How does your small business use classic advertising techniques in this modern age? Let us know in the comments!
Special Offer: Complimentary Consultation
Three Girls Media, Inc. is a public relations and social media management agency founded in the heart of California’s Silicon Valley with a team in the Seattle area. We love working with small and emerging companies across the nation to raise their brand awareness and name recognition. We offer a complimentary 30-minute phone consultation with our CEO and can answer your questions and discuss your specific marketing needs.
Call 408-218-2391 or Contact us today to arrange yours!
Photo Credit: Death to the Stock Photo