Some of these are short-term “do now” and “get results now.” Others require longer-term commitments and discipline. All of them can benefit you, if you are able to do them earnestly.
1. Newsletter: Syndicate your content to retain customers and intrigue prospects. Remember, to make this effort worthwhile, you really need to have established an email list and have a distribution tool (I like using MailChimp and I recommend them). Good content is also a pre-requisite.
2. Pay-Per-Click: Targeting keywords in search engine-based advertisements to build traffic. Google AdWords is the biggest, but you can also use other networks that may be niche-oriented or easier to use. A friend of mine uses Project Wonderful.
3. Email Promotions: Consider exchanging email promotions with other like-minded businesses. This is big. It gives new audiences the chance to be exposed to content they find interesting and relevant, and it also benefits you and your partner-in-promotion. Win-win-win (you – partner – consumer).
I said it in #1, but it’s worth repeating:I like using MailChimp and I recommend them.
4. Text-based Banner Advertisements: Use these in customized situations (i.e. you have an established relationship with another business who will put your ad on their website). Or you may want to decide whether or not there is value in placing your own ads on your own site! This works for some people.
5. Free Android or iPhone App: Use apps for mobile devices to connect with users on the go while creating an engaging experience that leads to more website traffic and email conversions.
6. Magazines: This one is a tough one for me to wrap my head around; that an ad in a magazine will generate more website traffic. “How?” you ask. So did I! Here’s the skinny: magazine ads, statistically, are good for brand recognition and reputation, first, then they might stick in somebody’s head long enough for them to remember your fabulously easy-to-remember URL and type it in when they get to their computer.
“Ah-ha!” you say. “They can just go to my website immediately from their smartphone! I mean, who doesn’t have instant access to the Internet in their pocket these days?” You are right. Consider magazine ads if you can afford them.
The Reality
At the end of these 6 quick tips, I found myself wanting to relate a couple more thoughts and realities about how I use these tips in my business.
Reality #1
There are a few of these I cannot do by myself. I need help. What I really need are partnerships with other like-minded businesses who have expertise and resources that I do not. And those businesses conversely recognize that I have expertise and resources that they do not. See where I’m going with this?
For example, I cannot produce an iPhone or an Android app. But my colleague Rob Campbell at Cartoon Thunder can. He has an iPhone app available on his website and publicizes it elsewhere on the net.
I also am not an expert on the ins and outs of email marketing campaigns. But my colleague Carolyn Higgins at Fortune Marketing Company is. She has a professional background and knowledge base that beats mine; I go to her when I need help.
Sometimes I need help with professional writing and copy for a client’s website because I am swamped doing other stuff. I know that my colleague Lori Baxter at The Scribe Source is the first place to go.
Do you have people like this in your professional circles? You need them and they need you. Fun!
Reality #2
I must have a professional and usable website. Without it, all the stuff I have mentioned here is a waste of time to my business.
I say this somewhat harshly, but with goodwill for my fellow businesspeople: If you have a website that looks old, amateurish and/or still has crumbs on it from the cookie-cutter then you are in trouble. Upgrade. Get professional. Invest money in this good investment people call the Internet. I hear it may be more than a passing fad…
