If you are an SME and looking at marketing where do you start? You may have some customers buying your products but what is your next step? You wan to promote your brand to as many people as possible but where do you go next? In the current digital age there are a variety of options available.

Plan

Firstly pinpoint your target audience. What does your product or service provide above your competitors? Are you planning on using social media platforms, e-mail marketing, design a new website, write blogs or all of the above as your marketing tools? Even if you only spend one day a month on planning your marketing then you will reap the rewards.

Social Media

Social media is a great way to promote your brand without investment any substantial budget. It also provides you with a way to build and maintain relationships with customers and potential buyers. Remember your end goal is to maximise sales so it might be better to focus on one social media channel which works well for you. If your product lends to images based social media platforms then Facebook and Instagram might work best for you. Remember to constantly monitor, post and interact on social media channels.

Content is king

Good content is king. Potential customers will be put off if all you do is sell, sell, sell. Think of the type of information your customers would benefit from and then add in a call to action. Share your knowledge and useful stats to entice people to find more about your company.  If you are an expert in your field you might consider writing and posting blogs on LinkedIn for example.

Website

If you are thinking of designing your own website then there are several options out there where you receive web space and hosting site for nothing. Moonfruit, Google Sites and Mr Site are some of the most popular options. Better to design a few pages that are well and aligned to your brand, and provide useful information to your customers, then plan for a large scale website.

Message

Remember to focus on your brand and message. Customers will return to you for your product and service so best to be consistence and innovative in your area. Try to ensure that your core messages is consistence on all your marketing materials, social media platforms and website.

At the Edinburgh Chamber we run number of training courses on marketing , social media and website development. Please view our current training calendar