It is normal to ditch your 9-5, “no-rest” corporate job to develop and grow as an entrepreneur. Although research suggests that approximately 46% of Americans believe setting up a business is easy, this has not been precisely the case, as over 90% of startup businesses fail in the first year. Apart from dealing with startup costs, utilities, working tools, and technology, solopreneurs need to find the funds to promote their brands and services to the world. However, the question asked is what marketing strategies can make a difference for your business? Here are a few creative and practical marketing tips you should consider as a solopreneur.
- Set goals
Whether it’s to create more revenue, increase your customer base, or join the competitive market, your business should have goals it wishes to achieve. Setting business goals makes you accountable and allows you to track your activities to determine if they are working or otherwise and any other necessary changes you need to make. This applies to your marketing strategies. By creating marketing goals of what you hope to get out of your marketing campaign, you can pinpoint areas you should improve in and other techniques you can explore. Ensure these goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. Also, ensure they encourage creativity.
- Tell your story
Customers indeed love backstories as it helps them connect with the product and service you are selling to them. Sharing your story also encourages your target audience to follow your journey, which in turn leads to loyalty to your brand. Studies have shown that customers are more likely to recommend a business they are connected to. This would cause your business to grow, reaching a wider range of customers. You can share your story through blogs, show snippets of your “process,” or create short videos.
- Create a website
In today’s digital world, the benefits of having a business website cannot be underrated. Almost every part of your business links to your website, from social media to search engines and traditional advertisement. Fortunately, you don’t need to be an experienced web designer to have a professional website as there are several affordable, ready-to-use templates. However, you can also hire a professional digital agency to aid you in building an attractive, interactive, easy-to-navigate website and provide other digital marketing solutions such as pay-per-click and SEO.
- Know your competition
Find out what your competitors are doing to attract your shared targeted market. This may sound more like benchmarking, yet instead of just bettering what your competitors are offering, you have to offer and do what they lack in. First, find out what people like about your competitors, what they don’t like, your competitors’ reviews on social media, search engines, and other marketing platforms. You offer what they are lacking, better their existing offerings, and know more about competitor conversations.
Many people are skeptical about being successful as a solopreneur. Yet, it is true that many small businesses are created every year and growing into successful brands. You can consider ways to collaborate with other solopreneurs, organizations, and freelancers to run your business without losing your autonomy.
