There are hordes of marketing professionals around the world, from interns to those with fifty-plus years of experience. All of them are competing for your engagement. Sure, you might not be in their targeted customer list or potential demographic, but most would prefer it if you supported or purchased what they were trying to sell, even if you never used it. For that reason, they wake up each day and work hard to gain success.
As a small business just trying to get your name out there, how are you supposed to compete? After all, the internet and its centralization have pretty much altered how brands are seen online now. An Instagram profile for one company has the same formatting structure as another, rendering both brands near-peers in that space, even if they’re not in the real world.
When curating a content marketing strategy, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. But it is helpful to find something people can relate to and engage with. So – what might that look like in practice? In this post, we’ll discuss some suggestions to get your business ball rolling:
Perfect A Local Strategy
Once, companies tried to be “placeless” in their marketing so they would appeal to everyone. We see that with larger international corporations, of course, not solely because they’re trying to put on a “too cool for you” act, but because they’re genuinely not tied to a local area. Sure, McDonald’s in Australia might look different to McDonald’s in Japan menu-wise, but the branding is largely unchanged.
That’s why when you’re a small business trying to get noticed, sometimes starting small is the best approach. Focusing on a local strategy can give you a solid foundation to build up such as local SEO, local messaging, and local networking. Your local community is where your roots are, and it’s often easier to connect with people who share your immediate surroundings and culture. Being proud of that is also a good sign of your values.
For example, are there local events or causes you could support? This helps you not just become a business trying to market itself – you’re becoming part of the community fabric instead. That could also mean partnering with other local businesses. Maybe the coffee shop down the street would be interested in a cross-promotion for your bakery, or perhaps you could sponsor a local sports team to show you’re not just limited to your office.
Advocating and being enthusiastic about a given area is almost always a good idea, as most smaller to moderate firms are unlikely to be international in scope, while sometimes, selling overseas can still be considered favorably. For example, someone in Northern England might find it “cool” to be importing something from New York. Cultural relevance travels.
Understand Your Audience Needs & Pre-Empt Them
If you have any marketing know-how at all, the idea that you “need to understand your audience’s desires” is hardly news.
Trying to anticipate what customers might need next is a way to subvert all this pursuit and start making promises people want to volunteer themselves to. If you’re a gardening supply store, for example, don’t just post about spring planting – start talking about summer maintenance before the first seedling has even sprouted. This positions you as someone who’s always one step ahead, appealing to gardeners who like to prepare and feel smart for doing so.
The best part about this is that you don’t have to be afraid to ask your audience what they want. Surveys, polls, or even casual conversations generally work because customers want to tell you about their experience and why it matters. People appreciate being heard, so let them do the work!
Remain Simple But Memorable
Any Michelin-star chef will tell you that while their techniques matter, the quality and freshness of the ingredients they use is often the determining factor between accolades. They’ll also say it’s infinitely better to do two things perfectly than five excellently.
So, what if we told you that you don’t need to craft elaborate campaigns or come up with mind-bending concepts that only the best advertising agents in the world would dare try? Sometimes, the simplest ideas are the most powerful.
Think about some of the most memorable marketing campaigns out there. Often, they’re built around a single, clear idea. They don’t try to say everything at once – they focus on one key message. Some of the best anti-drink-driving advertisements confront you with the brutal reality of the horror that can happen if you engage in such a habit. Cigarette packets now have clear, often graphic imagery about the statistical likelihood of you encountering ill-health.
This doesn’t mean dumbing things down nor does it mean you can’t share a fun aside or try to be clever. But if that obfuscates your message, you might be falling into the trap everyone else is. Put simply, when everyone else is trying to apply 300IQ marketing tactics, just knowing your ABCs is an advantage.
Don’t Try & Outwit Or Outjoke Everyone Else
We’ve all seen those brands on social media trying to have the funniest joke. Sure, it works for some, but for most, it comes off as trying too har, especially if they attempt to be the funniest or zaniest person on apps like TikTok. You don’t need to crack jokes in every post or turn everything into a meme to be effective, though of course, humor isn’t a dirty word.
It’s much better for your content to reflect who you really are as a business. If you’re naturally funny, great! Let that shine through. But if you’re not, don’t force it. Customers can smell inauthenticity and forced humor trends from a mile away.
Remember that there are other positive emotions to encourage as a response. Share your passion for what you do. Talk about why you started your business or what gets you excited about your products. That authenticity is far more engaging than anything else. Moreover, remember that it’s okay to be serious sometimes. If you have important information to share or want to discuss a meaningful topic, do it. One criticism of later Marvel movies is that no serious scene goes without a joke, and realizing that lesson can help your own marketing avoid the same mistake.
Inform, Inform, Inform
What is advertising really about, deep deep down? It’s about informing people about what you have to sell. That’s really it. You don’t have to try and make marketing into more than what it is, or trick your consumers to feel that you’re not trying to gain their hard-earned funds. Instead, you need to make them feel like handing over that cash is fundamentally worth it.
So why not lean into that? Use your platform to educate your audience about your products, your industry, or topics related to what you do. Show the impact you’re having and why supporting your brand over another helps their dollar, euro, pound or other currency work better for the world they want to live in
This doesn’t mean turning your social media into a lecture series, of course. Keep it light, keep it interesting, but make sure there’s substance there. If you sell skincare products, share tips on developing a good skincare routine and how best to use your products to do it. If you’re a bookstore, talk about upcoming releases or share book recommendations, and any meet and greets you have coming up. Inform and excite, but always make sure the information gets out there first. The excitement is just the delivery mechanism.
With this advice, you’ll be sure to look at content marketing anew and use this better perspective to shine.