Brand awareness is important for all businesses, but especially small ones.
When customers recognize a company by brand, they’re more likely to trust and patronize it. Building brand awareness also means you’re establishing your reputation, in turn allowing you to gain new customers, retain your current customer base and stand out from your competition. Even if your business is still so small that you’re operating out of your home kitchen, it’s never too early to put effort into raising brand awareness.
Create valuable content
Sharing content such as photos, videos, posts and white papers is one of the best ways you can build awareness for your small business. If you’re just getting started and feel overwhelmed, a blog is a great place to start. You can use it to educate your customers with informative, insightful and even delightful content. Blogging regularly is also a great way to impact SEO, allowing higher visibility and increased traffic to your website (and in turn, increased brand awareness). However you choose to share content, keep in mind that consistency is key. Take some time to nail down a content plan to ensure you’re continuously providing both loyal and perspective customers with helpful content.
Get social
There’s a reason Wendy’s recently offered to roast customers on Twitter and why Airbnb showcases its unique lodgings from around the world on Instagram – customers are on social media. That includes your customers. You don’t have to use every social platform out there. That takes a lot of effort and time, and as a small business owner, your time is a precious commodity. Evaluate which social networks your business is best suited to and focus your efforts there.
After you establish which social networks you want to use, share engaging content that stands out and makes people want to interact with your business. Photos and videos tell your story much better than text alone. If you’re using Instagram or Twitter, using relevant hashtags can add visibility to your posts.
When your business is on social media, be prepared for customers to come to you with questions or problems. Ensure you’re creating a great customer experience and building relationships by being responsive and following up quickly.
Provide great service
It sounds simple, but being known for excellent customer service allows word to spread about you and your business. Encourage your loyal customers to leave Google or Facebook reviews, follow up with customers on social media and above all, go the extra mile to make your customers feel special and heard.
Host an event or participate locally
Social media and digital marketing are great, but at the end of the day, face-to-face interaction leaves the biggest impression on people. It gives your customers a chance to get to know you and your business. Creating a sense of urgency around an event through advertising on social media and other channels can draw in current customers as well as those who may not know much about you.
If you’re not ready to host your own event just yet, you can still increase awareness about your business by having a presence at local events. Participating in farmer’s markets, festivals, shows or seminars around your city or town allows you to meet many potential customers as well as network with other businesses, which could lead to co-hosting events or seminars in the future.
Target customers through online advertising
Paid advertising on social networks is an effective way to get the word out about your small business. Facebook in particular offers plenty of targeting options to make sure your message gets in front of the right people. You can also advertise on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Snapchat.
The Google Ads tool also has a solution specifically designed for small businesses called Smart campaigns. Smart campaigns is all about simplicity and ease, allowing you to run automated campaigns that help you highlight the unique aspects of your business, attract customers and get results that are important to you.