A successful business is not just about having a good product, but also about showing its existence to the customers, telling reasons why you created the product, why your product is different, etc.
And the process that you use to promote and sell your product is called marketing.
Before going into the details, let me tell you what you will get from this article.
- What is Marketing and why is it needed
- Types of Marketing Strategies
- Low Budget Marketing Tips For Startups
- Examples of Good Content Marketing
- How To Create A Marketing Campaign For Your Startup
- Marketing Tools For Startups
What is Marketing?
Marketing is a broad phrase but in simple words, marketing is a process which aims at promoting and selling of products/ services.
“Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing but nobody else does.” -Steuart Henderson Britt
Why Do Startups Need Marketing?
Success in business depends on the clients you have. And to get clients you first have to aware them about the existence of your business.
You have to show your clients the USP of your products/ services, the reason you are doing the business.
It’s obvious that if people don’t know about you and the existence of your business, it’s impossible to make them your potential customer.
That is why marketing is important to get success in business.
Types of Marketing Strategies
Based on your goal, you can vary your marketing strategy. But in general, the following are the main types of marketing.
Scarcity Marketing
Here marketing is done by projecting the product/ service as a ‘limited available’ thing. Scarcity marketing leads to people purchasing, due to Fear Of Missing Out.
Relationship Marketing
Relationship marketing focuses on customer satisfaction and retention. The goal is to enhance your relationship with existing customers so that they stay loyal to you.
Word of Mouth
When people like your product, what do they do? Yes, they tell others. Word of mouth marketing strategy depends on your customers and is the most powerful form of marketing.
Undercover Marketing Or Stealth Marketing
In this marketing, product/ service is introduced in such a way that doesn’t seem like marketing.
Influencer Marketing
This type of marketing focuses on utilising the influence of famous people to put the service/ product in front of the target audience.
Cause Marketing
This type of marketing focuses on linking the product/ service to a social cause.
Low Budget Marketing Tips For Startups
Growing a startup is tough, especially when you have a low marketing budget. These marketing strategies are especially chalked out for startups who have a low marketing budget.
- Content Marketing
Today, content is the king and content marketing is the most powerful form of marketing.
It is the cheapest form of marketing and all you have to do is to create valuable and relevant content. Here, content can be a video, blog, audio, infographic, etc.
The good part is that you can use one piece of content on multiple platforms.
Example: You can use some part of your Youtube video and put that on Instagram.
- Social Media Marketing
There are 3.5 billion people who use some form of social media. This means that a significant percentage of your target audience is also on some social media.
So, you can use Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc to create awareness around your startup.
- Referrals
Reviews and recommendations increase clients’ trust and that is why referrals are important.
Referrals provide a great ROI as the retention rate of referred clients is very high.
- Email Marketing
Email Marketing helps you to nurture your present customers as well as in reaching out to your potential customers.
You can expect an average return of $42, for every $1 spent.
- SEO
SEO is the art of optimizing your web content so that it ranks higher in a search engine’s result page.
When SEO is combined with content marketing, your chances of getting quality traffic on your website increases.
You can also use forums and groups to market your startup. Sometimes, press releases and news features can also work wonders. So, make the most of every low budget marketing method available.
Examples of Good Content Marketing
Zomato
If you are following Zomato on any social media platform, it’s clear that at some point or other you got attracted to their humour based marketing strategy.
The company combines food and humour in their content across platforms, thus catching the attention of its customers.
Neil Patel
Neil Patel is an example of people who made it big using content marketing. Literally, the guy ranks high on almost every blog he writes, thus generating a lot of revenue.
“A lot of my best customers come from my blog. They’re reading a blog post, like: ‘This guy seems smart. Let’s hire him!’”
McDonald’s
Quality content is one that is created around your customers. McDonald’s Canada did it when they decided to take on the challenge of answering the customer’s questions.
And by answering around 10,000 customer questions, McDonald’s built a strong relationship with its customers.
These are just a few examples, Companies like Buffer, Kinsta, Hootsuite gained success due to their content marketing.
So, just start by creating content, relevant to your customers. Use multiple social platforms and create content in multiple modes like a video, blog, picture, etc.
How To Create A Marketing Campaign For Your Startup
If you are reading this blog, it’s quite obvious that either marketing is missing in your startup or you want to do marketing the right way.
Either way, just follow the below written steps and soon you will enjoy the benefits of marketing.
- Define Your Goal
- Select Your Target Audience
- Decide Your Marketing Budget
- Online, Offline Marketing or Both
- Start marketing and improve
1. Define Your Goal:
Every business aims at an increased return on investment. And a defined goal is the most important element that boosts your chances of achieving an increased ROI.
Your marketing goal can be to create awareness, the introduction of a new product, retargeting your existing customer, etc.
It’s important not to start with a vague goal, just define your goal as narrow as possible.
2. Select Your Target Audience:
Every product has its own audience. That is why it’s important to target the right set of potential customers.
There are many factors that determine the target audience for a product/service/ business.
These factors include
-Age
-Income Level
-Gender
-Lifestyle
-Behaviour, etc.
Just be as specific as possible. Being specific in targeting the right customer will help in reducing customer resistance in buying the product.
3. Decide Your Marketing Budget:
It’s hard to spend money when you are a startup on a low budget. But to get money from clients, you first have to spend your own money.
Marketing budget mainly depends on your marketing goals, target audience and distribution channels (online, offline).
So, have a clear picture of your goal and spend accordingly.
4. Online, Offline Marketing or Both:
Both Online and offline marketing channels have their pros and cons. It’s up to you which medium you want to utilize. But it’s better to first analyze your existing customer base and decide which choice will generate the desired outcome.
5. Start Marketing And Improve:
When you have all the points in place, just start marketing.
Keep an eye on your KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) and keep on improving.
Some common KPIs includes,
- Sales Revenue
- Cost Per Lead
- Customer Lifetime Value
- Marketing ROI
- Lead-to-conversion Rate
Marketing Tools For Startups
With time methods of marketing have changed, which means a change in tools too. Here is the list of Marketing Tools that you can use to create, manage and analyze your marketing campaigns.
- Hubspot-CRM
- Canva- For Photo Editor and Designing
- Google Analytics
- Sendinblue- Email Marketing
- Adobe Spark- Create Corporate Videos, Blogs
- Gtmatrix- Website User Analysis
- Hootsuite- Social Media Marketing and Management
For a detailed list, read 29 Best Marketing Tools For Startups and Small Businesses.
Apply these tips to market your startup and keep on achieving business success.
Read: Customer Acquisition or Customer Retention: Where Should Startups Focus On?