If you run an online business you may be fooled into thinking that the best way to market it is solely through online channels. Though a lot of the channels such as social media, PPC, SEO and display ads are fantastic to help generate more traffic to your website and help build your brands reputation – by only focussing on these alone you are missing out on the potential traffic offline methods can bring you. Many are put off by offline advertisement because of the large costs that most offline tools require – with TV advertisement bordering on be extortionate at times! However, the offline world of marketing has many different alternatives you can use to market an online business, some of which are listed below…
Networking
If you are located in a large city, it is a guarantee that there are going to be a number of networking events taking place. Some of these are more general events which are for business owners from a range of different sectors, and with these types of events it can be hard to market your business. However, the other types of networking events are ones which are specific to certain industries. With these ones, you can meet someone who could be a potential client or customer for your business and by telling them more information about your business you can sometimes make a direct sale.
Endorsements
Just as the rise of influencer marketing has become massively popular on social media, you can still get a number of great endorsements for your business in the offline world too.To do this, you would want to go out and try give your product to people who have a influence in your local area or industry. If they like the product, they can endorse you by letting other people know about the product.
Advertise in low-cost Newspapers
Advertising in some of the ‘big’ newspapers can be very expensive, so you should aim to place an advert in the cheaper variations of newspapers. There will be colleges, schools or local groups which all have a newsletter – and it can be a great idea if you were to place an advertisement for your business as it would very cheap to do so.
Direct Marketing
One of the downsides that come with online marketing is that it doesn’t allow you to hand consumers a physical item which they can make use of. With direct marketing, you can go out on the streets and hand customers a promotional item which they can wear and/or make use of. Great choices are wristbands, t-shirts and USB sticks which can be embossed with your logo and help to generate awareness for your online business.
Product Giveaways
Hosting a giveaway of your products is a great way to build awareness of the products you sell on your online business and can also improve your customer retention.Obviously, this is only a good option if you sell products which don’t cost a large amount of money and are typically purchased in bulk. Items such as small accessories or food samples will all go down well with customers and will be sure to remembered by them in the future.
Educational Workshop
If your business is one which mainly provides a service which helps other businesses, it can be a great idea to hold a workshop where you can give advice to potential clients. This allows them to come in and ask questions and by answering them, it allows you to show off your expertise and demonstrate your knowledge – which can ultimately lead to them hiring your services.
Author: Ryan Duffy is a freelance writer who is a recent university graduate in Media Studies. His passion for people and writing has encouraged him to pursue this career full-time. Writing on behalf of a The Wristband Company, he enjoys writing about business and lifestyle topics. Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ryan_Duff199
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