If we had a dollar for every time we heard, or read, someone say “But I’m doing all the right things marketing my business. I’m posting every day… I’m sharing stories… I’m making reels. What am I doing wrong?” we’d be very rich people.
Generally, when we respond to questions like this with “Ok, so what are you doing that is NOT social media?” * crickets *
For a lot of small business owners, it’s a tough one to grasp… that marketing consists of more than social media. But when you think about it, social media has only really been relevant in the business world for about the last 10 years. So, how did businesses market themselves if there was no social media?
Up until about 10-15 years ago, title’s like “Social Media Manager” and “Digital Marketing Coordinator” didn’t exist because these types of marketing hadn’t yet reached the capacity for being marketing platforms. Which means other methods of marketing were used.
Whilst the landscape of business, and marketing, has changed over the years, many of the “old school” or traditional methods of marketing are still very much effective when done right. But unfortunately, they are often overlooked because social media is so predominant and “easy”, and quick to just pop up a post and say “I’ve done my marketing today.”
Don’t get us wrong, social media still plays an important role in (most) marketing strategies, but it shouldn’t be the ONLY marketing strategy. A good strategy should incorporate a mix of both tradition and modern methods across multiple channels to provide you with a holistic approach to capturing attention, generating leads and making sales.
Let’s have a look at what other types of marketing you could be spending your efforts, and money, on that could be more beneficial to the growth of your business.
1. Networking
The oldest trick in the book, but still one of the most effective in our opinion. According to TechJury, 95% of people agree the better business relationships are built through face-to-face meeting (which isn’t surprising). And 80% of people relayed that their career success can be pinpointed to professional networking.
It’s a fact that getting in front of the people, engaging with them, understanding their challenges and painpoints, and building (and strengthening) relationships makes good business sense.
Sales and referrals will follow.
2. Podcasts
Podcasts are everywhere… and everyone is listening to them. So why not utilise this power of reach and get yourself in all the right ears.
If you don’t want too, or don’t have the capacity too to have your own podcast, all is not lost. Reach out to other podcasters to be a guest on their podcast and share your expertise and knowledge with their audience. That’s right… borrow their audience to build yours.
But make sure you do your research and don’t pitch blindly. Make sure you’ve listened to the podcast, know a thing of two about the host/s and understand the audience that listens… so you’re directing your time and knowledge to the right people.
3. Collaborations
Collaborating with other businesses, influencers, brand ambassadors etc widens your business reach, provides new insights and advice, adds authenticity to your brand, creates trust and opens the doors for innovation and opportunities. What’s not to love about that? Further reach for half the work (technically speaking).
It’s always important to remember that whoever you choose to collaborate with, they align with your brand and your values… not just your product and your target audiences. So don’t go signing up with an influencer to promote health and wellness products, only for them to be posting out drinking and partying every week. Misalignment only creates confusion, damages your credibility and wastes your money.
Stuck on where start when it comes to Collaborations? Check out Collabosaurus who know their stuff.
4. Out of House Advertising (OOH)
This type of marketing isn’t for everyone and does come at a high cost, because billboards and bus shelter advertising etc is not cheap. But done well for the right products / services, it can be highly effective.
One campaign that comes to mind is from a recent OOH campaign by NZ business, Girls Get Off. They are in the business of female pleasure and are trying to remove the stigma of this industry in a fun and non-icky way (and can we say, they’re marketing is hilarious). Their latest “Close the Gap” campaign, run by Motion Sickness, has billboards and signage all over Sydney and Melbourne that has gained so much traction, has everyone talking which as a result is seeing their sales skyrocket.
They’ve thought outside the box, they’ve been bold, they’ve taken a risk and they’ve reaped the rewards.
5. Email Marketing
Unlike social media, you own your email database, you can segment your audience to personalise your messaging, and you can convert sales there and then. Which means more reach, more engagement and a higher ROI.
Email is highly measurable, so you can see who’s opening your emails, who’s clicking through (and what they are clicking on), where they are forwarding, sharing etc. Which helps you to understand your customers patterns and behaviours, meaning you can further tailor your marketing and messaging to them.
You can also segment your database into specialised groups and personalise your messaging and call to action, so you’re not bombarding your larger audience with things that don’t interest / aren’t applicable to them all the time.
The biggest trick to email marketing is getting your emails open and keeping people on your list. Some of the biggest mistakes we see:
- Not providing value in your emails
- Not having a captivating subject line that makes you want to open the email
- Spamming your database with too many emails
- Only sending emails when you’re trying to sell them someone (no-one wants to constantly be sold too).
Email marketing is a no brainer for any business and absolutely should be a part of every marketing strategy.
Fun fact: Try adding an emoji to the subject. It will make your email pop out in a screen of text (but the subject beside it still needs to be engaging enough to want to open once you’ve got their attention).
At the end of the day, if you’re relying solely on social media to build your business… you’re playing a very dangerous game. Simply because you’re building a business on a platform you don’t own, and have very little control over and at any given time, you could have the rug pulled out from under you – having you back at square one and starting again.
A multi-channel, holistic approach to your marketing means more eyeballs on your business, more leads and opportunities, which generates more sale and growth.
Important Note: However you choose to market your business, make sure it’s where your target market is hanging out and that you are doing so with a strategy and purpose behind it… not just because someone told you to do it (ahem! TikTok we’re looking at you).
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