Top Promotional Strategies to Grow Your Business

You have started a business, and you are offering excellent products or services at excellent rates. But, you are still not getting enough customers. If you are facing this issue, you are probably not following the right promotional strategies to reach out to your potential customers. To define, promotional strategies are strategies followed by companies to generate awareness among the target customers about their products and services, and to influence the customer base so that it buys the companies' goods or services. People will buy only those products or services which they are aware of. So no matter how good your offering is, if your potential customers don't know about its existence, you can never grow your business. While following the right promotional strategies is crucial for every business, strategies to be followed are not the same for every business. In this article, we have curated some of the best promotional strategies for service based businesses.

The promotional strategy of any service business should rely on the following two basic principles:

• The promotional strategy should be strictly in accordance with the nature of your service. For example, if you offer service in home decoration and you are using radio to promote your service, then you won’t benefit from it. The channel of promotion restrict you from showing the sample work to the viewers. In this case, television or the internet is the best mean to promote your service.
• Keep a hawk eye on the budget while planning the promotional strategy for your service. Promotion is an important part of the business, but it doesn’t mean that you spend all your money on promotion and publicity. Distribute your financial resources and only use limited funds for the promotion, especially when you need to pay extra attention to the budget as an entrepreneur.

Now that you are aware of the two principles to be followed while choosing the promotional strategies best suited for you, lets have a look at some of the best online and offline strategies for promoting your business.

Top Online and Offline Promotional Strategies

Make an Informative Website
Use the Power of Social Media
Get Your Business Registered with Google My Business
Take Help of Other Websites
E-mail Marketing
Video Marketing
Podcasts
Register with Deal Marketplaces
Promote Your Services through Influencers
Attending Events and Trade Fairs
In-Store Promotions
Print Publications and Print Ads
Cross Promotions
Referral Program

Online Promotional Strategies

Make an Informative Website

The first step behind the promotional strategy of your service is to construct an informative website. The website should contain relevant information about the services you offer along with the details on the need and scope of the service. Use funky styles and animated features to make the website look more attractive and friendly to the viewers. The website must be regularly updated with the latest happenings related to your service. If you offer legal services, then add information about the latest changes in the law, the latest case you win, etc. You can easily hire a web developer to create an attractive website and update it periodically. Also, make sure that the content on your website is SEO optimized so that your website is visible to your target audience.

Use the Power of Social Media

We all are familiar with the power and coverage of social media, so use it to increase the popularity of your service and for expanding its reach. Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram can be used to promote your services for free or you can opt for paid promotions as per the requirements. If yours is a B2B businesses, LinkedIn is the platform you must use to reach out to your target segment. Many businesses promote various offers and hold contests through social media platforms to attract new customers. Sharing customer reviews on social media can also help.

Also Read: What are the Different Digital Channels through Which You can Promote Your Business

Get Your Business Registered with Google My Business

With over 2 trillion Google searches per day (as on 2020), you cannot afford to miss out on the large number of customers who Google about the services you deal in. With Google My Business, you can promote your business to a wide customer base and that too for free. Say, you provide laptop repairing services and have listed your business in Google My Business. Now, when someone googles to search for laptop repairing services in the location where you operate, Google shows your business details to the searcher. These details include your phone number, office address, directions to reach to your office, customer ratings and operating hours. Moreover, Google My Business allows you to post new offers and any other announcement you want to make. You can also respond to customer queries by integrating Google messenger with Google My Business.

Take Help of Other Websites

There are several websites who promote other websites to increase business for both. For example, JustDial provides its users the ability to list all the services they offer. There are many such sites like Sulekha, Asklaila, etc. where you can register your business, and whenever people search for the services provided by you, your business becomes visible to them.

E-mail Marketing

E-mail marketing can never go out of trend. It is a great, affordable and a non-obtrusive way to reach out to your target customers. You can use e-mail marketing for to serve many purposes. Through e-mails, you can encourage your potential customers to try your service by letting them know about the various benefits or great discounts meant to drive customers to your website, and to retain customers by offering various loyalty benefits. E-mails also keep customers informed about the various developments in your business. Overall, e-mail marketing is great way to stay in touch with your customers so that whenever they need the services you are offering, your business is on the top of their minds.

Video Marketing

Many service providers go for video marketing. Video marketing makes use of videos that businesses leverage to make their customers aware about their products and services. These videos can be either included in a business's website, can be posted in the business's social media account, or used as video advertisements on platforms like television or social media. While there are some who think that video advertising is just for the big companies, the fact is video marketing is beneficial for local businesses as well.

Podcasts

With increase in the popularity of podcasts, many businesses are also using podcasts as a way to promote their business. According to a PWC report, the number of podcast listeners in India increased from 25.4 million in 2017, to 40 million till the end of 2018. You too can start a podcast in the niche your business operates in and bring relevant content to the audience. This is a great way to influence your target customers.

Register with Deal Marketplaces

These days, online deal marketplaces like Grabon, Mydala, Nearbuy etc. are trending. These websites are visited by a huge number of customers who want great deals on various online and offline purchases. As a business, by registering with such sites and rolling out some attractive deals, you can reach out to a huge audience. You can also try offering free demos and trials of your services.

Promote Your Services through Influencers

Social media influencers have a great number of followers. By promoting your business through influencers, you can reach out to this audience. As reported by Influencer Marketing platform StarNgage, 70% of teenage Youtube users trust the opinions of influencers over celebrities in India. A huge segment of Indian customers now take their purchase decisions based on social media references. Thus, many companies promote their products through influencers. Not just big companies, small and local businesses can also benefit from getting local influencers to promote their business. There are many websites where you can connect with influencers from different niches and localities.

Offline Promotional Strategies

Attending Events and Trade Fairs

Always be on the lookout for local trade fairs, events, etc. where you can promote your services to your target audience. For example, if you have a playschool and there is a trade fair in your locality, it is worth it to put up a canopy in the fair and interact with the parents and guardians visiting the trade fair. You can promote your school and the facilities and services you provide. Giving away visiting cards or brochures to interested parents along with some interesting discount coupons to promote your business.

In-Store Promotions

In-store promotions are great for attracting potential customers and converting them into paying customers. Offering special in-store discounts and loyalty programs can help your business to retain customers. A well-organized and beautifully decorated store with proper discount signage, well-behaved store staff, etc. are factors that decide the footfall in your store.

Print Publications and Print Ads

Despite all the craze about going online, print publications and ads have not lost their charm yet. In fact, print publications and ads can both supplement and compliment online ads and publications. Many companies now include QR codes in their print advertisements which customers can scan to get discounts, visit their website, enter contests, etc. You can also start writing on various topics related to your niche in print media. This will help gain credibility and visibility for your business.

Cross Promotions

Cross Promotions is quite an effective promotional strategy. According to Wikipedia, 'Cross-promotion is a form of marketing promotion where customers of one product or service are targeted with promotion of a related product'. As an example, a local gym and a store selling health supplements may do cross promotions for each other. Gym members may be offered discounts on purchasing products from the said health store, and the customers of the health store may be provided attractive offers or free trial classes in the gym. Many famous brands do cross promotions for each other. Though we have listed it under offline promotional strategies, cross promotions are done both online and offline.

Referral Program

Another promotional strategy that is quite popular and can be executed both online and offline is a referral program. Referral program is when you ask your existing customers to refer a friend or acquaintance to come and try out your products or services. This is a reward based program where an existing customer gets rewards in the form of discounts, goods, etc. to spread good word of mouth about your business. Customers coming through referral programs also get discounts.

Also Read: How to Use Referral Marketing to Promote Your Business

There are many other promotional strategies like cold calling, sending out snail mails, etc. which businesses use. This article consists of some of the best, yet affordable promotional strategies, that you can use to promote your services and products. However, not every strategy is meant for everybody and you need to be smart enough to choose the ones best suited for you. With the right selection, you will surely acquire more customers!