Business

How To Market Your New Business

You’ve taken all the steps in starting a business – done your research, ran the numbers, wrote your business plan, built your team, and filed the necessary regulations and permits.

The work of starting a business isn’t over yet, though – but this is the fun part. Get ready to open your doors!

“Depending on the type of business you are opening, you might consider holding an open house and sending out a press release to get the word out when you open your doors,” says Pekoske. “You can also announce it on your website and social media.”

Planning the event

If you are planning an event, make sure to think about whether you will serve food or drinks, whether you need to rent chairs, a table, or sound equipment, who if anyone will speak at the event, and whether you want to hand out fliers advertising your products and services.

Announcing the Opening

Be sure to include who, what, when, where, why, how and why the media and public should care about your opening. If you are holding a grand opening event, be sure to include the time and date, the address, what will happen at the event, and that the public is welcome. It’s also helpful to include quotes and photos in the release.

Ongoing Marketing and sales. It’s helpful to write down a plan for how you will market your product or services, and to keep updating that plan based on what works and what doesn’t. This establishes how your business will achieve the projections you laid out in your business plan. How are you going to get the word out about your product or service? Your marketing plan should explain how you will attract customers and how you will keep them. You will also need to describe how a sale actually happens – is it online or in person? Be sure to describe how you will reach enough people to sell enough products or services to keep your company thriving.

Some common marketing tools used to market businesses include:

A website. You can create a standard informational website or a website that allows you to sell your goods and services online. Be sure to use keywords that your customers may search online when looking for products and services you offer. There are companies that will build and maintain your website for you if you don’t feel up to doing it yourself. Some basic components of a website may include:
- About your company
- How to get your product and/or service. This could be a listing of locations and hours or a listing of your products and services for purchase online.
- Relevant content. This can be a blog that provides solutions to your customers’ problems, customer testimonials, product demos, employee videos, and more.
Online directories. Many people use online directories like Google, Apple Maps, Facebook, and Yelp. They may also consult their local city hall or chamber of commerce.
Social media. It’s okay to start small – many businesses are only on Facebook! Post content there that’s relevant to your business and brings your followers back to your site or to your store. It’s important to post regularly at a frequency you can sustain. An easy way to find content is to share your own blogs on your social media pages, share your testimonials, or share your videos. Some platforms offer e-commerce solutions so that you can sell your product or service directly over social media. They also typically have free advertising training that will teach you how to market on their platform. There are companies that will manage your social media for you if you don’t feel up to doing it yourself.

FREE DOWNLOAD: Basic Social Media Tips

It’s important to review your marketing tactics on a regular basis to see what is actually bringing in business – and what isn’t. Continually optimizing your marketing plan will keep your business going full speed!