Some businesses rely on national, international or global markets. The location of these businesses is not locked to major cities, I've encountered many global-scale businesses in the Kawartha Lakes. But this is not the case for every small town business. Most local businesses rely on local markets to make it big.
Marketing to your own community takes a different form than marketing to a large, unknown audience or internationally. Community marketing takes community. Here are 5 great tips for small town marketing.
Get Involved:
Your community is your customers, so get involved! Show your face at local events, network online and in person, and make people remember you in a positive way. Your own face is your brand when you’re starting out. Getting people to remember you and talk about you is a very inexpensive way to reach new audiences in small town marketing. Frontera Brands sent us a newsletter about how the 5 Guys burger chain has no marketing budget, relying solely on work of mouth advertising.
Word of Mouth:
This tactic is great for the charismatic. Showing up to networking events is not enough, you need to talk with people and make an impression. At my day job I heard my co-workers discussing who they would recommend for a septic service. They had called a local company and accepted the first quote they got. After, they discussed again and said “I likely could have gotten it somewhere cheaper, but this is my neighbours brother.” My other coworker responded with “I think you got a good enough deal, give me their number I’ll call too.” Having people talk about your business in a positive way is like an avalanche of (hopefully) leads.
All About Who You Know:
I can't speak for city-folk, but in a small town people are just as likely to ask around as they are to ask Google. Being top-of-mind when people make recommendations to their friends is as important as ranking on Google. Who is making this recommendation is also important - Having connections with prominent community members and leaders skyrockets your credibility. It's all about who you know, and who recommends you.
Traditional Marketing:
Marketing online has become an easy and inexpensive way to reach a broad audience, but this may not be the correct goal for your local business. An online presence is important, but it should not be relied on as your only marketing channel. As a local business, to reach local audiences you need to be where the locals are. Physical branding in well-travelled locations around town will put your business top of mind for anyone driving by. I will admit that yard signs in front of the Canadian Tire in Lindsay have been known to help me find someone to hire for my roof.
Digital Marketing:
As stated above, online marketing doesn’t focus your target audience perfectly. With some careful consideration of hashtags, location settings and who you follow, social media marketing can be used to target other local businesses, and be used in networking. Try following local businesses that relate to your field, comment and repost to show support and get involved in the online scene. General online marketing isn’t usually location specific but if you know how to target properly you’ll be able to use it to your advantage.
Having presence in all spheres of marketing - traditional, online and in person - will help your business be noticed in the community, and make it easier for your customers to decide who to hire when they need your services.
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