Owning a business has its perks maintaining business growth isn’t easy even for startups. Who am I telling? You already know this, and that’s why you’re here.
Everyone wants to be seen, and so do startups, from relentless ads on every channel to bridge on privacy on smart devices by third-party apps hoping to drop in on private conversations searching for the next keyword to sell to advertising agents.
Yet 92% of people trust referral marketing more than any other form of marketing strategy.
The keyword is trust; people trust their friends and family.
The easiest and cheapest way to gain visibility for your startup is to get 92% of your customers actively campaigning for you or imitate the principles of referral marketing and retain 92% of customers that reach out to you for service.
That’s your job as a founder. Build Trust.
How can you get your ideal customers to trust you enough to meet their needs?
Big brands are brutal when it comes to visibility, they fight to be the first on peoples’ mind when they think about a product, but startups don’t have that luxury. Startups have to rely on trust, which is what referral marketing offers.
People do not care about your product until they know you care about the problem they need to resolve.
Contents
Marketing strategies for startups
Whether you use social media or traditional media for your advertising, these strategies will help you grow your brand’s visibility by imitating the principles in referral marketing.
Answer questions
One way to grow your brand’s visibility is by generating content on social media that answer your audience’s questions.
What kind of questions does your audience ask before deciding to buy your product? These are called buyer intent questions. They reveal the intent of your ideal client. If you can generate contents consistently that answer these questions, you can attract your ideal customers.
Problem solve
Every product comes with its problems and frustrations. People want to buy a cake, but they also have preservation issues. They want jewellery but often can’t identify the difference in metals and how to maintain them.
Sharing Testimonials
Lots of brands on social media employ this strategy. Posting testimonies from clients. I don’t often buy into this because they’ll never post negative feedback.
I had an experience with a particular art vendor. After sharing the challenges, I had with the product. The vendor completely ignored it but went ahead to post a cropped screenshot of my appreciation.
Quality
Is your product worth the stress? Be honest.
I bought a piece of jewellery and to put it nicely, the package was disappointing. Though it was handmade, it was quite tacky and came in a cheap party pack. I wasn’t impressed. People want the satisfaction of knowing they got value for their service.
Quality doesn’t have to mean expensive. As a business owner you have to have class. Your clients have self worth. They don’t have to be rich. Let your product reflect a standard of quality that appeals to your clients.
Location
Location is the hallmark of attaining visibility. Thanks to social media, your location can be online or offline. Can’t afford a website? take advantage of the free Facebook page tools and set up that page like it were a physical store. Facebook is one of the top social media platforms for startups. You can advertise, create sales funnels and tunnels on your phone.
Finally:
Data Collection
People are more likely to patronize a brand they’ve used before. One way is by getting your clients to sign up for newsletters, so you can easily reach out to old clients whenever you want to promote a new product. Turn physical clients to online followers by using call to action buttons at the end of every sales.
