Are you acing it online but your sales are still not where you would like them? Have you considered going offline? People like to buy from people they trust and sometimes it is easier to build trust offline. Here are seven offline marketing tactics to try.
Get a business card
Business cards are silent reminders of who you are to your potential customers. They can be used to advertise your services and to leave your contact details with your prospects. It is important that your brand’s personality is reflected in your business card. If you attend an event, you can leave the business card in the competition fish bowl. You could also pin your business card to pinboard where your prospective clients hang out. You could also go to the library and put your business card in books which relate to your business. To make your cards stand out from the crowd you could use a different type of paper suitable for business cards or colour. Another consideration would be a portrait design instead of a landscape design. But it is important that the design of your business card is consistent with your overall branding.
Go to a trade show
There are two benefits for going to a trade show as either a participant or a visitor. The first is that you will be able to keep up with the trends in your industry and the second is that you will be able to meet face-to-face with potential customers and vendors. If you choose to participate in the trade shows, you could offer to do a presentation where you can promote your business through sharing your knowledge.
Give away a service or product
Give a service voucher or product as prize for a local competition. By doing this you will increase the visibility of your product and you will also show that you care about your local community.
Network
Join your local business chapter and you will be able to meet other people who are in business in your area. This will give you the opportunity to meet people face-to-face and build trust with them. You can also look for other networking opportunities which are specific to the product or service which you produce.
Make car magnets
Your car is a moving billboard. You can have car magnets designed and stick them on your car during business hours. You must just be aware of how you drive or if you have a driver ensure that they drive responsibly while they are spreading your brand around town.
Speak at events
To some small business owners, this may sound like a daunting task. The benefits of speaking at an event is that you can boost your reputation as a thought leader in your industry. You can also put your brand in the spotlight and if you struggle to speak in public why not attend a Toastmasters meeting to help you improve your speaking skills.
Print flyers
The benefit of making flyers is that you may be the only supplier in your target audience’s post box. You could create an informative infographic on the one side of the flyer and your contact details for your customer on the other side. You could also add a discount coupon on the bottom of the flyer to see how effective your offline marketing has been.
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