With patience, intentionality, and a well-crafted perspective, you can find your own avenues for sharing the essence of who you are and what you do with those you hope to serve.
Attracting new clients or customers is an ongoing challenge faced by any enterprise, irrespective of size or type of industry, but trying to accomplish this on a budget can be an extremely difficult hurdle to overcome. By their very nature, small businesses are usually constrained by limitations in operating revenue. While it may not always be to the extreme that "penny-pinching" has to be employed, it does tend to flavor every aspect of operations, including marketing efforts.
For the cash-strapped entrepreneur, the prospect of connecting with the paying public can be a conundrum. It can seem like a vicious cycle – money is required to get the word out, but ventures that don't have a substantial enough customer base to generate revenue may lack the necessary funds to take steps to attract new business. This can leave business owners feeling like the proverbial dog chasing its tail, endlessly going in circles and never really accomplishing anything. The net result can be compromised productivity at best and complete burnout at worst.
The most common solution that entrepreneurs employ is to take the DIY approach to attracting new customers. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, operating under financial limitations means that approximately 64% of small businesses opt to tackle their own marketing efforts. The most ideal scenario would be where at least one of the company's employees has previous marketing experience, but this is likely the exception rather than the rule. As a result, business owners may find that the only option is to take a crash course on the fundamentals of communicating the business's message, which can occur with mixed results.
In the realm of the microbusiness, and even more so, the sole proprietor, the inherent pressures of DIY marketing can become even more pronounced. If you find yourself in this situation, you've no doubt also had to contend with a feeling of frustration. You likely have great confidence in the products or services you provide or otherwise wouldn't have launched your enterprise in the first place. It can seem suffocating when you have things of great value to offer only to constantly hit the brick wall of feeling invisible in the marketplace. Trying to walk the fine line between maintaining the quality of what you do and finding those to partake in your offerings can be especially challenging. A certain level of despondency can creep in if you feel like no one will ever avail themselves of the opportunities that exist within the scope of your company.
Therefore, it's critical to compartmentalize the various elements of getting the word out about your business. Make sure that marketing doesn't end up occupying a disproportionate amount of your working day and that you're still allocating adequate time and attention toward the clients and customers you're serving. Spending all your effort and energy trying to bring new business in is futile if you're permitting the quality of your work to suffer. Recognize that marketing your business is only one slice of the pie. To keep the most disciplined handle on it, give intentional thought to how much in terms of employee hours and other resources you can spare for it, and don't stray outside of the boundaries you establish.
Probably the best possible starting point in the DIY marketing of your business involves crafting a Unique Value Proposition (UVP) that perfectly encapsulates what you're all about. This can serve in the same way that a mission and vision statement do in regard to the overall structure of the company, providing clarity and consistency as you move forward with all of the subordinate efforts to make it a reality. You'll never attract a new customer or client until you discover a relevant and concise way to convince them why your business is the one best suited to fulfill their needs. And always remember that they'll never believe it if you don't believe it – embrace the overarching purpose of your UVP and let it be the motivating and guiding factor as you communicate the essence of your business to the public.
But by what means does that communication need to take place? Since the expenditure of money is a normal prerequisite in the traditional definition of marketing, budget-conscious business owners are better served by focusing on options that are completely free or relatively low cost. Social media can be an excellent choice here, as it allows for having a presence in front of a potentially large audience with no associated cost. Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube each carry their own advantages and disadvantages, so the most prudent approach is to have a distinct presence on each of them to give you the best prospect for getting your message heard.
Consistency in your marketing is crucial – you need to be continuously presenting your business's name, logo, and UVP without any variations – but there's also prudence in slightly tweaking the approach you take based on each social media platform. Facebook is in front of a tremendous amount of eyes, but its demographic tends to be older, so it may not be the best primary choice if your clientele is under the age of 30. Instagram tends to be a very visual platform, so if you produce goods with tremendous eye appeal, it can be a powerful platform for showcasing your best work. LinkedIn is geared very specifically toward the professional community and should always feature a highly professional presentation of your business. The role of X is a little more nuanced, as its character limitations mean that brevity and intentional structure of your messaging need to be paramount.
YouTube can play a key role in helping to connect with people in a way that feels intimate and personal, as it can give you the ability to organically tell the story of what your business is doing. Connecting a face (or faces) with the name of a business immediately opens the door for personal interaction and removes the ambiguity of a company persona; it's important always to remember that there are real flesh and blood people behind every business name, and your customers or clients need to be reminded of that fact. If you can accomplish that in a way that makes it appear that you're speaking directly to their needs, frustrations, and challenges, you'll be better positioned to unveil your UVP so that it makes a relevant and powerful impact.
Your website is another significant player in the attraction of new business, so it's imperative that you make sure it's a worthwhile destination when potential customers or clients end up there. People looking for a business to meet their needs can tend to be ultra-focused, so the last thing you want to burden them with is a cluttered and cumbersome website experience. If they feel like they're drowning in the desert, make it easy for them to get a drink of water once they hit your landing page. The formula of "need—offer—solution" should underline how you structure things. Someone has a struggle, you tell them about what you can do for them, and they pay you for a product or service to resolve their situation and meet their needs.
Your website offers yet another way to prospect for potential leads through the technique of offering free materials in exchange for an email address. If you can create content that has actual, useful value for the people seeking you out, you'll immediately establish credibility with them by providing something to them free of charge from which they can derive immediate benefit. And if you couple this with obtaining their email address as a prerequisite for receiving the content, you can now begin to compile and curate an address list from which you can launch future marketing efforts. Having already provided something of value (for which you didn't charge), you'll now find yourself on a solid, credible platform from which you can put forward other offerings for an associated cost.
One of the greatest components of DIY marketing involves letting the people you've already served tell their stories to others. Whether via a YouTube video or a written testimonial on your website, this is where you enter into an entirely different level of legitimacy with those you want to have as future customers. At this point, it's no longer you begging someone to give your business a chance; it's someone who's already benefitted from what you have to offer, sharing from their heart about how your company impacted them and made their situation better.
One final important point to consider is that you need to make sure that you track all of your efforts in a way that enables you to disseminate the efficacy of your actions and make course corrections. Whether through the use of Customer Relationship Management software or via tools such as an Excel spreadsheet, gauging the transitions of leads into sales will help to clarify what's working for you and what isn't. Meticulous scrutiny of your marketing strategy has to be integrated into your daily operations so that you're not investing precious time and resources into efforts that aren't bearing fruit.
Finding yourself in the position of being unable to employ an outside agency to tell your story can be frustrating. The good news is that, with patience, intentionality, and a well-crafted perspective, you can find your own avenues for sharing the essence of who you are and what you do with those you hope to serve.
Ready to take your DIY marketing to the next level? At ValorExcel, we specialize in helping businesses like yours attract customers and grow on a budget. Whether you need guidance on crafting your Unique Value Proposition, optimizing your website, or leveraging social media, our team is here to support you every step of the way. Visit our website at https://www.valorexcel.com/book-online to book your Power Hour session where you’ll meet with ValorExcel staff to get started. You can also call us at 240-329-9387 or email us at info@valorexcel.com. Also, don’t forget to check our recent videos on YouTube by clicking HERE. Our team of experts is here to guide you in turning your passion into a profitable venture. Contact us today to learn how we can help you achieve your marketing goals without stretching your budget. Let's turn your challenges into opportunities together! #DIYMarketing #BudgetFriendlyGrowth #AffordableMarketing #ValorExcel
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