4 Steps for an Effective Local Area Marketing Strategy for Your Business
4
Steps in Conducting Effective Local Area Marketing Strategy for Your Business
Whether
you are a startup, a franchisee, or if you just need recognition for your
business, one of the most effective means to promote your business is through
Local Area Marketing (LAM). This particular strategy focuses on communities
where an establishment is physically or geographically located. Marketing
messages are targeted specifically towards the local population, instead of a
wider general audience.
The
premise is simple: gain credibility and trust in a local community by
establishing a meaningful, relevant presence. As you launch marketing campaigns
in your targeted local communities, you engage and connect with its groups,
businesses, and of course, with individuals. Introduce your brand, and your
products and services, in your target locations to get more recognition, and
eventually, more business.
If
done right, your local area marketing strategy can even be your best lead
generation gambit. It can bring in more visitors not just on your website but
actual foot traffic to your establishment, as well. Business owners who allot
proper efforts and budget allocation to marketing, recognize the necessity of a
targeted approach with their audience. Today’s marketers are fortunate enough
to have various tools and marketing opportunities for their location-based
businesses. You can choose to employ strategies both online, as well as in more
traditional, offline means.
If you’re in the hospitality industry, you can read about how analytics software can help your business, here.
What
Makes A Good LAM Strategy
These days, creating marketing campaigns out of “simple, intelligent guesses” is no longer an option (was it, ever?). It also can be an expensive gamble, pouring funds into a marketing campaign which may or may not succeed, which businesses cannot risk resorting to. But with the availability of data collection tools and analytics software, focusing on specific targets has never been more accurate. You can match your customer’s information alongside their buying behavior, while also being able to pinpoint their exact geographical location and demographics. Apply marketing analytics tools and you can then reinforce your strategies. Successful businesses now rely on data-driven marketing campaigns, especially through their POS solutions. You can read about the benefits of collecting customer data using your POS here.
And if you’re ready to try out Maralytics, do sign-up for your free trial here.
However,
your initiatives in a local area marketing campaign will involve more effort
than just collecting data. Your efforts may be confined in a local area or on
your website, and it does not limit what marketing strategies you can use. For
instance, about 85% of business owners rely on
referrals that have been influenced by word-of-mouth marketing. [CM4] While
this proves how important it is for your business to gain the recognition and
patronage of the locals within your immediate vicinity, you are free to use
word-of-mouth strategies, as well. Your real objective? Turn the locals into
repeat customers. Let’ us move on to how you can start doing this with local
area marketing.
Here
are 4 steps in conducting an effective and successful LAM strategy for your
business:
1. Identify
your targets.
If
you are wholly unfamiliar about the area, you should do some research. Find out
which local groups or organizations you will target. These may consist of
residential areas, financial or business districts, schools, sports clubs, etc.
Knowing your target audience will help you shape or customize your offerings,
content, and pricing. You can start gathering and building your customer
database at this stage.
2. Establish
your presence.
Build
awareness about your brand, and alongside this, create a good reputation by investing
in relationships in the community. As your neighbors get to know you, you also
need to go out and interact with them, face-to-face.
a. The
traditional way.
·
Send direct mail (coupons, brochures, fliers
about promos)
·
Advertise through the local TV, radio, and newspapers.
·
Introduce promos through telemarketing.
b. Online
·
Your best marketing tool is your website, so
make sure you have it listed in search engines. Remember to create a thorough
SEO keyword strategy, as well.
·
Set your business up in Google My Business so
it will be easily visible for searches and engagements.
·
Establish an active and approachable social
media account which is there to share motivational stories, and to engage and
promote local personalities and businesses. Add something of value to your
audience, more than just advertisements for your promos.
·
Create a blog so you can have an outlet for
storytelling. Post and share stories about your staff, your customers, and
about your interactions with your community. Share these posts on your website
and on your social media accounts.
3. Participate
and mingle with the community.
Let
the community know that you are not just investing money, but you are also devoting
time and forming relationships with them. If you are managing a restaurant, you
can have special lunch promos for students or specific groups or organizations.
Have your business be seen in local town events such as sports leagues,
parades, and in community gatherings. It would also help to offer or to accept
sponsorships and in charity efforts.
4. Form
partnerships.
If
there are businesses that provides services or products that are similar or
even in complementary industries with yours, explore the possibility of forming
partnerships with them. Expand your network further by signing your business up
in appropriate groups and offer them discounts or coupons. The main idea here
is to operate both professionally, and to show local businesses that you are
not hostile competition.
Conclusion
There
are many more steps to establishing an effective local area marketing strategy,
and while they may share the same qualities of a larger, wider-reaching
campaign, the values that are intrinsic to a local area are easily more
tangible. It is like going to the grassroots level of meeting your audiences
face-to-face, shaking their hands, and simply establishing good relationships.
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