The importance of marketing for any business cannot be ignored and underestimated. To support the growth of SMEs, the government has been carrying and promoting campaigns aggressively. The question is what about SMEs themselves. They have to take some essential steps which are at a low cost and high impact to compete in the globalized era.  A lot many times businesses have a lot of market and offer, but they do not know about it. For SMEs, marketing is very simple and should focus on building and maintaining customer relationships. Starting from simple and basic marketing starting from tapping your social network

The importance of marketing for any business cannot be ignored and underestimated. To support the growth of SMEs, the government has been carrying and promoting campaigns aggressively. The question is what about SMEs themselves. They have to take some essential steps which are at a low cost and high impact to compete in the globalized era.  A lot many times businesses have a lot of market and offer, but they do not know about it. For SMEs, marketing is very simple and should focus on building and maintaining customer relationships. Starting from simple and basic marketing starting from tapping your social network.

As a business owner, it might only take passion and belief to start a business, but staying in business is what matters. Marketing is very critical for staying alive as well as growing. Every business looks for gaining more customers, selling more products, analyze which products and services are best to invest in and finally make a name and noise about your business in the market. Your marketing plan has to be regularly updated and reviewed as and when your business matures. One common mistake that SMEs make is that we plan and portray it in such a complex way that it becomes difficult for the consumers to understand. If the consumers don’t get it, they usually don’t feel compelled to buy it. Another mistake is that SMEs, usually try to replicate MNC’s and big corporates. They forget that during this process, they miss on the core elements of their products, which again leads to loss of business!

Don’t miss on:

Understanding the business objectives

Competitive analysis

Your product USP’s

Target customers

Development of communication channels and engaging with them

EXPERT’s TAKE:

A lot of times we confuse marketing with promotion, but the fact is that marketing is way more than just promotion. Marketing is a tool whose effective usage helps you to survive and prosper in a competitive environment. Let’s have a quick peek into what marketers suggest:

Social Media will be the next competition for search engines: All the search engines will get an additional competition, courtesy social media. All these platforms are expanding their reach and search capabilities to a next level. Becoming the next word of mouth, positive news and reviews play an important role for SMEs.

Mobiles can make you bigger- Mobiles are with everyone and everywhere. Imagine what a mobile responsive website or a mobile app can do for your business. In fact, all your campaigns should also be mobile-friendly.

Videos speak more than words: From a marketing standpoint, video is a powerful tool. A visual on how the product looks like along with platform to post questions and comments.

Content is the king: Consumers always respond to informative content, which is engaging as well as entertaining. A good quality of content results in higher positions in search results. Consumers want content is appealing and meets the taste, interests and their needs.

Combine offline and online: All the physical marketing materials should include your website address or social media URL’s.

Mix of platforms: social, PR and search: Use of mix of platforms like social media, PR, search and online digital hubs as a customer never makes his opinion or decision by seeing the product/service on a single platform.

Influencer marketing: Peer and influencer endorsement are becoming important as customers look for peer reviews and recommendations. In fact, a trusted peer is more credible than a message from a brand.

Moment marketing: A quick reaction to real time events and connecting them to your brand message gets a lot of attention and differentiates you from the competitors. Your marketing message has to be carefully crafted

So don’t be afraid to get creative and experiment with your marketing. Know your customer and as they say, make your marketing so useful that people would love to pay for your product!