How Do They Not Know
Earlier in my career as an entrepreneur, I spent many hours working on my business plan. I wanted to make sure that all the proper pieces of my business was in place. My clientele grew slowly and sometime there was a lot of space in between requests for service. I really couldn't understand what I was doing wrong. My clients would tell me how much they loved my work and thanked me for being reasonably priced. Well I couldn't understand if I was doing such a great job....why didn't I have more client.
Then one day a client asked me what other services do I offer. Which I thought was so strange....why don't you know my services. Haven't you visited my website? I have a list of services and packages. That day was an eye opener for me. I spent time building the business but I did a horrible job marketing my business. I failed to present my expertise or niche to my target audience.
As a solo entrepreneur, we have to juggle marketing, social media, product expansion, accounting, and all the other day to day task of business. I have several tips that helped me reposition myself in the market.
Know Your Market - If you provide a service as a graphic designer. You need to know what the business of graphic designing inside out. What are the latest design trends, what tools are designers using...etc. Knowing what expectations clients want in your market will be key for you to make sure you're providing quality services.
What Make Your Offer the Best - There are tons of companies that offer the same services that your company offer. How are you going to make sure you stand out in the crowd. Discover the problem that your business will solve that is different that your competitors. If you're a graphic designer, offer an additional convenience service for minimal or no additional charges; will make client turn to your instead of the big brand name. Providing exceptional customer service is still a big, no matter what type of business you're in.
Think Out The Box Marketing - Don't get stuck with traditional advertising like ads in the local newspaper, mailers or media commercial. Connect with social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat) to interact with your target audience. Researcher say that people use social media more that 60% of their day. Creating a present in social media is a big marketing tool. Another marketing trend that will be growing more in 2018 is digital marketing. Clients are more than likely to purchase products and services on their cellphones. Post ad online that drive clients to your website; which brings me to my next point.
PPC Advertising - Pay Per Click Advertising is an internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, in which an advertiser pays a publisher (typically a website owner or a network of websites) when the ad is clicked.Pay-per-click is commonly associated with first-tier search engines (such as Google AdWords and Microsoft Bing Ads). With search engines, advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market. In contrast, content sites commonly charge a fixed price per click rather than use a bidding system. PPC "display" advertisements, also known as "banner" ads, are shown on web sites with related content that have agreed to show ads and are typically not pay-per-click advertising. Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter have also adopted pay-per-click as one of their advertising models.
Collaborate With Others To Showcase your Skills - This tip is the hardest one but can be the most productive. For example, as a graphic designer you could partner with a photographer on project that would save you both time to assist clients. You need pictures - they take picture. Create a package that both can benefit and provide a service that would benefit the client.
