Few businesses can splurge on their paid advertising budgets. So we curated cheap and easy small business marketing strategies for 2022 that across industries can implement. No matter the size of your dedicated marketing budget.
#1: Fix Your Listings (GMB, Social Media, RelyCircle)
“Near me” searches are growing in popularity each year on desktop and mobile searches
As voice search gains mainstream adoption, they’ll become a significant proportion of referrals to your website. It’s estimated that 22% of voice searches are on locations.
If you’re reading this before submitting your business to your Google My Business.
STOP AND GO DO THAT!
- This may be the most visible directory on the internet, since it will show up every time someone searches for your business on google.
#2: Ask Customers or Clients To Review Your Business (Make It Easy For Them Too)
Most customers check out online reviews before deciding In fact 93% of customers will read reviews of local businesses to determine its quality. (BrightLocal)
So the more recommendations you can receive from satisfied customers, the easier it is to gain more reviews.
That’s why it’s asking customers to leave online reviews has become the norm. Using apps like RelyCircle is a convenient way of gathering verified customer testimonials
They offer tools to get your business better results, like enabling you to send review requests via SMS or email.
Making the recommendation process a quick minute for the customers.
Customers will not need to go through the tedious looking up of your business. Instead, they will simply click or press the link and write their review.
#3:Being Responsive to Customer Criticism
Too many business owners neglect to respond to online reviews. This can be a mistake that affects long-term sales and reputation.
One study conducted by Harvard Business School shows a responsiveness to online criticism and reviews leads to a higher overall star rating.
Keeping a close eye on your business’s reviews has other benefits.
- Builds customer loyalty
- Small signs of appreciation go a long way; like a simple thankyou letter
- The active response to reviews helps your SEO (Ranks Better On Google)
Why Google My Business Reviews Need To Be A Priority?
Every second there are nearly 100K google searches happening. A small percentage of that are “near me searches” and questions that will point towards your business. So second check that your info is accurate and up to date (no broken links or fuzzy photos).
To basically put it, positive Google reviews can add an instant and signific
ant credibility booster to any business that provides services or products for pretty much anything.
#4: Use RelyCircle To SMS Your Customers or Clients
We may ignore promotional material in our inboxes, but who goes without reading all their text messages? Remember to include a call to action, so customers have the initiative to take action.
Text messages have an open rate of 98%.
- It’s effective for advertising upcoming promotions
- Requesting a recommendation
- Reminding or confirming an appointment.
#5: Improve Social Proof By Showing Off Reviews On Your Website
Don’t just stop at social media when displaying reviews and customer generated content. Be sure to display those hard earned customer testimonials on the home page. (Just Below The Fold)
- The Spiegel Research Center has stated that displaying reviews has the ability to increase conversion rates over 360%.
#6: Continually Striving To Make A Better Customer Experience
It’s obvious that a better product or service will increase sales, but sometimes businesses forget and instead focus on gaining more customers over a higher amount of sales from current customers.
Happy experiences create memorable impressions, and customers will recommend your business to friends or family.
The secret is making it easy for customers to provide feedback.
- Gauge customer satisfaction through online surveys.
- Send a thankyou letter after a sale and ask for feedback
- Look through competitor reviews and find opportunities to improve
#7.Focus on feelings (Selling the experience)
Most of our important decisions (especially those involving finances) are not always rational throughout or well planned, we rarely like to admit it but our emotions sway us.
- Harvard Professor Says 95% of Purchasing Decisions Are Subconscious, This research goes to show the effectiveness of marketing to consumers subconsciously.
#8.Avoid Overly Advocating Your Products or Services
It might sound unreasonable. But people are tired of being constantly seen as a walking wallet always being sold to (Just Look At Your Promotions Tab In Gmail)
It’s hard to make a good first impression with an aggressive hard sell. You and your offer come off as off-putting
- This is especially so when they’re up close and personal in a face-to-face sales pitch..
Soft selling has gotten easier to do with how connected everyone has gotten, it’s more productive to grow long-term relationships.
Using soft-selling approaches puts the emphasis on the person rather than the product, making your soon to be customer feel closer with your business..
I am not proclaiming that soft selling is the end all be all to marketing your product or services
- Hard selling is equally important when you know when to use it.
Nobody enjoys interacting with a pushy sales person so it’s best to enter a face-to-face interaction earnestly. Stay curious about their needs and ask questions before spewing facts about your product or services.
Be Sure Customers Know Your The Best Choice in 2022
Don’t let your business fall behind in 2022. Check out why so many businesses are adopting RelyCircle to connect with their customers, promote coupons, and referrals.
- About 50% of consumers need to see at least a 4-star rating to consider a business. (Blumenthals)
9.Keep It Simple & Your Messages Action Focused
There are so many opportunities to get the word out about your product or service that it can be overwhelming. So it’s important to stick with what works and do it consistently.
To get started, decide on the medium of marketing you want to use to connect with customers; Print, Digital, Face-to-Face, and everything in between.
- Consider the time of year and upcoming holidays, or local events.
- Look at what competitors are doing. If they are doing the same strategy for a long time, it’s most likely making them money.
The message should invoke curiosity to learn more or fulfill a specific need your business provides.
- Avoid over spending on when trying out new messages or untested marketing mediums.
- Set a budget and stick to it, if you get excellent results, increase the budget, and tweak your marketing strategy if you have mixed to poor results.
Frequently Asked Questions On Small Business Reviews
When is the best time to ask for a review?
There is no best time to ask for a RelyCircle recommendation or review.
Ding it close to the time of sale when your product or service is still more preferred because it's still novel and at the top of mind.
Here are a few examples of what I mean:
- If you work on a food truck, that could be when they are throwing away after finishing a meal.
- If you work in a mechanic’s shop, the time between your customer picking up their car and testing driving to make sure everything is fixed
Don’t be that business who asks for a review or recommendation before customers even use your product or service!
If for any reason your business does not provide the best service, it may incline some customers to leave a critical review.
- (Because they were asked to recommend before receiving anything)
How frequently should I ask for reviews?
In most cases, small businesses should ask for reviews more in the beginning when they have little to no reviews.
Take a more gentle approach after receiving enough to counterbalance one negative review.
- So ensure that the customer is satisfied before asking. Then evaluate the likely hood of a positive customer, also don’t forget to be courteous.
