Too many Business Owners have become LAZY MARKETERS! They are 100% reliant on digital marketing.
They forget there’s a HUGE opportunity to make sales with people locally.
It works in your favor for many reasons…
- People trust people they met in person far more than meeting online
- They feel safe knowing your local
- You can have meet-ups and collaborations
- Most local businesses aren’t using this which gives you leverage
People love to support businesses that are supporting their local economy.
Instead of looking to branch into another platform (YouTube, LinkedIN, etc.), I would urge you to first explore guerrilla marketing in your local area first.
Those relationships tend to last much longer and they will create a sense-of-pride when people know that your company is based out of where they live.
Here’s 3 ways you can use guerrilla marketing in your business now…
#1) Chamber of Commerce or BNI
These are excellent ways to network with other local business owners. They are the movers-and-shakers in the community and they can open doors for you. And if you sell B2B, this is a great way to get in a room full of your customers.
Don’t be the guy that goes around and puts your business card in everyone’s hand and pitches from day one. Add value to the group. Make a FREE OFFER…yes free. That way you can demonstrate your skill set and make it easy for people to step forward to working with you if they are genuinely interested.
Business Owners have a ton of expenses so coming to them with a paid offer will create more sales resistance for them. Wow them with a free offer then earn their trust to pitch a paid offer down the road.
#2) Signage
This is a lost art. Less people are doing car wraps, getting banners in front of their brick-and-mortar or putting up yard signs. But those things have worked for decades. But if you signage is too bland, it won’t stand out. Get your offer down to one sentence with a call-to-action like “Text COACH to 444222”.
Most brick-and-mortar businesses have their standard channel letters outside of their building but adding something new throughout the year gets eyeballs on your business. And if you have a service business, you can definitely wrap your car with your contact info or website to get leads from people sitting next to you in traffic.
#3) Local Podcast
A low friction way to meet more small businesses owners in your area is to get them as a guest on your podcast. You put them on a pedestal and give them content they can post on their social media.
This allows you to build a relationship with them and possibly do business together.
You become a local authority too when you are the guy or gal who is interviewing all the local business owners. We also interviewing our clients on our company podcast so we can spotlight their success and we can cut up their testimonial into an ad.
I have a ton more ideas but these are 3 to get you started.