Once you’ve finally started your small business, the next challenge is likely how to sell. Being new to the industry, you’re in tough competition with the big guns that have been around for years. But let nothing deter you. They, too, started small.
However, there are some strategies — or opportunities — small businesses can leverage to increase sales. Sounds good? Read on.
Direct selling
Again, small businesses face stiff competition. But rather than face the big guns head-on doing what they do, you could take a different approach. You could try direct selling.
Direct selling and multi-level marketing are powerful in times of uncertainty — times when your feet aren’t fully planted. Sell directly to consumers at their workplace, home, or other non-retail environments. And if they like your stuff, you just may have won a loyal customer.
One upside to this is you wouldn’t have to spend on digital marketing as you could handle it yourself as an entrepreneur. However, the direct approach requires tremendous marketing skills.
Monetizing personal data
Every time someone uses social media, logs onto a website, or asks questions on Google, these websites (Facebook, Google, Amazon, etc.) keep track of the user’s information.
Now, there are companies that need to target their ads to the right audience. They buy personal data from those websites and then send ads to users who fit their buyer persona. What does that mean? These ads will make more conversions because they target the right audience.
The top four tech companies make over a trillion dollars yearly by selling your data. As a small business, it’s worth understanding how data monetization works. It’s important to know what information you hold about your partners, customers, products, assets, or transactions and how much this information is worth to other companies looking for it.
You could sell, and at the same time, buy personal data from other websites so you can target your ads to make more sales.
Third-party referrals
Angie’s List and Yelp are two trusted sources where consumers can evaluate businesses. Your target audience can develop trust for you and likely become paying customers if they find your business on such sites.
Small businesses should also leverage word-of-mouth referrals. An entrepreneur’s friends and family can inform their acquaintances about the brand, creating more awareness and potentially winning more customers for the business.
Referral/networking
One crucial strategy for small businesses to make more sales is to join social communities, whether online or local. Joining a community of entrepreneurs offers you many benefits, one of which is networking. An entrepreneur can refer a customer to you if they can’t solve their problem but know you could.
Additionally, you’d also get insight into the successes and failures of others so you know what to do and mistakes to avoid.
Social media marketing
This one is a no-brainer. As of 2018, over 90% of Fortune 500 companies promote their businesses on social media. That shows how relevant social media is in the world of marketing.
Your target audiences are on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Create brand awareness on these platforms, and you’d most definitely see a spike in sales if you do your social media marketing right.
Don’t be afraid to start small. The key is to push forward despite all odds, leveraging the right strategies and tools to ensure you reach where you want to be.
