5, 4, 3, 2, 1 … Research show an adult’s average attention span is six to eight seconds, which means we have precious little time to grab your attention and keep it. Say, what were we saying again
Jokes aside, this alarming statistic illustrates just how difficult it can be for small businesses to get noticed in today’s busy, crowded marketplace. You can feel like a needle trying to stand out in a stack of needles, a teammate trying to make plays when NBA Most Valuable Player James Harden is dropping 50 points a night, or the forgotten goose in the back of a flock flight formation.
So how do you grab and keep potential customer’s attention without spending a fortune and your entire 2019 operating budget on advertising?
“Well, we’ve got a website,” you say. Congratulations, but so does everybody, The Balance SMB’s Leslie Truex stresses.
“While it’s true that a website can sell for you 24/7, the reality is, just because a website is online doesn’t mean people will find it,” Truex writes. “Making money online, whether you got a store, a blog, or a service, requires people to visit the website, and that won’t happen all by itself.”
The moral of this cautionary tale is you have to be an active, persuasive pitchman and pitchwoman for your business with a home run pitch. Because even if you successfully engage them with your lead-in pitch, you have a little over a minute to sell them on your product or service. Your pitch can’t be just good, it’s got to be a smart, killer, full-attention-getting, hook, line and sinker catch.
“When it comes to marketing your business, you’ll most certainly experience tremendous amounts of pain if you don’t know what you’re doing,” Entrepreneur.com’s R.L. Adams notes, pouring on the difficulty of the task.
No pressure, everybody. As daunting as it may seem on paper, standing out and above the competition to become a top-searched business on Google isn’t climbing Mount Everest, heisting the Mona Lisa from The Louvre or lasting more than a month as Taylor Swift’s boyfriend. Focused precision digital marketing can make your business a household name in short time.
Here’s a step-by-step map on how to get there in months rather than years.
1) Craft Your Elevator Pitch
Today’s never-sleep business world requires you to market 24/7. Having a ready, catchy pitch line can draw people in. A buzzy slogan creates automatic name recognition. Invest in an email marketing pitch campaign.
2) Become Active In Your Community
Research who your ideal customer is and put your business’ name in places they will be. Whether sponsoring the local high school basketball team, co-sponsoring a 5K run or advertising on websites tailored for your target audience, if you find them, chances are they will find you.
3) Collaborate & Network
Not even Amazon went it alone in the beginning. Put together a group of synergistic, non-competitive businesses in your area and agree to cross-promote. Coupons, fliers, reciprocal website links, bundled promotions and social media platforms are ideal ways to collaborate with other businesses, and – here comes the cha-ching – reach new customers.
4) The Best Business Builder
The one true business builder that has stood the test of time during all advertising and marketing fads is referrals. Asking customers for referrals is the easiest, cheapest way to open the door to new clients.
5) Be A People Person
As in life, relationships are everything in business. It’s infinitely cheaper to keep a customer than get land a new one. Work to establish strong relationships with your customers. Email marketing is an easy, personal way to do this.
The CliffNotes Version Of Our Story
Here’s The Balance SMB’s Eight-Point, CliffsNotes Version of How To Stand Out Quickly In A Sea of Fierce Competitors:
- Focus On The Value You Provide
- Use Multiple Formats To Reach Your Market Across The Web
- Connect With Others In Your Industry Or Market, Especially Influencers
- Curate Content From Others In Your Industry, Especially Influencers
- Use Free Publicity
- Hold A Contest Or Give Away Something For Free
- Become The Go-To Resource For Information Your Market Needs
- Be Authentic And Approachable
Remember, you’re not just anybody. Your business is anything but an Average Joe or Jane. You are uniquely you. Market yourself to shine a compelling light on what you do and offer, how you do it different and better than everyone else, and how you can be the answer for your customer’s problem and needs.
Because simply, if customers haven’t seen you, they haven’t seen anything yet. Trust us, market that message through multiple and diverse platforms, and you will have your target audience’s undivided attention.
Need help developing your business’ marketing game plan? Give us a shout. CG Web Strategy will get you noticed, known and getting calls.
