The purpose of marketing is to help businesses become more well known. A common problem that SMEs or startups may have, is that they have little or no budget for marketing - but still need to do it! 

Luckily, there’s a workable solution and that is to engage in zero-cost marketing methods.

Network

Networking is more than simply trading information, sharing with others what you do for a living and getting known in your local community. Fostering long-term relationships and expanding your support network also serves as an avenue for new opportunities that could play a pivotal role in the growth and success of your business. 

Think of ways that you and a connection can leverage on each other to grow, whether or not that may be from a brand awareness or sales perspective.

Cross-promotion

One of the opportunities that a broad network can give rise to is cross-promotion. Cross-promotion is a partnership in which two (or more) companies promote one another through joint marketing activities. 

When seeking a partnership, it’s important to work with companies that have great synergy with yours. For example, a fitness or wellness professional is probably less likely to find a successful collaboration for cross promotion with a fast-food company. Remember that through a cross-promotion, some of the questions you should be asking yourself include: 

• What can I achieve through a collaboration? 
• What kind of value can I provide the new audience?
• What kind of value can a potential partner provide to my existing clients? 

In answering these, you’ll have a better understanding of who you can approach for a partnership. 

Upsell existing customers 

If you’ve pumped money into lead-generation initiatives such as paid advertising or features, you’ll know it can be an expensive practice. It’s in fact much easier and cheaper to upsell to existing customers who already know the value of your product or service. 

Remember that successful upselling happens when you have your customers’ best interest at heart. Making their experience with you more enjoyable while building their trust is the only way you and your customers will be able to benefit in the long run. 

Create a blog 

Writing articles to maintain a blog on your website might seem like a mountainous task - but there are a number of reasons why it’s worth it. 

Sharing valuable, educational and intentional articles allow businesses to expand their online presence, connect with potential customers, build brand awareness, or a reputation as an industry thought-leader, or even generate leads. 

Beyond these results, content marketing also helps businesses to rank higher on search engines which can end up doing wonders for other aspects of your marketing. 

Gather more email addresses 

Sending out regular newsletters help you stay connected with existing clients and new leads, and keep them updated with new products or offerings you may have. 

If you don’t currently have an email list of contacts or would like to grow your current one, there are a few list-building strategies. For example, by creating pop-ups or slide-ins for different pages of your site to encourage people to subscribe, or offering useful downloadables. 

Core Collective is building centres of excellence where the best fitness and wellness professionals collaborate to deliver better service and results for our customers, all under one roof. We help you grow by providing best-in-class support services and facilities, and by fostering collaboration and professional development opportunities.

Find out more about the benefits of starting or growing your business with us!