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Growing your business without actively promoting it might not be impossible, but it is pretty difficult.

If you don’t take steps to promote your business, you will probably be relying on word-of-mouth marketing, which can usually only help you for so long. If you run a small business, you’re probably aware that you need to do some form of marketing, but it’s easy to make mistakes when you’re not sure what you’re doing. Making mistakes could mean you waste money and don’t get the attention that your business needs. There are some common mistakes that a lot of businesses make but that you can avoid.

Choosing the Wrong Marketing Agency

For many small businesses, outsourcing their marketing is a sensible choice. You can allow experts to take care of your marketing for you so that you can concentrate on other things. However, choosing the wrong marketing agency is a risk. One thing that you can consider is looking for an agency with experience in your industry, instead of a generic marketing agency. You can benefit from digital marketing for law firms or marketing designed specifically for ecommerce businesses. If the agency you choose isn’t working out for you, don’t be afraid to switch.

Not Setting a Marketing Budget

Earmarking part of your business’s budget for marketing is essential. It’s also important to have a set budget that you can stick to. If you fail to create a marketing budget, you could find that you don’t have any money available for marketing. On the other hand, you could also end up overspending on marketing if you don’t have a budget that helps you to control how much you spend. You should consider how much money you have available for marketing and how much you realistically need to get the results that you want.

Poor Positioning

Positioning your business poorly when you’re marketing it can create problems for you. It’s crucial to know exactly where your products or services should sit in the market. You need to know who your customers are and how your brand is perceived when you’re making marketing decisions. How are customers going to compare you to your competitors? Is your brand one that people regard as a budget option or more of a luxury choice? Who and what are your products best suited for? Your brand positioning can make a big difference to the success of your marketing.

Missing Out on Repeat Customers

Gaining new customers is important for the survival of your business but it’s also important not to forget about repeat business. It costs less to retain existing customers compared to finding new ones, so make sure some of your marketing focuses on customer retention. It might include email marketing, social media, remarketing with digital ads, or even direct mail. You can make sure your customers keep coming back so you don’t need to put so much effort into getting new customers.

Avoid these business promotion mistakes and you can nail your marketing while making good use of your budget.

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