Anybody who is operating a business of some description has a product or service to sell in exchange for money. If the business owner is not expecting or hoping to make money as a result of your enterprise, then it is in fact a hobby or a charity/not-for-profit organisation, rather than a business in the traditional sense of the word. More often than not, the quality and variety of product and/or service itself is not the cause of a business failing to make money.
The real problem is that nobody is buying it.
In fact, a business may have created the most innovative product in its industry, provide the best quality service that really delivers or even found the solution to a problem that humans have struggled with since the beginning of time. So, why then, when the product or service is of absolute value, nobody is buying? Many business owners will spend a lot of time and a great deal of money trying to figure out the answer to this question through extensive market research activities, and often find themselves in the middle of a costly, and usually completely unnecessary, rebranding process. As with many other problems, the answer is quite simple. If the market has no idea that a product, service or business exists, then of course they will not even be given the opportunity to decide whether or not to buy. In other words, a business is already given a strike without even getting off the starting block.
There are a number of ways to raise awareness of your business – some cost more than others, while some are more effective than others.
Here are some ideas:
- Advertising on radio, TV, local newspapers, metropolitan newspapers, magazines
- Advertising online, such as Google Adwords, on other people’s websites, online directories, and on social media forums
- Your own website through SEO and links to other websites
- Promoting yourself to your own database via a newsletter and other customer specials
- Creating an online community to connect with your clientele, e.g., through Facebook
- Public relations – having the media quote you as an expert on your area of expertise and print your news (for free).
What you choose to go with will depend on your budget and, importantly, where your clientele can be found.
