Simple Framework for Smart Small Business Marketing

When it comes to small business marketing plans, I am looking at a broader marketing strategy which is consistently and sustainably using other marketing platforms. I’m becoming more and more of a mindset that social media should not be the be all and end all of your strategy. Not being stuck to my screens is a non-negotiable for me. 

So if you, like me, see this as an opportunity to step back from your current marketing efforts and reset with my simple-yet-effective marketing framework, keep reading!

Using my basic framework, there are three content buckets for marketing your small business. They are connect, convey and convert.

Whenever we market ourselves, we start with connections. This is the building of the relationship - essentially, that courtship period that is dating before we move in together, get married! It’s so important that we always lead with connection. People buy from those they know, like and trust. Often they won’t buy from you until they feel they have a relationship with you (and your business). 

What that looks like in your marketing could be as simple as sharing your story and what you struggle with, showing that you understand their pain points, frustrations and so forth. Once you’ve made a connection, you’ve established yourself as someone they might like to do business with.

The next bucket of content I like to hit is convey. Whether that is with social media, emails, print marketing, website, I want you to convey your expertise with consistent and high value content. This could be something as simple as tips and tricks, how-to's, behind-the-scenes looks, downloads, templates and guides. We want to make sure we are offering those who are most likely to do business with you a sample of your expertise. 

What that does is it establishes you and your business as a potential solution to their problem but in a genuine, giving way.

Then we convert! We want to make sure that those who are most likely to do business with us have the opportunity to take that next step. Don’t make the mistake of not evenly sharing your content between the buckets. You don’t want to be known as the warm fuzzy person who gives away stuff for free… you have to ask for the sale.

This is where you might say ‘If you are XYZ person, experiencing XYZ frustrations or you want to achieve XYZ goals, head over to the website to sign up/buy/purchase XYZ and I’ll help you with the process.’

It doesn’t need to be only sales - it could be something that sees them moving along the journey to getting their business. Signing up for workshops, free training or cheat sheets - all of these help you identify who might be potential clients. 

If you are filling these buckets, you are following my basic framework for small business marketing! All you need to add on is time and future tweaking as you get to know your customers better.

A second layer of this framework was shared with me by the president of my local Business Chamber. Her steps add a layer of practicality (business needs rather than types of content to be used) to mine and intersect as per the groovy image shown here.

This second framework starts off with Visibility. Is your marketing material being positioned and placed in the right spots to get noticed by the right people (i.e. those most likely to buy from you)?

Think about the people who are most likely to do business with you - where do they hang out? What are they watching, reading and listening to? Think, how can you get eyeballs on your stuff? And by stuff, I mean all the content you are creating as per my marketing basics - it might be social media, blogs, emails, print marketing and so on. 

Credibility is where this business-needs framework intersects with mine - how are you proving that you are a credible source of information as relates to their needs? This crucial intersection is where conveying your expertise also cements you as a credible expert in your field.

The final step is Profitability - make sure what you are converting is profitable for your business. This is where you need to get your financial cap on. Chat with your coach or do some research on your own. Sustainable, good revenue is so important. 

So when you are looking at marketing your small business, these are six areas to have a good handle on to create a kick-ass marketing plan. This is a practical framework that will make you think globally when marketing your business and how to identify that it will work for you as well.

If this has got you motivated to reset your marketing foundations or if you have another topic you’d like to see covered, I’d love to hear from you! Shoot me an email - I’ll get back to you soon.