If you want to grow your online business, you need to take advantage of every marketing opportunity that you can find. You already know all about online marketing using social media, but what about offline advertising for your website? Even in the age of technology, street marketing campaigns like a flash mob performance or a temporary tattoo you hand out to customers and contacts can be effective ways to get noticed and build brand recognition.
1. Local Artist Space on Your Website
If your business is related to the arts, you can help promote it by showcasing a local artist on your website, letting the artist promote the exhibit and your business in “real time.” Offering a free space for a local artist will attract new customers who might not have found your business otherwise, and it will also help you build a better reputation in the community by showing that you support local art.
2. Spread Temporary Tattoos
A number of companies – large and small – are using temporary tattoos as an innovative way to get the “word” out. Though most people consider them to be something given out at children’s parties, they are now coming into their own – with talented artists designing high-quality, eye-catching images. You can search locally or on the web for an artist to design a tattoo you can use to advertise your logo or a catchphrase you want customers to remember. Print up a number of temporary tattoos and have your employees wear them or hand them out (even apply them!) when your group attends a community event.
3. Start a Flash Mob
A flash mob is an unannounced performance that takes place in a public place, usually involving singing, dancing or some type of acting. Depending on the nature of your business, having the outgoing members of your staff get together and perform could be a great way to get the word out. If you attract enough attention, you may even get a mention in the local paper. Either way, when the flash mob is finished, have your staff members hand out business cards and other free marketing materials to the audience.
4. Support Local Charity Events
If your business has a product you can offer, consider donating to a local charity event. For example, if your company sells paper products online, you could donate a large amount of branded paper cups for the runners to drink from at a local charity marathon. Anything that gets your logo out there will help potential customers remember your products.
5. Hire a Graffiti Artist
If your business would benefit from coming across as edgy and modern, then hiring a graffiti artist to decorate a local building, fence or bridge with your logo will do a lot to bring in new business. If the artwork is quality, it will attract a lot of attention and possibly even become a local landmark. Before beginning a graffiti project, always check with the owner of the property and look into local laws. In some cities, you may need to get a permit.
6. Practice Some Old-Fashioned Methods
Living in the age of technology doesn’t mean that the tried-and-true methods of marketing no longer work. If you’re excited about what your business can offer, pick up the phone and see if a local newspaper or television channel will do a story on you.
Whether its supporting charities or designing a temporary tattoo you can use for advertisement, while practicing these methods, you should try to remember that building a business takes time, effort and a lot of love. It won’t happen overnight, but as long as you put in the energy and believe in what you do, your customers will find you.
About the Author: As a entrepreneur and business owner, Lisa Coleman shares these ideas that can help a person with the marketing of their business. She obtained one of her ideas online from Tattoo You, an online distributor of temporary tattoos of any design.