Four Proven Marketing Strategies To Grow Your Business Every Year

by | Nov 19, 2015

Discover Four Tried-And-True Marketing Systems to Crush the Competition

Do you ever get this feeling?…

The feeling that your competitors are somehow privy to some sort of secret that’s helped them come out of relative obscurity to zoom ahead of you?

Ever find yourself wondering how “that guy” managed to take the lead in your local market (even though anyone who knows much of anything knows you are the better choice for the products and services you sell)?

Frustrating…

That kind of meteoric rise on the local scene seems impossible – at least impossible without somehow cheating (which you wouldn’t put past that guy).

You’re left dreaming of flying instead of crawling along, growing at a snail’s pace.

And yet here you are, reading this blog post…

You’re probably thinking something like, “If I could figure out how to grow my business by 25% or more next year, I could probably repeat that the following year… and if I can do it the right way, without doing anything outside the bounds of integrity, why not?”

Why not, exactly!

Ask around, and you’ll find that anyone who knows me and my team at Tulsa Internet Marketing™ knows we run on integrity around here. If it’s not right, we won’t do it. We won’t even go near it!

So, when I tell you that I’m about to show you how to grow your business by at least 25% or more in the next year, you know I’m not about to blow smoke your way. It’s for real. I’ve used exactly what you’re about to read to help my clients turn their businesses around completely.

Ready? Here are some facts that might blow you away:

Fact 1: 95% of clients walking through my doors are missing at least TWO of these strategies. Chance are, you are too…

Fact 2: The clients leveraging all FOUR strategies are experiencing exponential growth.

Fact 3: This kind of growth builds over time; it’s not some get-rich-quick scheme with trailing profits.

Fact 4: I have personally helped many companies achieve growth like this in the past 6 years.

Are you interested yet?

Excellent. Let’s talk more about how these four strategies are going to form the foundation for your business’s ongoing growth and success.

Over the years, the competitive landscape for local businesses has changed…

And the one constant? It’s going to keep on changing at an unprecedented pace.

What’s driving all this change?

Well, ongoing technological development, increasing access to information, and distribution have all combined to change the consumer buying process…

They are making discoveries in new channels, leveraging an unprecedented amount of research to assess options, and then going on to make their final purchase decision.

Effective small business marketing strategy breaks down into three areas you’ve got to hit hard:

1. Search Rankings Rule the Roost.

92% of customers are using search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo) to find online information. And a majority of this group are doing it frequently. In fact, Google’s own data points out that 97% of customers first search for local businesses online.

All of these statistics point to one, incontrovertible truth:

Your Search Visibility Can Make or Break You. If You’re Not Being Seen, Then You’re Missing Out.

But what if there are things you want to stay hidden?

Perhaps a less than flattering customer review?

Unfortunately, the higher your search ranking, the more likely those are to show up, too. But they can be managed over time.

So how will you know if you’re “on top” of the search leader board?

Well, step one is making the first page. Almost 96% of consumers never go past page one. And of those, the top three places account for almost 60% of the search traffic, with half of that going to the business in spot numero uno.

2. Social Media Matters.

That’s more than just hype. In under a decade social media has become a global force, with almost 60% of customers using it as a platform for airing customer grievances.

But it’s all just kids, right? Wrong.

Two-thirds of social media users are over the age of 35, including on networks like Facebook. And they aren’t just using them; they’re OBSESSED.

The average Facebook user spends almost eight hours on the site each month, averaging out to almost sixteen minutes a day.

So you can bet good money that your customers are on the platform – even if you sell B2B – and they like, follow, tweet, and share to their little hearts’ content. Especially when they’re pissed.

Social media causes a ripple effect traveling a billion times faster than word of mouth…

Nearly 60% of U.S. Consumers Vent About Frustrations With A Company, Product or Service, and Then Their Networks Go on to Share the Posts with Many Others.

That’s why more and more businesses are getting involved…

They know they can’t control what is said about their company over social media, but they CAN contribute and attempt to steer the conversation to their benefit.

By being proactive and adding value, businesses can leverage social media platforms to grow their brand reputation and insulate themselves from the acid barbs of disenfranchised customers.

A side effect of all this engagement is that as more companies participate in social media, more customers expect them ALL to.

Bottom line? Opting out of social media just isn’t a healthy option.

3. MOBILE, MOBILE, MOBILE (Yes, it’s really that important)

If you go anywhere these days, it’s almost impossible to find someone without a smartphone near at hand. That’s a trend that just keeps growing and growing.

Did you know almost 80% of Americans have an Internet-capable smartphone?

And of those, over 20% use it as their primary means of getting online?

In fact, even people who have both smartphone and PC say their phone is their primary search tool.

It’s hardly surprising given the capabilities of today’s phones.

Phones are a one-stop-shop for everything a customer might need: photos, research, navigation, communication, and entertainment.

So why aren’t more small businesses optimizing for mobile?

Honestly, I don’t know. With a handheld computer bouncing around in the pockets and handbags of over 5 billion people, you’d think mobile sites would get more attention.

So what does this mean for business owners like you?

Well, if you want an effective web presence (and you do), you need a website that is mobile-responsive, and capable of supporting a variety of platforms and devices.

Because if you don’t have that kind of website, you’ve got a huge hole in your sales funnel?

It’s hard work getting website visitors. What a shame your site might be losing 60% of them within seconds. (… and guess who’s site they’ll go to next?)

No surprise to learn that your prospective customers are just like you on this…

Hate pinching and zooming in to try to make a website readable on your phone? They hate it, too. So much that they’ll bounce right off of your site and onto your competitors just to avoid the hassle.

Can you really afford to be turning good customers away because you got a little lazy with your mobile strategy?

Probably not…

If you want to reach more customers, convert more buyers, and make more money, you need a streamlined website optimized for mobile.

Especially because people search to purchase on mobile. Over 70% of all mobile searches result in some kind of action within a 60-minute time frame.

When they’re searching on mobile, they are doing it with intent to buy.

I know what you’re thinking…

If you’ve started hyperventilating after reading to this point because you’re already maxed out on the never-ending to-do list for your business, you can relax…

All You Need to Start, Is Four R’s

While some tactical change is needed, it’s probably not the burn-it-to-the-ground kind you’re dreading. By optimizing just these four key marketing systems, you can experience massive growth.

And we aren’t talking gimmicks here, either…

These are the tried and true basics that will form your pillar of success:

  • Reputation
  • Reach
  • Repeat sales
  • Referrals

Let’s talk through each one to gain a better understanding of how they can be of service to you…

Reputation (It’s everything)

Remember all our talk about social media early on?

It’s never been easier for people to share what they think about your business (or research what others think about it). Now, depending on what’s out there, this can be good… or very very bad.

With all those people doing research before a purchase, what people are saying about you has a significant impact on others’ decisions to buy. Because negative reviews can easily be part of top search results, it takes very little “bad” to do a lot of damage.

Reach

In general, to increase sales, you need to increase your audience by making sure more people hear about you. The equation is really that simple.

Where the struggle lies for most people is in the how. Most people take a now and then kind of approach, a campaign here, an email there, and then they call it good. But what you need is a focused, coordinated, and sustained strategy to reach a wider audience and increase your prospects.

Doing anything else is just creating noise.

Repeated Sales

This one is another no-brainer. Most businesses sell products or services people will need more than once in a lifetime. However, many businesses fail to maintain the relationship. So instead of having a warm customer already lined up, they push them back into the prospect pool and start from scratch.

If it sounds crazy to you, that’s because it is.

The more value (read: money) you can generate from a single customer, the less you have to spend on overall marketing. And the less you spend on marketing, the higher your profit margin and return on investment. What’s not to like about that?

Cross-sells, up-sells, and other add-ons are all good ways to make more money off the same customer, using the same marketing budget. When coupled with an effective acquisition strategy, your growth is guaranteed.

Referrals (Also known as, “Please tell a friend!”) If you’re doing your job right, your customers are already happy. However, happy customers don’t always speak up without a little prodding. I mean, most people don’t rave about their plumber at a cocktail party, right? So you need to push people a little to get what you need. To do this, it needs to be absolutely effortless. You’re asking them to take an extra step already by talking you up; don’t make it any harder than that.

Why bother? Well, referrals make better customers. According to studies, they spend more, are more likely to convert, and shop faster. It’s word-of-mouth marketing at its finest. People believe what their friends and families tell them more than they would a stranger. The concept behind it is called social proof. Humans are easily influenced by those in our sphere of interaction.

By introducing a clear referral generation system (think 50% off your next purchase, or $25 when your friend buys X), you give customers a good, valuable reason to go tell a friend.

What Are You Missing?

While all of these sections probably made good sense, I can almost guarantee you don’t have adequate strategies to optimize everything. In my six years of doing business, 95% of my clients were missing something… and they didn’t even know it.

Now that you’re aware, you have two choices:

  1. Keep doing what you’re doing, and cross your fingers that your competitors don’t read this blog post OR
  1. Realize you have some room for improvement and hire an expert.

If you’re in camp number two, congratulations. Your business is already one step closer to becoming more profitable.

To take step number two here’s all you need to do: Call ME: (918) 878-0555 

While a phone conversation isn’t a guarantee of a working relationship, it’s a great start towards building the best and most profitable business possible. And even better? I’m providing the following guarantee:

If I Can’t Show You How to Make More Money in The Next Year Using R4 Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business, I’ll Gladly Send You $250 For Wasting Your Time!

What have you got to lose?

Call me today and together, we can double, triple, or even quadruple your business in the next year.