Demographic information can help you figure out who your consumer base is and how to appeal to them. If you want to open a coffee shop, for example, researching prospective locations’ median income and foot traffic can help you choose the right spot for your business. Think about where the customer hangs out online and offline, so you can be active there and catch their attention. [3] X Expert Source Brian HonigmanMarketing Consultant Expert Interview. 16 April 2021. Brainstorm the customer’s goals, and how your product/service could help them achieve those goals. [4] X Expert Source Brian HonigmanMarketing Consultant Expert Interview. 16 April 2021.
Good survey questions include “When choosing which product to buy, which is more important: price or quality,” and “Rank the following list of product features in order of importance, where 1 is most important and 5 is least important. ” You can use an inexpensive survey hosting website to conduct the survey, hire a market research firm, or administer it yourself. If you choose to administer it yourself, you can post it on your social media pages. If you already operate an existing business, conduct the survey through its social media accounts and mailing lists.
Try searching online for university research studies and trade publications on marketing trends related to your product or service. Suppose you’re a pet groomer and are launching a new boarding service. You’d want to place your ads at strategic spots like pet-related websites or a billboard that overlooks a dog park. Your ads also need to convince your audience that your product or service is worth their trust and money. To resonate with your consumer base, for instance, your pet boarding ads need to showcase expertise, reliability, and safe, clean facilities. This can be done with one of the best online marketing ad tool which is known as Remarketing. Keep in mind that some marketing opportunities bear fruit more quickly than others. For instance, Google AdWords can get you really fast short-term results, while an SEO strategy takes longer to gain traction. [7] X Expert Source Brian HonigmanMarketing Consultant Expert Interview. 16 April 2021. If you’re a start-up company, limit yourself to 2 types of marketing tactics so you don’t overextend yourself. [8] X Expert Source Brian HonigmanMarketing Consultant Expert Interview. 16 April 2021.
Testing your product or service can help you prevent hiccups when you actually launch it. You can hire an outside party to conduct focus groups, or recruit participants through social media or your business’s network, if you already operate one.
For instance, if you’re opening a hair salon and there are already 4 salons in a neighborhood, it may be hard for you to be competitive in that location.
For example, suppose you make jewelry and want to sell it online. If parts for a piece of jewelry cost $15, you spent 4 hours making it, and you set your hourly wage at $15, the item’s price needs to be at least $75 ($15 times 4 hours is $60, plus $15 for parts). If similar products are significantly less expensive, you could find ways to make your parts cheaper, such as buying in bulk. You could also market your work as exceptional or unique (perhaps your jewelry is made of sea glass from the Amalfi coast), or settle for a lower wage or profit margin.
Suppose you want to open a brewery. To set your business apart, you could include a pub and bottle shop that sells a wide variety of beer and wine. While all the neighboring breweries just offer tours and tastings, you could market your brand as a destination that offers something consumers can’t find elsewhere. A company’s brand tells a consumer base who it is and what it offers. A branding strategy communicates that identity through marketing materials, from hashtags to billboards.
For example, a restaurant’s beer, wine, and spirits cost should be about 20% of its beverage sales ($20 of product should generate $100 in sales). If your bistro’s alcohol costs are 29%, you’ll need to take steps to improve your performance, such as adjusting your pricing or conducting thorough inventory checks. Search online, check trade publications, or talk to an experienced business owner in your network about your industry’s specific performance measurements.
Suppose you’re launching a new hot sauce and your recipe depends on a specific dried chili pepper. You’ll need to know where to source that specialty product, where you can get it if your primary source falls through, how long it takes to order and receive it, the pepper’s shelf life, and how you’ll store back stock.
For example, your hot sauce could get recalled due to faulty packaging, or your pub could fail a health inspection. Knowing packaging standards or health codes in advance can help you prevent issues and promptly resolve any accidents that happen along the way.
For example, tense political conditions in the country where your hot sauce’s chili peppers grow could threaten your production. Say your state’s legislature has been debating a bill that would raise taxes on the product you’re launching. Consider how that would affect your bottom line and whether you could afford to stay in business if it passed.
