The idea of marketing your shop can be intimidating. After all, big companies have entire marketing departments to promote your business, while you might be on your own. Instead of worrying about “marketing,” here are three steps to get people to speak positively about your shop and bring in new customers.
1. Pick Your Strengths
The first thing you’ll want to do is figure out what your shop does really well. Do you have the quickest turnaround times? The lowest amount of rework? The highest customer satisfaction? Pick out a few things that your shop can brag about to future customers. These talking points need to be accurate to keep customers’ trust, and if you can back it up with numbers, even better. If you’re not sure what your strengths are, take a step back to evaluate. Ask your customers why they like your shop, and what sets you apart from their other manufacturers. Find out what that strength is and build on it.
2. Find Your Wording
Once you’ve named your strengths, you need to decide how to convey these to your audience. In this case, simpler is better. Make sure you word it so your customers can understand it in a clear and concise manner. For example, if one of your shop’s strengths is that your customers rarely have to send products back for rework, you could phrase that as “We do it right the first time.” Even if you’re not great with words, try to phrase the idea as if you were just having a quick conversation.
3. Share Your Strengths
Now that you have these strengths laid out, you’ll want to share them. But where do you do that? Start by thinking of ways you interact with new people in a professional manner. Do you go to trade shows? Do you attend your local rotary club? Are you active on any social media accounts? Does your shop have a website? Start in one of these settings and begin promoting your strengths. On your website, you could simply update your “About Us” section. On social media, you can work in these strengths in any posts they might tie into. In person, all you have to do is use a couple positive talking points about your shop. Just be sure it sounds natural and you don’t overdo it. As you get more confident with these strengths, you will use them more frequently when talking about your shop. As more people hear about your shop, they’ll be more inclined to work with you because they know, specifically, why your shop deserves their business.
Conclusion
Now that you’ve created your three-step plan to grow your business, there is one more thing to tell you: This is a marketing plan. At its core, marketing is simply letting prospects know you exist and what you do. Marketing doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking leading up to an expensive event or ad. Some of the best marketing is achieved by keeping your business top of mind to current and future customers.
So, congratulations! You’ve made a marketing plan for your shop. Now all you have to do is share what sets your shop apart from the crowd. All of your hard work will begin to pay off through new customers and prospects. Click below to learn how an ERP software can be a great addition to your new marketing plan.
