Congratulations, you successfully started a business! Now what? The ‘what?’ is exactly what we are about to cover in this article. Starting a business is one thing, but getting it to reach your potential clients or customers is another thing. The latter, which is getting it to reach your potential clients, can only be done through, of course, promotion. So, if you are looking forward to learning how to promote a startup business the right way, the tips shared in this article will definitely come in handy.

Many startup businesses fail (tons of startup businesses fail a couple of times before they see a glimpse of success) at the promotion stage. Probably after the capital investments from investors or relatives, the hard work to excel, and the motivational speeches absorbed at night; promoting your start-up business the wrong way would only turn out frustrating.

Speaking about promoting your startup the wrong way, there are mistakes startup businesses make when running promotions — and we don’t want you to make them too. Some of these mistakes to watch out for when promoting your startup business are:

• Promoting without a target market: Most people leap into promoting their businesses without having in mind who their business may appeal to. Most times, the problem would always be startups trying to appeal to everybody.
• Promoting on multiple social media platforms: You probably would be thinking, ‘hey, I should test all the social media platforms to know which one my business thrives on.’ But here I am telling you now that that’s a waste of time if you know what kind of content your startup business will be pushing out.
• Having no analytics: Another mistake some startup businesses make is that they have no analysis. This way, it’s hard for them to track their growth or know when they are stuck or doing something wrong. Startup businesses without an analytic tool would always find it difficult to spot trends and this will always turn out to be a major problem in the long run.
• Having no analysis for competitors’ data: Most startups go blindly into the market space trying out one new strategy from the other to see which works. They ignore the existing data from their competitors that can be harnessed for decision making.

Those are some of the mistakes most startup businesses make. But below are some tips to help you know how to promote a startup business the right way.

5 Ways to Promote Your Startup Business the Right Way

1.Have a defined target market

Not everyone is your client or customer. According to Inc., many businesses say they target “anyone interested in my services.” Some say they target small-business owners, homeowners, or stay-at-home moms. All of these targets are too general. Your goods and/or services cannot appeal to everyone. So, to promote the right way, you have to find and reach out to those people who need your products or services.

For instance, a PlayStation game house wouldn’t appeal to 40-years-old adults and below. It would be rare to find an adult around that age going to PlayStation game houses to play games. Now, who’s the target market? Of course, the teens and millennials. These are the kind of people that can stay on top of their social media accounts arguing which gaming console is better or crappy. They can give their time to console challenges and bets.

2. Promote content on the right social media platform

Social media platforms are one of the biggest places to promote a startup business. What could go wrong? I can tell you — putting up the wrong content on the wrong social media platform. It’s like trying to fix a piece of a puzzle in a picture. The shape might fit, but the image might never make a meaning.

Most startups go on to promote on all the social media platforms they can reach all at once. But the thing is, if you are already going to promote on multiple social media platforms, it means you haven’t figured out yet what social media platform your business will thrive on.  According to Tailwind; “…it pays to be strategic with your social media strategy. Ideally, you’ll want to choose one or two platforms and commit to going all-in on them.”

For instance, if you own a startup business and are looking forward to promoting it using a lot of videos and images, then Instagram is the right social media platform. If you will be tilted towards storytelling, Facebook is just enough. Short narratives? – Twitter then. Would you be writing long-form articles and building a network? LinkedIn will do you good. Every social media platform has its content strong point. When you learn that, you will be able to make the right decision as to which platform to use.

3. Have a strong online presence

When learning how to promote a startup business, knowing the fact that having a strong online presence is definitely worth it. We have gone past when billboards, paper fliers, and banners pull in clients or customers. Nowadays, no one has enough time to look at banners and read texts on billboards. Why’s that? Because almost everyone has their eyes glued to their smartphones.

In 2019 alone, there were approximately 3.8 million Google searches conducted each minute, many of which were carried out to find information on local businesses. Since everyone’s attention is on their smartphones which is, of course, hooked to the internet, it’s ideal to promote a startup business online. Not just promoting online, having a strong online presence is key. This is because, just as I have explained, a lot of people use their smartphones to find almost everything online, including businesses.

Having a strong online presence includes:

• A professional website.
• Having a social media handle to keep clients/customers updated.
• Asking for recommendations and feedbacks online.
• Encouraging clients/customers to use your online platform for purchasing or queries.

4. Analyze competitors’ data

Competitive analysis helps you make your business unique, according to U.S. Small Business Administration. To make processes easier, analysing competitors data would show startups what makes their competitors stand out. Analysing competitors’ data also stand to help for decision making and gives a head start.

Take your time to go through your competitors’ websites and social media platforms. Ask yourself these questions:

• In what way do they engage their visitors?
• How accessible is their website/platform?
• How do they get feedback and recommendations?
• In what way do they keep the audience talking about their products/services?
• Who is their target audience?
• What kind of content gets the most engagement?

5. Strive for customer satisfaction

Another great way to how to promote a startup business online is striving for customer satisfaction. Remember, a happy customer would always spread the positive word about your business. A sad one, on the other hand, would try to tear down your reputation.

When you strive for customer satisfaction, you automatically activate word-of-mouth promotion for your business. A happy customer will always become a referrer. Research shows that customer satisfaction leads to greater customer retention, higher lifetime value, and a stronger brand reputation. So, if you are aiming to promote your startup business, strive for customer satisfaction.

Conclusion

Promoting a startup business online can be tedious. But you can stay at the forefront if you have the right knowledge. Avoiding common mistakes and embracing the tips listed here can serve as a springboard to successful business promotion.

To make a simple summary, we have talked about avoiding:

• Promoting without a target market
• Promoting on multiple social media platforms
• Having no analytics
• Having no analysis for competitors’ data

And we have extensively discussed the possible ways on how to promote a startup business online. Putting together the bullet points, they are:

• Have a defined target market
• Promote content on the right social media platform
• Have a strong online presence
• Analyze competitors’ data
• Strive for customers satisfaction

Now, over to you. Are there more right ways we could possibly promote a startup business online? We will love to hear it in the comments section below.

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