GBHJ GLOBAL: How to Make a Big Marketing Splash With a Little Bit of Cash

Many small business owners believe they cannot afford to launch all-out marketing and advertising campaigns-and they are probably right. In fact, the 2016 “State of Small Business Report” discovered only 33 percent of U.S. small businesses spend the recommended 7 to 8 percent of their revenue on marketing; one in 10 spend absolutely nothing.

However, there is good news for those business owners: you don't need a huge budget to make a big impact. You can accomplish a lot through low-cost or no-cost public relations (PR) efforts, and you can do it in-house.

To clear up any misconceptions, PR is not about spin or misleading people. It's an open and honest communication approach that builds mutually beneficial relationships between your business and your public, and it does it by incorporating elements of marketing, advertising, publicity, and community outreach.

Step 1: Identify your key audiences

Knowing your audience is a critical step for every business. Marketing to everyone is not only time consuming, but also a waste of time. Besides, not everyone is in need of your product or service, so it is important to identify exactly who your target audience is before launching any sort of campaign to reach them.

First consider who is most likely to benefit from your product or service. Ask yourself what problems your business solves and who has those issues. Once identified, consider this group as your company's primary audience.

Your employees are another very important audience. They are your ambassadors, and you need to take care of them so they can take care of your customers. It's important for them to feel appreciated and valued, so keep the lines of communication open and look for ways to recognize them for their efforts. You can do this by soliciting their input on ways to improve the business, managing by walking around, sharing information honestly and quickly, and publicly celebrating employee achievements.

Step 2: Create a public relations plan

Before deciding what you are going to do and how you are going to do it, you must first figure out why you are doing it.

“Too many small businesses jump into PR and marketing without a plan,” says public relations consultant Stephanie Wilson Nichols. “You've got to KNOW your business-its strengths and weaknesses-before you position yourself as a resource for potential customers.”

Do a little research on your business first. Analyze your sales figures, expenses, achievements, and other pertinent information. This gives you a baseline, showing where your company is before implementing any marketing or PR efforts. You should also think about possible threats and opportunities and how they could impact your business.

Next, use that information to determine what you want to achieve for your business. Keep in mind that your objectives need to be measurable and time sensitive. For example, if your goal is to grow business, you may have objectives such as:

Increase online sales by 20 percent by November 15.

Hire two new full-time employees by October 10.

Think about how you will achieve those objectives. Each objective can have multiple strategies and tactics. A strategy is a directive; a tactic is a way to achieve the directive.

Let's take another look at our online sales objective. We can achieve that by:

Strategy 1: Use content marketing to reach potential customers.

Tactics: Blog posts on your website, training video on how to use your product, offering relevant bloggers the opportunity to review your product, hosting a “Lunch and Learn” presentation about your industry, etc.

FYI: Blogging and video are underutilized marketing tools; only 22 percent of small businesses use blogs and just 11 percent use videos.

Strategy 2: Improve the e-commerce features on your website.

Tactics: Survey customers about their online experience, update the e-commerce plug-in, add other options for payment, upload new photos of products, etc.

FYI: While 62 percent of small businesses include information about the goods or services they offer on their websites, only 32 percent allow customers to actually make purchases, and less than half give customers the opportunity to contact sales or customer service.

Once you've identified your goals, objectives, strategies and tactics, write out your action plan with a timeline. This should include a detailed list of tasks, person responsible, and targeted completion date. You can evaluate the effectiveness of your plan by simply checking to see if objectives have been met.

Step 3: Launch low-cost public relations tactics

PR tactics do not have to break the bank. In fact, some are free, while others can be done for minimal costs.

Surveys. What's the easiest and most effective PR tactic out there? Talk to your audiences and listen to what they have to say, customers and employees alike. Have candid conversations by asking them what they consider to be the company's strengths and weaknesses, as well as pros and cons. You don't have to do this in person; an anonymous survey provides an avenue for audiences to be free with their comments and criticism without identification. Use this information to make things better for them, which in turn, will make things better for your business.

FYI: Sites like SurveyMonkey run surveys for FREE.

Social media. The State of Small Business Report revealed 20 percent of small businesses don't use social media at all, which is rather shortsighted considering these outlets provide a very low-cost means of talking and listening to your key audiences. All you have to do is look at their demographics and focus your efforts on the social media platforms they use.

Then be sociable. Ask and respond to questions. Give shout-outs for good work. Share good customer service stories. Provide honest answers. Remember, you're going for mutually-beneficial relationships.

Speeches and presentations. Speeches and presentations are another great low-cost PR tactic that helps build relationships and business. CrestCore Realty, a Memphis, Tennessee-based small business specializing in real estate and property management, provides outreach to clients by holding a monthly “Lunch and Learn” series. Free of charge, the events feature current real estate topics with helpful tips and practices.

“The reason we do this is because we are looking to develop trusted partnerships,” says Douglas Skipworth, principal broker with the firm. “We believe the best way to do that is by helping, not selling.”

Speeches and presentations put a face on your business, and unlike online or print messages, they create a very personal connection with an audience. However, they're not for everyone. Many people are more afraid of public speaking than they are of death itself. If the thought of getting in front of a live crowd makes you anxious, you can still get the benefit of this PR tactic by doing things like offering helpful Webinars or podcasts for your audience. Upload those materials to your website and promote them via your social media accounts.

Mona Corwin of Balanced Mom Life is a great live speaker and has conducted many presentations for various women's groups; nonetheless, she loves the convenience, reach and personal touch of using a live-streaming app.

“It brings me face-to-face with the women I need to reach,” says Corwin. “I simply sit down at my kitchen table, turn on the webcam, and share. The live-streaming lets my audience get to know me in a very personal way, and thanks to the feedback features, I get to learn more about them and how I can better serve them.”

Work with news media and bloggers. Don't forget that media can help you reach and influence your key audiences, so it's important to build good relationships with them. Media can include newspapers, television news shows, talk radio, magazines, blogs, and other communication outlets.

“Media attention can really help a small business,” says Nichols. “When media talk positively about your business, you benefit from third-party endorsement–a confirmation from an objective source that you're significant and credible. One news story can be more valuable than a full-page ad in your Sunday paper.”

Media engagement is a good way to get your company message disseminated–just make sure your messages are newsworthy and relevant to the outlet's audience. Don't talk about your products or services; that's considered advertising, and media shun that. (They'll also tell you to buy an ad.) Focus on things that others would be interested in. Just because you think something is interesting doesn't necessarily mean others will feel the same.

Share human interest stories that put a face on your business, give your business's perspective on a current event, or do outreach in your community and talk about how you're helping meet a need.

How do you start working with media? Pick up the phone and introduce yourself to the local reporters who cover news related to your business. For example, if you are a small bank, you will want to contact local financial reporters. Ask them what types of stories they are interested in covering. Doing so will make them appreciative when you send something in, either by news release or phone, that will actually make their jobs easier.

You should also reach out to bloggers who cover topics related to your business. Read their blogs first and then send them emails telling them you like their work. Cite specific stories you enjoyed.

You can get media exposure by establishing yourself as an industry expert. Don't sell yourself short; you really are an expert, thanks to your business. Keep up-to-date on breaking news, trends, and business stories, and when applicable, offer your industry expertise to reporters and bloggers in hopes of being used as a source.

Conclusion

By following a few of the best practices in public relations, you can help your business develop and maintain the relationships it needs for success. Many PR tactics can generate the same results as marketing can, and they can do it with little or no impact on your already stretched budget.

Here's how to get started today:

Commit to changing your focus. Public relations is all about mutually-beneficial relationships between your organization and its key audiences, and you can't build those relationships by thinking selfishly or focusing only on sales. It's time to stop thinking about what your organization wants and start thinking about your audiences' needs, then get to work meeting those needs. Once you meet those needs, the relationships grow, trust takes root, and your organization gains community goodwill and financial rewards.

Do your research first. You have to know where you stand AND what your people need and want. Take a look at what your competitors are doing to see what's working for them and what's falling flat; you can do this by following their social media accounts and checking out customer feedback sites. Don't forget to survey your key audiences such as employees and potential customers.

Talk to PR people. PR professionals are a friendly bunch and willing to share advice when they can; however, please respect their time and don't overwhelm with questions or requests for pro bono help. (They have to make a living, too.) The Public Relations Society of America and the International Association of Business Communicators have local chapters across the country and often offer low-cost “Lunch and Learn” programs on a variety of PR topics. Sign up to attend as a guest; these events are a great for networking and for learning how-tos from the pros.

Go online. There are several great FREE online resources that offer helpful PR tips for small businesses. My favorites include: