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Marketing is not magic. It’s not something that you do today and expect to get results at once. It often takes a year or so before you can get return on investment. This is why marketing should be done correctly and consistently so you can attain good results.

These days, marketing is taking up so many forms. There’s online marketing which makes communication so much easier, and there’s the traditional marketing campaign. With more and more people using the Internet these days, it’s only fitting that you make your presence known in the online market. But make sure to strike a balance between online and traditional marketing so you reach out to all possible customers in your business. Making your presence known in all areas will help bring more people your way. But how should you reach out to your target customers? Use these materials to build your presence and get people into your business:

1) Social media and blogging. Everyone has a social media account these days. Why don’t you start there so you can interact with your prospective customers easily? Try to respond to their queries and share information to them so you can generate interest. You can also blog about your business. Put your URL on your website, business card, and other materials so people can visit it. Blogging and social media are easy enough to do so you don’t have to worry if you don’t have enough online experience.

2) Catalogs. A lot of people still ask for catalogs when deciding on what product to purchase. As such, it’s important that you still include catalogs in your marketing plan. Create visually appealing and impressive catalogs that will catch people’s eyes. Put all important details in your catalog templates to make it easy for your customers and prospects to decide on the product they need.

3) Conferences. This is a great avenue to get new contacts. Make sure though that you have the important materials with you when attending conferences which includes your business cards. Interact with other businesses and individuals so you can get new contacts.

4) Business cards. These are important cards that should always be in your pocket. Even if people use the Internet these days, you still have to bring your cards with you. Remember that everyone else with make their cards interesting and eye-appealing. Make yours unique and catchy so people will easily notice it. Even if your meeting has long been over, when the recipient sees your card, he or she will be instantly reminded of you.

5) Postcards. Keeping in touch with customers is an important task. You have to keep them updated with your business or give them special offerings which they can take advantage of when buying from you. Your postcards will be the perfect material to do that. Send your cards on a regular basis so people will be constantly reminded of you and your business.

Remember that marketing is not a really hard touch. It’s all about touching on your customer’s emotions. If you can find the best way to communicate with them, it should be easy to drive them to your store. It doesn’t matter what kind of marketing material you use, whether it blogs, email, or catalog printing. What is important is you are able to convey to them the messages that matter. Hand out interesting and compelling materials and pretty soon you will have a good customer base at your hand.

If you haven’t figured me out by now, I have a passion for sports. I love watching as well as playing. This week I had the opportunity to attend my sons first soccer game of the year. It was an exciting game and they almost won. I have to say the plan was penetration, defense and passing. This was the coach’s strategy and they almost won. The other team was clearly better and it came down to the best out of 5 shots at the end of the game. Both coachess had a strategy and it served them well.

Having a strategy in business is just like having a strategy in soccer. Maybe not the exact components but clearly running a business needs a strategy. What’s your strategy for marketing? Do you have one? Do you need one? I believe you do? So here are my 5 tips for having a market strategy in your business.

The first one is to have some kind of social media strategy. Make it part of your daily routine. Currently I’m on Facebook and Twitter. Linkedin is also a great way to connect with people. I also have a website. It is very important that you are using social media for your marketing. This is a way of reaching a huge market for free! It’s also important to have some kind of objectives around these social media sites describing how often you are going to post. Hopefully you are using social media to drive traffic to your website. Maybe it’s the connection piece that ‘s important to you for these sites, the by all means connect. Maybe email campaigns are important, or blogs and ezines. My point is to connect with real people and talk with them and form a strategy around doing this?

The second one is to have some kind of offline strategy! This is the hardest for me. This is where you stop hiding behind your computer and get out there in a big way. Some things that I am doing is attending networking events like Business Networking International. Networking works, do you belong to some kind of networking group? A week ago I was interviewed on local television station about my business. This is a big way to get known for what you do. Radio is another way and it’s not as scary as television. Another offline strategy I use is participating at Trade Shows. Trade shows are fun and you meet a number of potential clients.

Thirdly, have some kind of strategy into building a relationship with potential clients so you gain their confidence! Remember most people will do business with who they know, like and trust. What does this look like? Give them something for free. On my website which is connected to my blog, I offer a free PDF to read on 5 Tip of balancing life and work for success. So give your prospects something for free. This will give the potential client a way of discerning if you are the right fit for them in a non-threatening way! In the long run this should translate into more clients for you!

My fourth one you can do everyday. Have some kind of strategy that creates awareness! What are you doing to create the buzz about you! This can be done both online and offline. I’ll talk about offline right now. What I’ve been doing is telling everyone I know about my business, and it has been stirring up interest. Some examples for me have been on print, such as giving business cards. Another is giving out flyers of your upcoming events.

Lastly, have some kind of strategy to your warm market. When I introduced my new coaching business. I wrote a warm letter telling my friends and family what I was doing. Have you done this yet? Like in soccer, strategy has one purpose to score enough goals to win. And to do this you must have a strategy in place. The same with business, the goal is to have a successful business with revenue so you can live the life that you always wanted. My favorite commercial is the Nike slogan “Just do it!” So what are you waiting for! JUST DO IT!