"Ideas are easy. Implementation is hard" – Ron Conway, SV Angel.

It takes a lot of courage to start your own business, brand, or company. Days of shire hard work and dedication finally leads you to build up your dream company. But your work doesn't end here. You might have the most amazing products and ideas, but without a website or a proper marketing strategy, people won't know about it. This will be essential during and after Covid-19.

MAKE YOUR WEBSITE NOW TO BOOST YOUR SALES.

Make a website or online store for your brand. It will show people your products and offers. There are many do-it-yourself products to build your online presence if you are less on a budget. 

Budo and Ninjin are such products by Shimbi Labs to build your website/online store. They are user-friendly and cost-effective!

But launching an online store or website is one thing, and growing business are two different things.

PROMOTE YOURSELF

Promoting and marketing yourself is a very crucial element in building up your business. Now you might not have the funding to promote yourself using Outbound Marketing strategies like TV, radio, newspaper advertising, advertisements via hoardings, and telemarketing. These are expensive strategies.

Whereas Inbound Digital Marketing is inexpensive compare to Outbound Marketing, and it can cuts the cost substantially. Inbound marketing means "content within the context." Start creating awareness about your products and services. Educate them through your relevant content. When the customers understand you and the brand, they are more likely to buy your products.

Tom Fishburne, "the best marketing doesn't feel like marketing."

Make meaningful and informative blogs, e-books, infographics, videos, and posters to promote yourself! These should add value to the reader's life.

USE SOCIAL MEDIA TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

Social media platforms are a way to reach millions of people worldwide with a click. Use this to your advantage and create an account of your brand there. Many renowned national and international brands have their Instagram account for promotion.

You can also create one with a few taps. Some popular platforms for this purpose are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube.

As they say content is fire, social media is gasoline.

There are certain simple ways in which you can create brand loyalty and a 'small community' or 'tribe' for yourself:

• Giveaway strategy – Everyone loves free products! Giveaway of product is a very efficient way of increasing your followers and customers. It also helps in branding. But you have to do it smartly. You can do a giveaway of items like watches, clothes, makeup, etc.
  
  You can announce that people can win products only if they follow your social media handles and tag their friends on your account. This creates awareness.
   
• Contests and Challenges – Announcing exciting contests with your products as a prize attracts a lot of people to participate in it. Easy tasks like making and sharing videos and photos of something can be given. As more and more people take part in them, you get more publicity.
  
  Many brands have resorted to this technique during this lockdown. Various contests and challenges have been made, such as drawing, painting, video making challenges.
  
  This will keep the community engaged.
   
• Social media influencers - There are several social media influencers nowadays. All you have to do is contact the perfect ones which will help you. For example, if your brand is about makeup and lifestyle, you should contact a makeup influencer.
  
  Influencers charge a small sum of money, but it is way less than what celebrities do, so it's economical yet efficient.
   
• YouTube advertisements – YouTube is a leading video distribution platform. You can make advertisements and pay YouTube so that they play your advertisements before or after their videos.
  
  On YouTube, you can collaborate with various people who have a big fan following. You can also sponsor their videos. These YouTube celebrities will promote your brand in their video's.

A trick on social media is always to stay active. Post frequently about your products and offers. Reply to the queries of your customers. Keep them engaged. You'll be forgotten quickly without continuous engagement.

Keep analyzing your strategies. See how many people have reposted your posts; you received positive comments., liked your pictures and shared your post. It will give you an idea about your progress.

NEWSLETTERS AND THEIR IMPORTANCE

Many of you might think that newsletters go to the spam folder and are not useful. But you are highly mistaken here. Engaging newsletters catch the attention of people. They read them and click on links in them. They might even buy your products!

The trick is sending relevant and timely information, regularly but not overdoing it to be classified as a SPAM.

SEND MESSAGES TO YOU CUSTOMERS

Send messages to the customers who have previously purchased products from you. It helps in building a relationship with them. It also increases brand loyalty.

During festivals, you can share a small message with everyone too!

Marketing and promoting yourself helps you boost your sales. When anybody wants to buy something, they first RESEARCH, COMPARE, DECIDE, and BUY.

Marketing yourself makes them choose your products above others. As they trust you more, they will pick you among other similar products in the market.

Make your own website/store, promote, grow your business to build your dream company!