We’ve put together this list of some essentials needed for marketing a company, so whether you’re a company owner, self-employed, starting a new marketing position, or thinking about creating your own business, here’s a round up of what you’ll need to begin marketing in 2018.
1. Logo / Branding / Company Identity
To thrive and be recognisable, a company needs a logo.
A company logo gives customers a small glimpse into what your business is and does, it also provides a visual aid for people to recognise. You want people to see your logo and immediately think of your company and the services/products it provides.
2. Media Kit / Marketing Materials
After you’ve got a good quality logo which oozes your company’s brand, you’ll be able to look at some marketing materials to make best use of your brand identity. Some of the most popular products you’ll need to get designed and printed for your media kit include: business cards, letterhead, posters, flyer, brochures, and presentation folders.
Each of these marketing materials should tell your customers about your products and services. The printed products are an extension of the style and quality of the company. When designing the media kit, creating some brand guidelines will make sure there is a standard specification for all future promotional materials. For example: branding guidelines should include, use and size of the logo, colours, fonts, style, and even printed paper quality. A company with a clean and consistent identity and style will leave customers with confidence in the brand and thus, the company itself.
A media kit and it’s marketing materials are a crucial part of the company because, in many ways, they are the first thing a person will see when introduced to a new company. Images and style are the most memorable part of a companies’ marketing. Take a moment to decide what marketing materials you’ll require, what you already have, and if any of your designs need to be refreshed to properly support your marketing campaigns. Do all of this and you’ll be setting your company up to be trusted, memorable, and recognisable.
3. Website
A one-page website of your company is the bare minimum required for marketing success in 2018.
Your website should provide a clear overview of what the company does, the story behind the company and highlight the benefits of utilising your company over competitors .
With a polished website, customers and anyone at your company can easily understand what the company is about by doing a quick Google search. Your website serves as an online tool to briefly and strongly articulate what your company does. Make sure your website is up to date, thorough (includes who you are, what you do, where you work, when you started and why people should care about the company), and marketed accordingly (see below, number 5).
4. Social Media
A company without an updated and active social media presence is going to struggle in today’s technological era. Is your business on all major internet platforms, like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram? Even Snapchat? Is your website up to date and user-friendly? If you’re unsure, have a friend of yours (or someone completely unaware of your company’s branding) navigate your website and pages. Their outside eye will allow you to see if your company’s technical presence is as dynamic, visually pleasing, and easy to use as possible. On the flip side, if your company is not posting content regularly, having a social media presence would be less effective. Figure out if social media pages are the best fit for your company before signing up or disable accounts that are not being used.
5. Digital Marketing / Online Advertising
Stake your claim online: you business should be listed on the world’s biggest search engine, Google.
To get onto Google, the easiest and quickest way is to claim your company on “Google My Business”.
I bet you’ve used Google to search for something recently? It’s a no brainier for your business to included on everyone’s favourite search tool. When potential customers are looking for a service company, most people will do a quick google search to see the options that are best for them, either that they are local, or to find out more about the services required.
Google is only too happy to provide the results.
Also, have you ever noticed a lot of the search results include star ratings and additional information about the business? Also, ever notice when you search on Google Maps that same business info is shown there too?
That is “Google My Business” doing it’s job for those businesses.
It’s very simple to get your business on Google My Business, by simply claiming your business. You need to tell Google about your business, your branding/logo, it’s location, it’s products and services, contact information, and opening hours.
Claiming a Google My Business listing is the essential first step for marketing your company and it’s online presence today.
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