Offline Marketing: Does it Still Work in 2019?

Online marketing provides businesses with some of the most powerful marketing techniques the world has ever known. We have a much better understanding of the psychology that underpins the marketing techniques that have been utilized for decades. This has enabled businesses to finely target their advertising to specific groups of people, and in the digital world, this can be done to an even finer degree.

In this modern landscape, many businesses are losing sight of the value of traditional marketing methods. While online marketing can be game-changing for some businesses, offline marketing still definitely has its place in 2019. Let’s takes a look at some of the offline marketing methods that remain effective and useful in 2019.

Direct Mail

Whether it’s a letter, a brochure, a catalogue or anything else to promote your business, direct mail enables you to put a physical piece of marketing in the hands of a potential customer. Direct mail campaigns can be targeted in a similar way to online social media campaigns, you just need to get creative in the ways that you compile your contacts list. Many people think of direct mail as being hopelessly outdated, but there is no other way of sending something physical and tangible to your customers.

Of course, in order for your direct mail campaign to be effective, you will need to be sending something worthwhile. The term ‘worthwhile’ can mean a number of different things but includes anything that encourages the recipient to spend money with your business, or at least to check it out.

Referrals

Referrals have existed in one form or another since long before the internet and continue to be used today. In the online setting, referrals are done via the use of referral codes or links. When users sign up to a service, they are given a link or code to give to others when they register for the service. When a user registers using a referral code or link, the user who referred them receives a reward.

You can replicate this in the offline world in a number of ways. For example, you can partner up with another local business so that any customer who comes to one of your businesses with a receipt from the other are entitled to a small discount or similar offer. Referrals are fantastic for businesses who have a considerable overlap in their customer bases.

Loyalty Programs

Instituting a loyalty program is a pretty much guaranteed way of improving the number of customers who make repeat visits to your business. Consumers greatly prefer shopping with stores who are able to offer them something in return. Rewarding your customers just for shopping with your business will have them coming back to you time and time again - it’s an easy way of getting one over on your competitors.

There’s an endless variety of forms that a loyalty program can take. In some cases, they will enable shoppers to earn a percentage of whatever they spend back as store credit; in others, they will enter customers into competitions or allow them to collect points until they have accumulated enough for a free giveaway.

Guerilla Marketing

The most effective marketing techniques are often those that don’t look like marketing materials at all. Guerilla marketing refers to these kind of marketing methods. Guerilla marketing can be something as simple and straightforward as putting a branded sticker with your business name and logo on it. Don’t underestimate the power of repeated exposure.

It’s not just stationery that you can personalize with your business name and logo either, you can also have your business’s name and logo printed on other type of apparel. For example, you can see more about the advantages of printing your business logo onto a t-shirt by clicking the link. Anything you can do to get your business name and logo in front of more people is useful from a marketing perspective.

Trade Shows

Networking is an essential part of the life of any entrepreneur. It is through networking that you will meet new contacts and connections who can be of use to your business. You never know when you might need to call upon the skills or knowledge of someone else in order to save your business. But it isn’t always easy finding opportunities to meet new people.

Trade shows are a perfect opportunity to meet people who work in an area relevant to your business and who you would otherwise probably not cross paths with. This isn’t just potentially going to help you in the future; every interaction you have in your role and business owner/manager is a reflection on you and an opportunity to demonstrate how much your business means to you. Always show others that you take your business seriously and they still start to as well.

Endorsements

It isn’t easy to land a celebrity endorsement, but if you are able to do so, then it can provide a noticeable bump to your sales. The easiest way of getting an endorsement is to send a sample of your product to a respected reviewer in exchange for their endorsement or opinion. If you are able to snag a celebrity, that’s great! But you don’t need a Hollywood A-lister for an endorsement to be worthwhile and effective.

When you do receive an endorsement, make sure that you put it at the front and center of any subsequent marketing campaigns that you run. If you have a good product or service and are able to easily demonstrate its value, you should find it relatively easy to obtain endorsements.

Even in 2019, with all the benefits that digital marketing has brought us, there is still plenty of room for offline marketing techniques. When they are used correctly, these techniques can be every bit as effective as the more advanced digital techniques we have come to collectively embrace in recent times. Think carefully about which type of marketing is best for your business and don’t be afraid to go for the more traditional option.

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