3 Clever Marketing Strategies to Promote Your Business

[C. Dianne Zweig Editor's Desk]

3 Clever Marketing Strategies to Promote Your Business

Marketing plans can be tedious, costly, and overwhelming for any small business owner — and, let’s face it, incredibly boring. When was the last time you woke up and said, “I can’t wait to start my day by writing a 10-page marketing plan!”?

Never!

But as business owners — whether we are new or seasoned professionals — we do wake up and ask ourselves questions like:

• How can I get more customers?
• How can I make more money next year?
• What do my customers really want?
• When can I quit my day job to focus on my shop 100%?

All of these questions are good starting points for marketing strategies, but with so much on our plates, it’s hard to determine what we should and shouldn’t spend our time on. These tips will help you realize where to focus your energy so you see tangible results in the shortest amount of time possible.

Step 1: Be a Unicorn

Magic is defined as unforeseen generosity that feels delightful (Tweet that!) Etsy is a place ripe for magic.

Etsy inherently symbolizes uniqueness, discovery, connection, and expression of one’s personal style and taste. It’s not about what we as consumers need, but what we deeply desire. You need to be unique and compelling to be noticed. You need to be a unicorn. But how can you do that?

Play around with bold, custom work.

You don’t always know what customers are going to go crazy for until you show them something new and gauge their reaction. Consider Seth Godin’s 600-plus page book that weighs about the same as a small toddler, or Epic Meal Time, a cooking show dedicated to all things bacon. Both are highly impractical by traditional standards but have fanatical followings. Play around with bold prints, bright colors, product weight/size/texture, niche focus, and design. Think of creating art as much as functionality and be brave enough to see what the world thinks.

Are you thinking about creating custom items? Read Top Tips for Managing Custom Orders.

Develop a unique personality for your shop.

Read more:http://www.etsy.com/blog/en/2013/marketingstrategies/