Twice in the last week, I have had to change habits and it was so hard. First, I moved the dock on my desktop (I’m a mac user) from the bottom to the left because I kept accidentally opening programs. Do you know how many times I have gone to the bottom first? Then, we put a door from our kitchen to our new screened-in porch yet instinctively, I keep walking around to the outside the way we did before the door. Then, frustratingly, I hear Homer Simpson’s voice saying “doh” in my head. Translate this to your business and think about consumers who recently moved and are also frustrated because everything is changing in their shopping habits. Whether they are moving across town or from another town, these consumers are forced to create new habits and are a super ripe target market. Most of the time, when people move, they are upsizing their homes. This also creates new needs and wants. Here are a few tips to get your week started so you can work on gaining some marketing momentum on a small budget.
1. Create some type of promotional piece to mail to people who have recently moved. This could be something you create in small quantities and hand-embellish, it could be a surprise in a small box or a mailing piece that spins and engages with them. No matter what you create, make sure it is creative and makes consumers stop and say “now that is cool!”
2. Find a great list to mail to. Check with your local list broker to find out what names are available to rent. You could work with local relators to acquire these names. Include a gift certificate (not a discount) to the realtor to give to their clients as a thank you. You could even collect these addresses by driving by homes in the neighborhood.
3. Write a personal note with each piece you mail. This positions you as a friend and will enable you to start to build a relationship with these consumers who are probably floundering because they no longer have their favorite dry cleaner right down the street.
When it comes to small business marketing, it is all of the little things you do. Make sure you subscribe to this Photography Business Institute blog to find out little things every day that can help your business!