Marketing expert shares ideas to attract customers to your business
The team addressed a virtual gathering of over 100 entrepreneurs, who had Zoomed in from around the country for advice on taking their businesses to the next level during the pandemic.
Finding ways to attract customers to one’s business was the subject under discussion for the popular weekly Entrepreneurs Workshop hosted virtually by Hirsch’s Executive Director, Margaret Hirsch and top Business Coach Marlene Powell recently.
The two hosts were joined by Marketing and Communications specialist, Dimakatso Moloantoa, the owner of Amari Marketing. The team addressed a virtual gathering of over 100 entrepreneurs, who had Zoomed in from around the country for advice on taking their businesses to the next level during the pandemic.
Dimakatso, who formed her communications and marketing company to focus on being a marketing partner to businesses in their pursuit for entrepreneurial success, explained that the first area of marketing that entrepreneurs should look at right now was social media. “Be consistent. Post three times a week. Put some inspiration out there and make people laugh!” she said.
She explained that the different social media platforms targeted different age and gender groups, with Twitter being more popular with millennials and men; Instagram (a visual platform) targeting a wider range of age groups – but mostly women; Facebook targeting a broader age group; and LinkedIn, specifically businesses. She also said that company websites were particularly important as they showcase the business, adding that a regular market research strategy was vital.
“You need to find out where your target audience is looking. You need to have the right processes in place and make sure your branding is on point as it is vital for what you are selling,” she suggested.
Marlene, who last year won the ActionMAN award (Africa) from ActionCOACH Global, and an award from ActionCOACH SA for having the most testimonials, said there was no reason for businesses to fail if one keeps up the conversation with customers. “How many people have you spoken to? Who knows that you’re out there? What are you trying to achieve? You have to start with that end in mind. Keep your database up to date – it’s the biggest asset in your business.
Your marketing needs to be strategic all the time and people need to know that you care about them. What you put out there is what you will receive. Focus on one product offering. It must not all be about money,” she said.
Margaret, who has won many business awards in entrepreneurship and last year did her thesis on entrepreneurship for her MBA, said that the world has become a global window and businesses need to stay ahead of the pack all the time when it comes to marketing their brand. She also commented on the number of participants in the group who could do business together (several were from the wedding industry) and the importance of having two streams of income. “Think about taking on a side hustle that will train you (selling Honey jewellery for instance). You will have that knowledge with you forever,” she concluded.
