Do You Have The Balance Between Online & Offline Just Right?
When it comes to running a business, you’ll often find that there’s so much for you to be thinking about. And that’s natural. Because businesses are often complex, and when you want to be successful and really make something of your venture, you really do have to wear a lot of hats. Not only are you the business owner, but you’re also the operator and you’ll always start off actually doing the job.
But there’s more. You’re also sales, marketing, customer service, finance, HR, and more. You have to do it all. This can mean that you get a little overwhelmed with everything. Wouldn’t we all? And what do you do when you’re overwhelmed? You take on what you can manage.
While that’s definitely cool, and you should only do what you feel you can manage, you have to pick out those tasks just right. Prioritizing can be tough in business because you’ll often feel like everything is important. Or, you can sometimes pick out what is most important to you, rather than the customer. So if you are being selective about what tasks you want to take on and manage yourself, then you have to try and get the balance just right.
One of the ways that you should always ensure that you balance things, is between the online and offline worlds. When you have an online business, it’s so easy to believe that you have to be entirely online. But let’s take a look at what your balance could look like.
Website
The first part of your online offering always has to be your website. Now, when you think that this is hard to do or expensive, you may be tempted to set up on social media first. But you have to realize that you don’t own social media. So it’s not a great idea to begin your business there. Instead, you need to build yourself a great website, work in some keywords and SEO, and start creating your content on your website as your bread and butter offering.
Business Cards
The first offline asset to consider having is your business cards. Just like your website, this should be your bread and butter. Because if you’re in conversation with someone about your company, having a business card to hand is so important. If you don’t have wifi service, you can direct them online, but you can hand them that card.
Social Media
Then we have social media. And you know that you need this, but if you’re going to make your presence worthwhile, you need to ensure that you, first of all, pick out the most relevant and important platforms to be on, then start to connect and engage with your audience on each of them.
Merchandise
From here, another great offline tool to remember is merchandise. When your business name is on Promo Gallery pens, your car, umbrellas, or even t-shirts, it’s getting known. There’s a reason why big businesses always give out free stuff with their branding on – because it works. So make sure that you get your brand out there with cool merchandise.
Advertising
Then, when it comes to online marketing methods, you need to make sure that you’re advertising. Here, you have display advertising and retargeting, direct email marketing, and even advertising on social media too. If you want to start getting results and more exposure, you have to advertise. Without it, you’re letting an opportunity pass you by.
Events
Another key offline opportunity to make use of is events. Hosting events, inviting your audience along, and interacting with them is so important for business development. And it really doesn’t have to just be for B2B businesses either.
If you have a business that targets consumers, you can host local events or a series of meetups, throw parties, and connect deeper with your audience this way too. Because it’s good to be able to make that lasting impression with your customers, and people always like to put a name to a face!
Influencer Collaborations
Last but not least, something that is considered to be a predominantly online marketing method, but can also be taken offline too, is collaborating with influencers. When it comes to influencer collaborations, you’re really able to reach a segment of your target market that is highly engaged and influenced by the person that you’re working with.
As long as you pick out influencers that do have that great connection with their audience, you should find that this is something that can be highly beneficial for your business.
Collaborative post
