Time and time again, when business owners think about marketing, they often compare their business/brand to bigger, well-known brands and unfortunately make excuses about why they aren’t investing in developing their brand because “we don’t have big marketing budgets”.

Truth is the value and the fundamentals of marketing are the same for small businesses as they are for big ones. Therefore, you may not have the marketing budget of a major beer or telecommunications company but you should you still want your brand to be at the top of your target audience’s mind.

If your brand is a start-up or if you have a small or medium sized business, here are two things you can learn from the ‘big boys’:
Great storytelling – We are naturally intrigued by stories and storytelling is a powerful marketing tool. Engaging in storytelling isn’t dependent on budget or your business size, all you need is to do engage people using engaging ad copy.

Think about a memorable advert– what made you remember it? You can tell a compelling, easy to follow story about your business whilst eliciting an emotional response. With some imagination, great stories can be told.

Create a hook and focus on the ‘little things’ – What are the little things that make a difference to you as a customer? Those same things matter to your customers also e.g., if you’re a restaurant or you provide a service that requires monthly bill payment, the fact that your customers are able to get in and out of your establishment quickly or even pay online, goes a long way. It may seem like a small thing but efficiency and speed add to the experience.

If you are doing a giveaway, it doesn’t have to be big to make a difference – it should be worthwhile but it doesn’t have to be huge; take a page from the big chocolate brands, something as simple as saying their chocolate will melt in your mouth and not in your hand makes a difference.

Think about it, what small guarantee can you offer your audience? What could make a difference in how consumers feel about your brand? You may find that as you think about this, you realize you are offering something unique that’s not being marketed.

Candice Sealey is the Founder & Principal Consultant at Ignite! a Full-service Marketing & PR Consultancy that helps businesses/brands to stand out and communicate the right message to the right people at the right time through Strategy, Marketing, Media services and Design solutions. She is also a freelance content writer, advertising copywriter, voiceover talent, media personality. Follow us on FB & IG @igniteresults Phone:784-432-2223. Email: igniteresults@gmail.com