6 creative ways to market your business

Businesses are always looking for new and fun ways to market themselves. But a quick google search leads to mostly stale and outdated ideas (like email campaigns). 

That’s why we’ve taken a long hard look at current, real-world ideas you can try to bring attention to your business. We can’t guarantee success, but we can say you probably haven’t tried these six methods.

They are:

• Start an online mini-series
• Host a customer contest
• Collaborate with an influencer
• Run a unique campaign
• Work with the local community
• Start a trend or hashtag

When something gets repeated over and over again, it starts to lose effectiveness. How many times have you received a flyer through your door, only for it to ‘fly’ straight into the bin?

Instead of pouring your time and effort into a method that’ll get ignored by 98.7% of people, take a new approach. 

Doing something completely different is a great way to attract attention, and attention causes discussion. The more people discuss, the faster word of your business will spread. 

So if you want people to talk about your business, read on. 

Marketing your business in new, fun and creative ways allows you to reach a wider audience and help your business grow. Here are some of our top choices.

One interesting way to build your following is to start an online mini-series. Hit Amazon TV show The Boys recently did this by creating an in-universe news parody show called ‘Seven on 7’. 

Not only was this a fun way to keep interested audiences engaged, it also spread to new viewers ahead of its season three premiere. 

Think about the type of video content you could create for your small business. There are a range of formats and platforms you can use to create a web series, including YouTube, TikTok, or even Instagram. 

People love to feel appreciated, and the same goes for your customers. But how can you make them feel like you care? Host a contest. 

You could run a ‘pub quiz’ style contest, where the winner gets a discount on their next order. Alternatively, you could host an in-person contest where competitors have to complete various challenges. 

Make the contest fun and interesting. The specifics are completely up to you. What’s important is that you make your customers feel involved in your business. 

Getting involved with an influencer is a great way to increase your reach — if the influencer is in the right niche. 

Some businesses make the mistake of paying through the nose for an influencer, just because they’ve got a certain amount of followers. You’re better off looking at nano (1k-10k followers) or micro (10k-50k followers) influencers that closely align with your target audience.

Nano and micro influencers are able to interact more often with their followers, which means those followers are more likely to take their advice. 

But just paying an influencer for a few posts has been done before, so where’s the twist?

Create a campaign with them. Whether it’s involving them in a campaign you’re already planning, or you’re starting a fresh idea from scratch. 

For example, a new indie game studio could ask small influencers to get involved in their game-making process. In return, the influencer could be digitally immortalised inside the game. 

Do something different. Everyone is used to businesses all doing the same type of stunts, which is why when something new happens, everyone notices. 

Do that ‘something new’. 

Easier said than done, but it’s still possible. 

For example, a mobile food business could arrange an impromptu food-related performance in front of their stall. This could attract significant attention, and would get people talking about your business. 

The unique campaign ideas you come up with don’t have to be closely related to your industry. Your goal should be to improve word-of-mouth interest, at the least you’ll earn extra sales out of curiosity. 

This method is designed for small businesses that operate locally, rather than online. When local businesses support the efforts of the local community, they earn the respect and custom of people in that community. 

So how can working with them be creative marketing?

While what you can offer depends on the type of business you run, people want their community to thrive. Sponsoring local events or fundraisers can get you named and recognised. 

It also helps you build connections with the people around you. For example, your good deeds may be mentioned to important people and help you secure a new client. 

People have power, and by supporting a community, you can use their voices in support of your business. 

It seems like every other week there’s a new trend going viral on social media. Whether it’s a new dance, intro sequence, or something else entirely — people love to join in. 

As a small business, you can try creating a trend or hashtag. If it’s a trend, make it something easy to replicate and don’t worry about looking silly. For a hashtag, make it something really easy to remember and spell correctly. 

It’s worth noting that it can be difficult to get a trend to take off, but the bigger your social media following, the easier it’ll be. If you have several connections you can get to follow suit, it’ll be even more likely to succeed. 

While these methods can prove to be effective, they can also end up being expensive. Before you run them, you need to make sure you have the capital to do so. 

If you don’t have a crystal clear view of your finances, you should give the Countingup app a try. As a two-in-one business current account and accounting software, the app can offer excellent control over your finances. 

Download the Countingup app for free today.