What's Working in Small Business Marketing? 3 Lessons from 32 Businesses

Mar 3

2 min read

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I asked small businesses what’s working in their marketing and what they’ll be prioritising this year.

32 small business owners responded.

Here are 3 insights I took away.

1. People Work With People

For me, the message that came through loud and clear is that human connection is still the most important element when it comes to marketing, especially for small businesses.

In-person networking plays a vital role in the marketing strategies of many businesses. Nurturing those relationships has never been more important and a lot of us are using online spaces to do that.

The biggest surprise of the survey for me was that people looked for shared values and likability ahead of a strong portfolio and reviews.

This stands as proof that the messaging you’re putting out to build the human element of your business is vitally important.

It’s also worth considering that this is the biggest downfall for AI- it will never have your human experience of the world that shaped you. It’ll never share your stories and your values.

Whilst it can be an amazing tool for content creation, make sure it’s helping to put your voice and your experience into the world.

2. We Know Consistency is Key… but Delivering It Is Hard

Another surprise was how strongly the theme of staying consistent in marketing came through as a struggle for small businesses.

Many respondents reported that this was one of their biggest challenges both in marketing and specifically in creating written content. Clearly we are problem aware, but struggle to follow through.

When you’re spinning so many plates, it can be really difficult to keep showing up, and believing in the impact it’s making!

3. Marketing Is Hard.

A lot of us are committing huge amounts of time, energy and mental space to our marketing but still, almost everyone is still looking for clients.

Almost half of respondents said they were spending half a day or more on their marketing each week. This is a massive investment in time.

So if they are putting in the hours, why are businesses still searching so hard for clients?

Maybe it’s simply a consequence of the feast and famine cycle- we rely on consistent marketing to bring in consistent clients. Maybe people are looking to grow their businesses and are therefore looking to expand their reach.

Perhaps it comes back to that idea of staying consistent. Being clear on your strategy and your messaging can help with this, but it’s something which takes time and knowledge to perfect.

But let’s not forget that it’s also just bloomin’ hard work!

Effective marketing takes time and expertise and, honestly, a lot of perseverance, tenacity and resilience. It can be easy to get lost in the weeds, but perhaps, above all, these results show us that we’re not alone!