Getting media attention is just one piece of the promotional puzzle. While press coverage remains valuable, smart entrepreneurs know that business promotion needs a range of strategies to elevate your small business’s visibility, reputation, and customer base.
Business Awards: The Credibility Multiplier
Business awards serve as third-party validation of your excellence. They build instant credibility and provide opportunities to showcase your business to new audiences.
- Industry-specific awards: Look for recognition programmes within your industry or professional body or association
- Local business awards: Chamber of Commerce, city business awards, or ‘Best of’ local publication awards
- Specialised awards: These often have many categories recognising innovation, sustainability, workplace culture, leadership or entrepreneurship.
If you win an award, make sure you add the award logo on your website, email signature and marketing materials. It’s also an opportunity to get press coverage, and often award organisers will also publicise winners. Don’t hold back on your social media about your nominations, short listing and wins!
Use the recognition to approach potential clients or partners with enhanced credibility. If you’ve been short-listed, be sure to attend award ceremonies as they are excellent networking opportunities.
Author a book: become the authority
Publishing a book positions you as a thought leader and subject matter expert. For potential customers, the business owner who ‘wrote the book’ on a topic often wins their trust.
What can you write about?
- How-to guide: Share your expertise by explaining how to do what you do!
- Case study collection: Use your successes to create a series of stories demonstrating how specific strategies worked.
- Industry transformation: Discuss how your industry is evolving and position your business as a change leader
- Business memoir: Tell your business story with lessons that will help your readers to enhance their own businesses.
When your book is published, host at least one book signing event, either in a local bookshop or at relevant industry conferences, exhibitions or other events.
Make sure there is a dedicated landing page for the book, and ensure it features on your website.
Offer the book as a premium gift for potential high-value clients.
You can use content excerpts for blogs, social media, and email marketing. With a book under your belt, you may also find podcast hosts and event organisers are interested in you appearing in their broadcast or event – but don’t be shy, ask them.
Stand up and speak
Speaking engagements allow you to demonstrate your expertise, connect personally with potential clients, and build trust with larger audiences than most marketing channels can reach.
There are lots of opportunities, if you look for them. Start small with your local networking groups and then you can approach:
- Industry conferences and trade shows
- Local business organisations: Rotary Clubs, Chamber of Commerce, branches of professional bodies and associations
- Educational institutions: Community colleges, university business programmes
- Virtual events: Webinars, online conferences, and panel discussions
Develop two or three signature presentations and create valuable handouts or digital resources audience members can take away.
Record your presentations (with permission) for content marketing. Some organisers may already be videoing the event and may give you access to your presentation (but you’ll have to follow up to ensure that you get this when it’s been produced).
Request testimonials from event organisers that you can use in your marketing.
The strategic value of giving back
Strategic charity partnerships create goodwill, demonstrate your values, generate positive publicity, and often introduce your business to new networks of potential customers.
- Choose causes aligned with your business values or industry
- Develop structured programmes rather than one-off donations
- Consider skills-based volunteering that showcases your expertise
- Explore co-branded initiatives that benefit both organisations
Most charities have good relations with the press, particularly locally. There can be opportunities for joint press releases if you’re sponsoring an event or your whole team is getting involved in a fundraising project.
If you and/or your employees volunteer for a charity, make sure you feature this in your social media, blogs and newsletters.
Become a community resource
Offer free or low-cost workshops that position your business as a valuable community resource, while subtly demonstrating your expertise to potential customers. These might include:
- Skills training: Teach practical skills related to your industry
- Problem-solving sessions: Help attendees work through common challenges
- Industry updates: Share new developments that impact your customers
- Demonstrations: Show how to use tools or systems in your field
While you’re giving your time at no fee, your registration systems will capture contact information that can build your list and allow you to communicate with a wider audience.
Ensure that attendees get branded materials to take away with them, ideally with value, so they aren’t just filed in the recycling bin!
Offer special incentives for workshop participants who become customers
The power of strategic partnerships
Collaborating with non-competing businesses creates win-win promotional opportunities. There are many businesses that have the same target audience as you do, and lots of opportunities for both businesses to benefit:
- Co-hosted events: Pool resources and audiences for greater impact
- Joint special offers: Create packages combining complementary services
- Shared content: Develop guides, webinars, or tools together
- Cross-promotion: Recommend each other to existing customers, sharing information in each other’s newsletters is a great strategy.
Make sure that your partners share your values and quality standards for authenticity.
Set clear expectations for both parties, with formal agreements covering responsibilities and outcomes. These don’t have to be complicated, but protect both parties.
In a nutshell
While each of these promotional strategies can make a difference, a combined approach is more effective. For example, winning an industry award might lead to speaking opportunities, which could generate content for your book.
Start by selecting one or two approaches that align best with your strengths and business model. Get each one up and running effectively before adding another. Remember that consistency and quality matter more than quantity – being excellent in a few promotional channels will yield better results than being mediocre across many.
When you think beyond traditional press coverage, you’re creating a promotional ecosystem that generates visibility, credibility, a stellar reputation and new business opportunities.
