Are you starting a small business in your area? Building brand awareness is a step you must take if you want to establish a strong presence in your community.
Once you’ve found your audience, you must effectively promote your products and services. This is so you can attract customers, drive your business sales, and create a long-term relationship with them.
In this article, we will discuss practical strategies and actionable tips on creating brand awareness for your small business locally.
What is Brand Awareness?
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when considering McDonald’s? Is it its logo, food, or its red and yellow color? Whatever popped into your mind shows how well-familiar you are with this famous fast food chain – that is brand awareness.
Brand awareness is how you make people familiar with your brand. It’s about how well consumers recognize and remember a brand when they see its name, logo, or products.
When people have high brand awareness, they quickly remember and can differentiate that brand from others.
Having solid brand awareness can be an essential part of your business. The more people know you, the more likely they will choose your products over your competitors.
There are two types of brand awareness:
1. Recognition Awareness
This is when consumers can identify a brand when they see it. For example, if you see the Starbucks mermaid logo with stars, you immediately recognize it as Starbucks. This type of awareness is essential for capturing attention and creating familiarity.
2. Recall Awareness
This is when consumers can remember a brand from memory. For example, if someone asks you to name a fast-food restaurant, you might recall Mcdonald’s, Taco Bell, or even Wendy’s without seeing any visual cues. This type of awareness is important for being considered an option when consumers are purchasing.
Why is Brand Awareness Important for Your Small Business?
1. A Chance to Stand Out from Competitors
In a crowded marketplace, brand awareness allows your small business to be an advantage.
Later, we will teach you how to create a unique identity and establish a memorable presence. Your customers can differentiate your brand from others offering similar products or services.
When customers are aware of your brand, they are more likely to consider it when purchasing.
2. Building Trust and Credibility
Brand Awareness can build long-term relationships with you and your customers.
When your brand is well-known and familiar, it instills a positive reputation and credibility among potential customers – especially once they’ve tried your products. You can increase the likelihood of repeat business and positive recommendations.
7 Ways to Create Brand Awareness for Your Small Business Locally
Creating brand awareness is essential to thrive and attract customers in your local community. We will explore seven powerful ways to build local brand awareness for your small business.
1. Social Media Marketing
If you haven’t created a business account on popular social media platforms, now’s the time to create one. As we evolve in the digital age, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and even LinkedIn are most helpful in promoting brand awareness.
For example, if you own a bakery, post pictures of your delicious cakes and pastries on Instagram. Through these platforms, you can interact with your followers.
There are a few smart ways to interact with the locals in your area, for example:
- Respond to comments and messages.
Take the time to respond to comments, messages, and inquiries promptly. Engaging with your audience shows you pay attention to their needs and queries.
- Ask questions and encourage conversations.
Pose questions or prompts in your social media posts to encourage your followers to share their thoughts and opinions.
- Share user-generated content
Look for posts or content that mention or feature your business. Repost or share this user-generated content, and don’t forget to credit it to the original creator. This not only shows appreciation but also encourages others to share their experiences.
2. Content Marketing
Write blog posts, make videos, or create infographics that provide helpful information related to your industry.
If you have a fitness studio, you can create and share workout videos on YouTube. This helps people see your expertise and builds trust in your brand.
There are other ways that content marketing can help you, like:
- Search engine visibility
When people search for information related to your industry or local area, your content has a better chance of appearing in search results. This increases your brand’s visibility and drives organic traffic to your website or social media profiles.
- Repurposing content
Content marketing allows you to repurpose your content across different platforms and formats. For example, you can turn a blog post into an infographic, create a video based on a popular blog topic, or share snippets of your content on social media.
- Email marketing
By offering valuable content through newsletters or exclusive content updates, you can keep your brand in front of your subscribers and continuously be aware of your brand.
3. Influencer Partnerships
Find popular social media users or bloggers with a similar target audience to your business—partner with them to promote your products or services.
For instance, if you have a sustainable clothing brand, collaborate with an eco-friendly lifestyle influencer who can feature your brand in their posts or videos.
There are a few reasons why you should consider collaborating with these people, namely because:
- They already have built a loyal and engaged following that aligns with your target audience.
- Because of the very first reason, their followers trust their opinions and recommendations. This means their viewers are more likely to trust and consider your brand.
- Influencer partnerships often involve collaborations beyond a single post or campaign. You can host joint giveaways, create co-branded content, or feature each other on social media to expand your reach and tap into your audience continuously.
4. Local Community Involvement
Participate in local events, sponsor community initiatives, or collaborate with other small businesses in your area.
For example, if you are running a coffee shop, you can sponsor a charity run and offer freebies to participants. Not only does this gain exposure, but it shows that you care about your community.
Aside from that, they might ask you how you make your coffee or if you have other products to sell. It allows you to interact directly with the residents of your community, who may also refer your services to the people they know. It leads to valuable word-of-mouth marketing.
Community involvement often catches the attention of local media outlets. This involves newspapers, radio stations, or online publications. By actively participating in community events, you have a higher chance of gaining media coverage and boosting brand awareness in your area.
Remember, community involvement should be genuine and aligned with your brand values. By actively demonstrating your commitment to the community, you can foster stronger connections for your business.
5. Referral Programs
Ask your existing customers to recommend your business to their friends and family. Offer incentives like discounts or freebies for the referrer and the new customer.
If you are starting a beauty salon, discount services to customers who refer others to your salon.
When customers have a positive experience with your business, they are more likely to share it with others, which makes them aware of your brand.
One way to create referrals is through personal networks or social circles. By implementing a referral program, you tap into the social connections of your existing customers. Then, their friends and family may influence each other’s purchasing decisions.
Moreover, referral programs allow you to track and measure the success of your efforts. You can monitor the number of referrals, identify the most effective referral sources, and measure the impact on your brand awareness.
This data provides valuable insights to inform future marketing strategies and optimize your referral program.
6. Offline Marketing Tactics
Offline marketing tactics refer to traditional marketing methods that don’t rely on digital platforms. These tactics can effectively increase brand awareness for your small local business.
Here are some offline marketing tactics:
- Newspapers, magazines, local directories, or relevant publications
- Flyers and Brochures can be placed in high-traffic areas such as shopping centers, community bulletin boards, or door-to-door mailers.
- Send personalized letters, postcards, or catalogs to targeted households within your local area.
By targeting the local community through traditional channels, you can effectively reach potential customers who may need to be more actively engaged on digital platforms.
7. SEO
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It’s a set of techniques that help your potential customers search for products or services easily.
By using local SEO tactics, you can optimize your website so that it shows up higher in search results where more people are likely to see and click on it, increasing brand awareness.
You can start by optimizing your website for keywords related to your location and making sure your business information, such as:
- Your business name
- Business address
- Business phone number
SEO is a long-term strategy. Once you optimize your website and content, it continues to attract visitors and potential customers without adding to your advertising costs.
Create Brand Awareness for Your Small Business With Freedom Media Group
If you want to know more about creating brand awareness for your small business locally, Freedom Media Group leverages expertise in social media marketing, content creation, and SEO strategies. Your small business can navigate the ever-changing digital landscape and maximize your efforts.
With Freedom Media Group as a trusted partner, your small business can confidently navigate the realm of brand awareness and establish a strong foothold in your local community.