Get Early Feedback Through Product Testing
When you have a great idea that will meet your customers needs, you should find a quick way to test it and receive feedback from your target audience. Don’t design your product in a vacuum. You can use various methods to test the response of your potential clients through online surveys, social media contests, and by consulting with experts in your field. This will help you to appreciate potential demand and give you an idea of the features that will attract higher patronage.
Give Out Free Samples or Trial Versions
Giving out free product samples will make the recipients spread the word about your company. This is because personal recommendation and user reviews are very powerful marketing tools. You may also give away some samples to well known product reviewers in your industry. Thus, you will boost the credibility of your brand and compete well with other established brands. The trust your company acquires will also help to engender customer loyalty.
Use Cloud Based Services
In addition to file storage, accessibility and security, cloud-based software services can provide tools that enhance communication, mobility and productivity. You can use these services to manage your relationship with your customers and set up marketing campaigns for email, text messaging, and multimedia messaging platforms. A very good example of this kind of cloud-based tool is LockedOn, a unique application designed to enable real estate start-ups and established firms to easily acquire, retain, and serve their clients efficiently.
Hire Growth Hackers
At the start-up stage, you need to grow your market share rapidly on a very low marketing budget. While corporations with well established brands may be content with 5 percent growth per annum, start-ups must strive to grow by 20 percent or more annually. That is why it is important to focus all your marketing efforts on quick and massive market growth. Growth hackers will help you to achieve this goal. They use a combination of creative thinking and analytical ability coupled with a very sound knowledge of the internet to attract massive viral growth. Examples of companies that have applied the principles of growth hacking include: Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, GroupOn, and Airbnb. They have successfully grown their customer base from zero to millions of subscribers within a few years.
The tips provided here will help you to launch and grow your start-up business. Although you will also have to learn other vital aspects of business management to achieve success, these valuable marketing tips will help you build a business that will stand the test of time.