Money-saving ideas and habits are a must for any entrepreneur. No matter how great a business idea you may have, you need to be a spendthrift in the beginning. Saving money is the best way to make money. The only items you should spend on are necessary equipment such as phones and computers. Good quality materials are also a necessity to ensure that your product is of the best quality and can demand a premium price.
One of the best ways to get the most of your money is to fix broken devices instead of replacing them. Hiring professional phone repair services is a good example. There is a culture of newer is better happening in society but in business, this is not always true. Upgrading is one thing, but if your machines are able to do their job effectively, then you can wait to upgrade till the software and the device become incompatible. Planning ahead like this also allows you to budget better so you can find ways to purchase the new devices without affecting your profit margin too much.
There are many ways in which you stretch out your current investments and plenty of opportunities to collaborate with others in ways that benefit you. The main benefit is that collaborations can help you to achieve the same results without having to spend as much money as you would individually.
Get Creative with Advertising
It can be very expensive to run constant advertising campaigns and you might not have that kind of money when you are still a new business. Consider using creative methods such as putting your logo and motto on your bags. Customers will then walk around indirectly advertising your company everywhere they go. Alternatively, you can give away coupons and vouchers with every purchase. This will not only ensure that the customers make repeat purchases, but word-of-mouth advertising about the great deals at your store will also become widespread.
Consider offering stickers as well. They aren’t expensive to make in large batches and a funny sticker has a higher chance of being placed in a prominent position by people. They may place the stickers on their cars, their bikes, and their laptops. These will all serve to make your company logo visible to a wider range of people.
Make Deals With Neighboring Businesses
Customers enjoy sales and good deals, and they are very drawn to special events. Consider collaborating with businesses in your neighborhood to have a special sale event or a sidewalk bazaar to attract customers. This will broaden the demographic of people who will be able to view your products, and they may be tempted to make purchases because of the special deal prices.
Collaborate with Complementary Businesses
Every product can be enhanced or accessorized. This creates an opportunity for you to work with businesses that provide complementary services or products to yours. Offer packages that would be hard for people to resist due to the convenience.
If your business sells phones, include a promotion package where a certain amount spent allows them a discount on repair services for a year. If your business is a laundromat, then you can partner with a high-end boutique to offer 24-hour service to people who buy clothes.
Reward Referrals
Let your customers know that if a new customer purchases a product due to their recommendation, then you will reward them. Give them more points for their store card or a small discount on their next purchase so that they are incentivized to refer more people.
This is a great way to advance marketing without having to spend any money yourself. Happy customers are much more likely to make an effort to convince their friends to come to your store as they want to collect the rewards. These newly referred customers can then be further included in the referral program and will send more new customers to your store.
Ask for Testimonials
There is a lot of advertising out there but people are becoming more skeptical about it. They prefer to believe in the lived experiences of real people like themselves. This is why testimonials can be the best marketing technique you can apply.
Ask happy customers to record a short video giving a testimonial about your service or product. Edit the videos to a short length and to look aesthetically pleasing, and share them across your social media channels.
If you have a visual display in-store, consider running the videos on loop as well. Potential customers will see the testimonials and be more drawn to trying out your products and services.
Customers want to support businesses that care about the community as much as they care about profit. No one wants to feel like they are only a source of income for businesses that do not care about them as a person.
Establish yourself as a community-driven business by offering instructional videos and tutorials on your website. Use your social media pages to drive interested customers towards your website and follow through on your promise by delivering informative and useful content.
Proactively offer aid to charities or NGOs in your region, give talks at local schools and community centers, and start a blog where you curate content about the industry and related products. This will require a time investment on your part but will cost you very little money. Raising the brand name in this way will strengthen your market standing and improve sales efforts.
