No matter what industry your new business operates in, you will no doubt need some involvement from a marketing consultant or professional. Choosing what marketing tactics and channels you should be using is an important part of your overall marketing strategy. I have outlined some of the marketing tactics and activities you should be considering when starting up a new business.
Logo
Branding/colours
Business cards
Email signature
Email addresses
Social media pages
Flyers
Sales decks and documents
Email / newsletter templates
Signage
Firstly, having a logo designed is a great way to establish and cement your business' brand identity. It helps to set your brand's tone and personality for all the other marketing material involved. Brainstorm what kind of emotions you want your customers to feel about your brand and work with a marketing consultant and branding expert to make sure the logo portrays what you want it to.
While you are deciding on your logo, you also should decide on a colour scheme and additional branding elements. This is important in keeping your brand consistent across print, web, social and other mediums (including sales documents). Normally, this would include the colours in your logo, plus a couple of other colours, along with some branding elements and secondary tags. It is important to engage with a branding expert to ensure you get this right from the start.
Although we live in a digital world, many people still like to exchange business cards. This is especially true in other cultures outside of Australia or within specific industries. Some industries may find they have less of a need for business cards than others, however, it is still one of the first pieces of marketing collateral you should look into when starting a business as it helps to show that your business is credible and established.
Your email signature is like a digital version of your business card. It adds branding to every email you send, building brand awareness and consistency. Further, it allows you to include some marketing or sales related messaging at the end of every email.
Next in line is your website. Every business should have a website - it acts as your online storefront, somewhere customers and potential customers can go to access credible information. Setting up a website doesn't have to be expensive, chat to a marketing consultant about some cost-effective website platforms that are suited to your business.
After you have purchased your domain name for your website, you will be able to set up professional email addresses for your business. There are several options out there for having an email address with your business name in there (e.g. hello@businessname.com.au), if you are unsure of your options chat with a marketing professional.
Whilst you are organising your domain and website, you should also look at organising your social media accounts and pages. Create your account, add your marketing consultant to the pages as an editor if you have one assisting in social media and ensure you add a profile picture and bio.
You don't need to get them printed straight away, however, you should have one designed so that you can easily print or email one to someone who requests one. Flyers are great to have around so that you can leave something tangible behind with potential customers.
Similar to a flyer, if you are selling a product or service that usually requires a presentation, it is something you should look at getting designed and created in the first part of opening the business.
Eventually, you will have a customer list that you will want to communicate with on a regular basis via email. The amount of emails customers are getting these days means that it is essential your business stands out for the right reasons. You may want to have an HTML template created or you may just want to ensure your branding, colours and fonts are in a nice, styled template. Note: if you are using a CRM or a marketing platform (such as MailChimp or HubSpot) you will need to go down the HTML path.
Finally, if you are a brick-and-mortar store, you need to consider what signage you will need.