Paid ads, the right hashtags, and social media posts aren’t the only ways to get seen by new customers. In fact, they shouldn’t be the only ways you’re leveraging your marketing efforts to expand your reach.
Depending on your business, the products or services you offer and your target audience will influence the ways you get seen online. However, there are a few go-to moves that can land you the connections you need to make the most of that reach!
When you tap into the power of public relations (PR), partnerships, and brand collaborations, you’re much more likely to get in front of the right people (those likely to convert).
And these approaches are mutually beneficial — connecting with others who serve the same audience as you, in connected industries, with a joint effort can help you both drive traffic. So, let’s take a look at how you can start implementing these three things into your marketing strategy ASAP.
The power of PR to expand your reach
You’ve likely heard about public relations before, but for online/small businesses, this can look a little different. You may not be writing press releases, but you still need to have an open line of communication with the public.
That means pitching to media outlets with timely, useful information when something exciting happens in your business or your niche. And ask yourself…can the information you’re pitching be valuable to their audience too?
Remember, this should be a mutually beneficial working relationship.
You can also form connections and expand your reach via podcasts and YouTube channels that are looking for sponsors. Big brands are looking for alternative ways to advertise (apart from paid ads) and small businesses are looking for reach. It’s the perfect two-way street!expand
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Joint ventures and other partnerships
Working with another business to promote your services/products together is a great way to build connections as a small business owner. Much like reaching out to the media with a PR strategy, this approach creates an equal opportunity for both sides to benefit because you’re both boosting each other’s marketing efforts.
The difference here is that you’re looking to work with other businesses, not media outlets. It’s generally best to reach out to other business owners you know rather than cold pitching your media kit to a business you don’t know.
And it doesn’t just come down to paying for a feature or for the other business to talk about yours. Many small businesses do an ad-for-ad swap. That way, both businesses get their offers promoted to a new (but similar) audience.
What are some examples of joint ventures? Guest features on a blog or podcast, social media collaborations, or special offers like product bundles, giveaways, or flash sales.
Collaboration through affiliate marketing
Many small business owners know how important affiliate marketing can be!
An affiliate earns a percentage of the profit by promoting another brand’s product or service. They will have their own unique affiliate link that they can share with their audience (don’t worry about keeping track of it all — there are several types of software/programs that will do this for you!). Once a sale is made, the affiliate receives commission.
Incentives will vary based on the brand (for example, pay per lead, pay for sale, pay per click, etc.), but when you have a group of affiliates with like audiences, this can be a mutually beneficial way to not only grow reach, but profitability too.
Offering your own affiliate program gives people an incentive to push your biz, whether that be on Instagram Stories or in an email. You may have to pay them a portion of the profit you earn, but you get more eyes on your offers.
So even if their audience doesn’t buy right away, you can still reap the benefits down the road!
Templates to expand your reach…
It’s important that no matter what you use to expand your reach, you do it with professional, on-brand resources. And *surprise surprise* — we’ve got plenty for you!
As a Styled Stock Society member, you’ll get instant access to all of our 2,000+ templates, which are designed to help benefit and boost your business. And because they’re highly customizable, you can easily swap the colors, fonts, and stock photography from our collection of thousands of professional photos and videos to match your vibe.
Get templates for important pieces of your marketing strategy, like…
- Media Kit Templates & Podcast Media Kit Templates to nail your PR pitches
- Affiliate Marketing Templates for launching your affiliate program
- Collaboration Guide Templates to shake hands and make deals with your favorite brands
It’s all available inside our membership!
