A 5 minutes Guide into the Dos and Don’ts of Startup Marketing.

As a startup, you have a lot on your plate. From product development to raising funds, a lot needs to be done to get your business off the ground. And amid all of this, you also need to think about marketing. Because of the scarcity of resources, whether time, money, or talent, starting up marketing is always a unique challenge. To make matters worse, traditional marketing strategies aren’t always effective.

Simply put, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to marketing a startup business. But there are some general dos and don’ts that you should keep in mind as you develop your startup marketing strategy.

Get to the Basics First

No two entrepreneurs are identical, and marketing strategies vary. But every effective marketing plan combines four essential elements –

Goals, Audience, Markets and Money.

Creating a Startup Marketing Strategy

Identify your Startup Growth stage

The marketing strategy for early-stage startups will be different from Late stage startups. Your marketing strategy will also depend upon the resources and budgets available.

Identify your Target Markets and Value Proposition

All your marketing efforts should be directed towards customer acquisition. You cannot be everything to everyone. Figure out who your potential customers are and what needs and wants you can fulfil (your value proposition and your product market fit).

Your Marketing Mix

Once you have figured out your target market and what you can offer them, it’s time to start thinking about your marketing mix — the combination of marketing activities you will use to reach your ideal customers.

Three ready-made marketing campaign ideas for startups

Startup Marketing Tip 1- Focus on building relationships.

Instead of trying to sell your products and going overboard with pushy marketing methods, focus on building relationships with the new and existing customers by sharing valuable messages, creating engagement and email marketing. Compelling Content Marketing Strategies should be considered and integrated into various marketing channels.

Startup Marketing Tip 2- Website/Webshop

Depending upon the type of startup (B2B or B2C), a user-friendly informative website is a must-have. Most digital marketing strategies are directed toward websites.

Startup Marketing Tip 3- Social Media Marketing

These days, there are so many different social media platforms to choose from, and each one offers unique opportunities for marketing your startup. But, again, the key is to create content that will appeal to your target audience and get them talking about your brand.

Startup Marketing Tip 4 — Measure the success of your marketing campaigns

Startups have limited resources; hence tracking and measuring the success of marketing campaigns become all the way more important.

Set (and track) your startup marketing KPIs

KPI (Key Performance Indicators) are measures used for tracking marketing performance to determine your success. Whether you are trying to increase your brand recognition or increase your brand’s visibility or trying to generate leads, you need to consider KPIs.

Startup Marketing Tip 5 — Offline Marketing

Though Digital Marketing has changed the landscape of marketing drastically, still the importance of offline marketing cannot be ignored. For example, Trade shows and networking events can be helpful in marketing for startups.

Top marketing channels that Startups should utilize for speedy growth.

Startup Marketing — DOs:

• Keep your target audience in mind
• Be creative with your marketing budget
• Focus on building relationships
• Use social media to your advantage
• Conduct primary market research
• Measure your results
• Get a Marketing Generalist on board

Startup Marketing — DON’Ts:

• Try to do everything at once
• Ignore the competition
• Forget about Search Engine Optimization
• Neglect offline marketing altogether
• Overlook the power of word-of-mouth marketing
• Chase trendy new social media channels
• Hire marketing specialists or a marketing team before you see organic growth

The Bottom Line

Marketing for startups is always a unique challenge. But by keeping these general dos and don’ts in mind, you can develop a creative and effective marketing strategy that will help you effectively market your product and services and achieve your business goals.

What are your thoughts on startup marketing? Let us know in the comments below!

This article was written by a Digital Marketing Expert who helps various traditional businesses get started online. With more than 9 years of hands-on experience in the Indian and South Asia market, digital content creation, content planning, devising content strategies, writing blog posts, and website content creation are activities she excels at.

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