S.M.A.R.T Marketing Tips for Startup Companies

So you’ve heard of SMART goal setting used in varying situations but mostly recognized in business circles.  SMART goal setting suggests that goals must be SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE, REALISTIC and TIME-BOUND.

Likewise, in crafting the marketing programme for your business, there are specific goals that you should strive to achieve with your plan.  The following is my interpretation of SMART Marketing Tips for Startup Companies:

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S – STRATEGIC

By its very definition, the word strategic suggests doing something intentionally or deliberately.  The word also suggests purposefulness and goal-orientation.  In marketing your business your actions must be deliberate, planned and calculated.  Recall that at this stage of business, funds are usually limited but good marketing ideas are not.  Everything is scalable, work within your budget and ensures that your programme is charted to specific goals.

M – MEASURABLE

Whatever marketing tactics you employ, you must be able to say with certainty what was achieved from it.  How many more customers were you able to reach? Did sales increase? Was the feedback from your customers useful?  These are all questions that will help you to measure if your marketing programme has worked or is working.  And, if you do not get the desired results at first, do not be afraid to tweak your plan.  Fix it until it works for you.

A – AFFORDABLE

As much as you are enthusiastic about the new business, curb your enthusiasm to fit your budget.  Whatever marketing initiatives you undertake, ensure that the business is able to afford them.   There are myriad platforms and myriad marketing packages available, again scalable.  Don’t go bankrupt in the first six months by competing with your bigger counterparts.  They have a much larger budget than yours and much more resources than you do. 

R – REVOLUTIONARY

Be a change maker where marketing your company is concerned.  Employ radical and ground-breaking ideas.  Operate as if there is no box.  This is how your company, product and brand will get noticed.  Be an innovator.  Don’t be afraid to go where no other business has gone before.  Try something unconventional, you never know, it may just work.

T – TECH-SAVVY

If your marketing programme is not technology driven, scrap that programme and start again.  As we speak, there are more than 1 billion people on Instagram and just about 100 million people from around the world use Facebook on a monthly basis.  This is just the statistics on two social media networks.  Face it, the world is Digital and it’s getting more digital every day.  Smart phone technology and the internet rules, and for small, startup companies it provides a great opportunity to make a name for your business by using technology.   As a matter of fact, there is a segment of the market that only gets information through smart phone technology and the internet.