Maybe you can’t afford a celebrity endorsement like Taylor Swift, but there are still plenty of lucrative opportunities to do something on a local scale. Influence marketing is changing. While businesses once chased celebrity endorsements and mega-influencers with millions of followers, smart companies are discovering that their most powerful brand ambassadors might already be customers or people sitting in the next booth at the local coffee shop.

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When you’re building a small business, it’s easy to focus on the day-to-day grind—inventory, customer service, cash flow, and that never-ending inbox. But if you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know if you’re getting there?

That’s where a vision statement comes in. Some businesses think it’s “too corporate” or “too pretentious,” something people do to impress investors. But it’s more than a buzz phrase or a corporate checkbox. 

A clear, inspiring vision is your business’s North Star—and one of the most underused tools in small business marketing. Yes, small business marketing. You don’t need to be a giant organization with stockholders to realize the power behind a well-crafted vision statement.

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As summer hits its peak (yeah, it’s hard to believe) and the back-to-school buzz begins, this is the perfect time to refresh your marketing. It’s also a great time to connect with your customers in meaningful, fun, and creative ways. And you don’t have to be a retail shop to “sell summer” or “back-to-school.” 

No matter what your industry, aligning your brand with what your customers are already thinking about can drive real results.

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There’s a Jeep commercial circulating right now that stars Harrison Ford talking about choices and how life doesn’t come with an owner’s manual. It’s one of those ads you watch the entire way through because it’s evocative and makes you feel something. You hardly  even notice that they’re selling a vehicle, but you buy into the lifestyle presented, which is Jeep’s goal.

Winning customers isn’t just about having a great product or service—it’s about making people feel something. The best brands don’t just sell; they connect, entertain, and even challenge their audiences. 

If you want to turn heads and build a loyal customer base, you don’t need to have Jeep’s ad spend. You can use these five powerful marketing techniques in your email, video, and social media campaigns.

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​News stations are finally embracing the word that COVID numbers are going down and vaccine administrations are going up. That’s allowing people to see the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel. If you have weathered the storm so far, you know your business is not completely in the clear. There are always unexpected challenges like freak snowstorms and mass electrical outages that are keeping us all on our business toes, regardless of where you sell or operate from. Nothing will tell you faster how interconnected we are than understanding how weather in one part of the country can stimy business operations in another.
 
But as we begin to see COVID numbers drop and (eventually) restrictions loosen, there are several common marketing mistakes you’ll want to avoid.

​As I write this, we are a week away from Christmas. And while it may feel like the holiday season has already been decided with everyone from the post office to mail-order businesses saying there's no way they can meet Christmas deadlines, now is the time that local small businesses can shine.
 
You have an advantage at this point over online stores because customers can come in and get a last-minute gift, service, or gift certificate. But you can’t just fling open your doors and let the world in. There are a couple of things you need to be doing to ensure that they feel safe. Still, It's not too late to implement these COVID precautions in your business. 

Do you feel like your business is just shouting into the wind? Does it seem like the time you spend on social media is extensive but yields few results? Are you sick and tired of Zoom calls that take too long and accomplish too little? If so, it might be time to think about experiential marketing.
 
Experiential marketing is the act of creating a memorable experience that will be associated with your brand. Many smaller businesses think of experiential marketing as the type of thing that businesses with Super Bowl-esque budgets do.
 
And they're right.