Targeting local markets has been a recommended strategy for businesses that want to tap into key demographics and build bases within specific communities. The concept of buying local is something that has continued to work for businesses in a very real and effective way. Companies who focus their marketing efforts locally stand to gain a better customer following, more efficient campaigns, and better customer retention. Read on for some ideas on how to target local markets…

Customize Your Website
One of the simplest ways to market your businesses locally is to create landing pages that are specific to specific cities and areas. If you own a large company with several offices, it’s best to let the manager and employees at each specific store provide their input for what their customers seem to want. Using IT services from Ottawa to help you set up the server to detect where someone is accessing your page from, can help to deliver customized and tailored results. These managed services in Ottawa are also great for protecting against virus and malware threats.

Tailoring Campaigns
Most people get their information about new businesses by going on the Internet. In the past, television and radio were the biggest source of advertising. Even older populations are active on the Internet, so you can’t afford to miss out on this key demographic. IT services can help you set up your website in such a way that search engines know you have a local business that might be relevant for the searcher.

Start Local Fundraisers
A classic way to advertise your business is by creating special events for select groups of customers. By creating VIP memberships and holding special events for your most valued customers, you can create an organization that puts a high value on customer loyalty. A special member’s page for customers who spend a certain amount of money per year is one way to recognize smaller groups. Starbucks offers a good example of this with their Starbucks Card Gold Card benefits program. Customers who buy a certain number of drinks per year get special rewards and incentives.

Be Picky
Too many marketing campaigns attempt to market to everybody. There are good ideas, bad ideas, and the right ideas. The good ideas may offer a novel approach to something, but cost a lot of money and provide little in terms of customer loyalty. Bad ideas can actually harm your company and are typically formed through poor planning, research and a lack of knowledge about the population you’re marketing to. The right ideas ensure that your campaign performs highly by providing real value to customers over an extended period of time.

Mass marketing no longer provides a suitable method of promoting products and services on a large scale. There is going to be some group that disagrees with your mission statement, so it’s best to find your niche and develop an intense loyalty in that group. By doing so, you can develop loyal and reliable customers.

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