Enhancing the marketing outreach of your company is surely the first and foremost way of accomplishing the objectives of your organization. In today’s post we are going to share a number of tips which are going to help the independent freight forwarders bring about the much needed change in their business.
1. Do your market research
Knowing and understanding your clients is the most crucial aspect for any business and a key part of this is market research. Through market research, you can examine the size of the market in both value and volume, your competitors, the buying patterns of the customers, and even the rules and regulations.
How will you develop products and services that fit the needs of your clients, if you do not even know who your customers really are? This question can be answered through market research. Never forget that it is equally important to know your customers and their needs along with creating good products and services!
2. Evaluate your business performance
The way to assess a company´s current position is to evaluate its business performance and it should just not be included in every company´s business planning phase but should also be conducted periodically. A thorough assessment will not only provide you with an estimation of the present state of your company but will also help ascertain the course you want your company to take.
3. Digitize your means of marketing
The right set of marketing tools in a digitized era is a must! With the right ones, you can create a strategic plan targeting the right consumers and engage with them throughout their consumer journey. You can optimise your marketing tools in many ways, but some important ones are listed below:
Website:
While it may seem like the most obvious approach but having a simple and clear-cut website can help your customers better understand your work making it more accessible to them. For your customers to be interested in your services, it is equally vital to spread out the information in an easy fashion while also adhering to an appealing design.
Brochure:
For independent freight forwarders, their brand image is of vital importance and it is through their corporate identity they communicate with their clients, get a step ahead of their competitors, and get distinguished in their sector and this is where brochures come in handy. Brochures have been in the marketing game for so long that now-a-days it seems highly unlikely for a company to not have one but it should be noted that in today´s era of digitisation having an online brochure is much more cost-effective and convenient because your clients can access them easily through email or even WhatsApp.
Videos:
Since the launch of YouTube, videos have become a fast-growing trend in almost every sector. Videos are deemed to be 600% more effective marketing tool than print and direct mail combined, according to Diode Digital. Hence, if used correctly it can be a potent instrument to promote one´s business. Going live and broadcasting your work to your clients is just one way of accomplishing that. Recently more and more companies are going live to promote and showcase their expertise and to garner their clients´ confidence.
Email marketing:
Email has become an essential part of our lives as individuals, professionals, and even buyers. In 2019 more than half of the world’s population used email as per a report by Radicati Group; a number that is expected to exceed over 4.3 billion by 2023. This means that since clients frequently access their emails, marketing through email can provide businesses with better visibility and reach.
They not only provide the greatest advantage of being able to reach a large group of people but also allows the possibility of customizing the content according to the needs and wants of your clients and the best part is that your clients can review the information at a time convenient to them.
4. Good promotion:
It goes without saying that exhibiting your successful shipments and services can help gain your client’s confidence in you and your expertise, but you should also try connecting with your clients on social media platforms so that you can get acquainted with them better.
You could be offering the best product and service around but if not promoted correctly, you are likely to lose out many on great opportunities. Try attracting your clients´ attention by writing appealing content on your blog or even hosting some online contests that they can be a part of. This way you will not just make them interested but participate too.
5. SEO strategy:
SEO strategy is the process of designing, defining, and executing steps aimed to improve search engine rankings. For this, there are two apparent steps that should be deemed important while developing the strategy plan:
- Publishing creative and attractive content on your webpage will not only drive the clients to your site but also keep them interested which in turn could turn potential buyers into buyers
- Know your clients and the keywords frequently typed in by them. this could save you a lot of time and effort in the long run and could help optimize your page.