9 New Year Marketing Ideas To Boost Your Small Business

The new year is a perfect time to take your marketing game up a notch. It's the time of year when new resolutions are made, new goals set and new plans created. And you know what that means? New opportunities to grow your business!

There are so many different ways to market your brand, and the new year is a great time to experiment with new strategies. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Create a marketing calendar

This new year, we recommend creating a marketing calendar to stay on top of all your branding and marketing efforts throughout the coming year. Marketing calendars can be created quickly and easily using free online tools such as Google Sheets or Trello and allow you to plan out new blog posts or social media content in advance. For inspiration, check out Social Media Calendar which features major national events and awareness days around which you can tailor content for your audience.

But the best marketing calendars don't just focus on online collateral. Don't forget to keep your calendar updated throughout the year with important deadlines, such as when you will need to order Christmas cards or create point of sale materials to promote your Valentines Day offering. This way you'll always be one step ahead and ready to capitalize on important dates and events.

Participate in Twitter chats

Twitter chats are a great way to engage with potential and current customers, as well as other small business owners. They offer the opportunity for real-time dialogue around a particular topic, and can be a lot of fun!

To participate in a Twitter chat, simply search for the hashtag related to the chat you'd like to join, and tweet using the hashtag. You can also follow chat hosts or other participants to get a better feel for the conversation before jumping in yourself.

The best way to find Twitter chats relevant to you and your audience is to keep an eye on what your followers and industry authorities are doing. Which chats do they participate in? Which are most relevant to your brand? Most regions and towns have their own weekly small business chats, an ideal chance for entrepreneurs to promote themselves to a local audience. Check out the social feeds of businesses in your area to discover which chats are popular amongst people in your neighbourhood.

Alternatively, you could host your own Twitter chats, centred around your own hashtag. Scheduled and promoted ahead of time and typically lasting for an hour, this is your opportunity to host a live conversation with your customers and followers. Twitter chats can be used to discuss a new service, answer customer questions or simply connect with people on a more personal level.

Update your customer facing content

The new year is a great time to take long hard look at your printed collateral (business cards, letterheads, flyers, brochures etc) as well as the items you use online (marketing emails, help centre content, social media assets etc). What's working? What's not? How can you make improvements?

If you're not sure where to start, take a look at what your competitors are doing. Chances are they're using tactics that you haven't yet considered and which you could adapt to dive extra traffic and revenue.

Alternatively, if you have the budget, consider hiring a professional graphic designer or copywriter to help create new and eye-catching marketing collateral. It's a great way to differentiate your business from the competition and is likely to lead to new customer engagements you hadn't considered before.

Content is king when it comes to marketing your business. You can have the best new year branding and marketing strategy, but if you don't have good content to back it up, your efforts will be wasted.

Maybe you could start a new blog series on your website or create a printed information pack, promoting the features and benefits of your offering. Alternatively, why not try creating some short video tutorials to help promote your products and services?

Whatever route you decide to take, make sure the content is interesting, informative and, most importantly, helpful to your customers.

To be confident the new content you're creating is as effective as possible, try using tools like Google Analytics or Buzzsumo to research what content is being shared the most in your industry. This will give you an idea of what topics are resonating with customers and help you create content that they'll want to read, watch or share.

Invest in new marketing technology

Technology can be a powerful tool for small businesses when used correctly. This new year, consider investing in new marketing technologies that can help you reach your marketing goals.

For example, if one of your resolutions is to increase web traffic, consider investing in a tool like Ahrefs or SEMrush that can help you track your website's search engine rankings and identify new opportunities for growth.

Alternatively, if you're looking to improve your social media presence, take a look at tools such as SproutSocial or Hootsuite which allow you to manage all your social accounts from one interface. This way you can easily see which channels are performing well and how certain posts are resonating with customers.

Don't forget about direct mail marketing!

Direct mail marketing can be a powerful new year brand building and customer engagement tool.

It's an effective way to reach new customers as well as existing ones who may have fallen out of touch with your brand.

You may think of this as being more traditional, but it can still be a very effective way to reach new and existing customers. Try sending out some new year themed postcards or promote your January sale with a direct mail flyer. It's a great way to drive traffic to your website or encourage people to visit your premises, especially those customers who may not have made a purchase recently.

Influencer marketing

While customer engagement is important, so is reaching out to people who may not be aware of your brand. Consider reaching out to some of your top influencers - those who consistently engage with or share information related to your industry. A great way to do this would be to invite them to a product launch event or new year celebration. Alternatively, you could send some items from your new product line or host a giveaway on social media - just make sure you have new and exciting things they'll want to get their hands on and share with their followers!

Host networking events

Networking events can be a great way to connect with potential new customers, as well as other businesses in your area. They can also be a fun way to get out and meet new people. Try hosting an event at your place of business or partnering with another local business to co-host.

Collaborate with other businesses

Partnering with other businesses can be a great way to reach new customers and create new marketing initiatives. In the new year, consider teaming up with other businesses in your area for a joint marketing campaign or event. For instance, you could partner with a local restaurant to offer an exclusive dining experience for your most valued customers, or agree a deal with a local retailer to offer a special discount for people who order from you during January.

This is a great way to get more exposure for both brands and can lead to some new customer engagements that you wouldn't have otherwise!

Give back to your community

Show your customers and followers that you care about more than just making money. You could partner with a local charity to collect donations or sponsor an event. You could also volunteer your time and services to help a local organization or cause. This type of activity can help you build goodwill within your community and connect with new pospects who may be interested in what you do, especially if you publicise your activities via social media. Don't forget to reach out to local and trade press to spread the word about your good deeds far and wide!

The new year is the perfect time for new beginnings, so use these ideas to help you develop new marketing initiatives that will drive new customer engagements and increase your revenue in the months to come. Let's make this new year your most successful yet!