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Marketing a Metal Specialties Business

Small and medium size metal specialties businesses can compete and even outperform larger competitors. All it takes is the right marketing plan.

It's a misconception that small businesses can't compete with larger companies when it comes to marketing.

These days, most businesses are counting on the fact that their marketing plans will push them ahead of their competitors and deliver the best possible market share. But in a zero-sum economy, there are winners and losers -- and here are some of the things that will help keep your metal specialties business in the winners' column.

Why Branding Matters

Think of branding as a consumer shortcut. Since the average consumer doesn't have time to thoroughly evaluate every product that crosses their path, they make buying decisions based on the brands they trust. Any and every metal specialties business has brand characteristics. Consumers can view your brand either positively or negatively, but either way they have an impression about your business identity. Although the competition for market visibility may be fierce, a branding initiative can quickly scale your promotional footprint to compete with anyone in your geographic or demographic market sector.

Email Campaigns

Email campaigns make use of the fact that most consumers and businesses receive information electronically. More than 50% of all email users check their inbox six or more times a day. What does that mean for your company? It means the odds are in favor of email campaigns actually connecting with customers. In many metal specialties businesses, the real challenge is compiling a substantive quantity of qualified email addresses. Premium mailing list providers can mitigate the cost and hassle of in-house list generation. More importantly, providers typically give business owner an assurance that their lists are accurate and up-to-date.

Newsletters

Despite the unrelenting demands of generating content on a monthly or quarterly basis, a company newsletter has promising potential as a marketing device. Unlike flyers and other advertising mediums, newsletters have an informational focus. In fact, the best newsletters encourage customers to take the next step without ever asking for a sale. These days, metal specialties businesses to distribute newsletters through online channels (e.g. in email campaigns and as PDFs on the company website).

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