Since we are past the halfway mark through the calendar year of 2014, I thought I'd take a look at some trends in business and how Carroll County small business owners can benefit.
Forbes.com and the National Federation of Independent Business recently reported a number of social, tech and marketing trends for the year, including: urbanization — the city as a customer, increased focus on health and wellness, "innovating to zero," marketing with more visual appeal, the Amazon-effect on website usability, marketing using customer reviews and more.
Here are a few trends that our business community may want to note when planning for the remainder of 2014:
"Bricks and clicks." Having both a brick and mortar location and an online presence will be the norm in coming years. Forbes.com reports that nearly 20 percent of global business-to-consumer retail will occur online, with retail sales expecting to reach $4.3 trillion by 2025. For local business owners, main street shops and small retailers, having an attractive, usable website for internet sales will supplement revenue, giving customers the ability to make purchases outside regular operating hours. In addition, having another venue to access existing customers (embracing the trends toward marketing with customer reviews and using more visual appeal) will assist main street businesses during times of road construction and inclement weather.
Multiple device-ability. Once you establish a website, you'll need to make sure that your message and visuals are accessible to your customers and audience on a variety of devices, including smart phones and tablets. While the majority of Americans still don't own smart phones, reaching out to young clientele and the tech-savvy requires your messages to be viewed through mobile apps, mobile messaging and mobile advertising.
Rewarding those who repeat. Return customers and clients are what keep a business going in tough times. Once you make the effort to create the relationship, maximize your investment by offering discounts, special and invitation-only sales to keep them coming back.
Locally, there are some good examples of business owners who employ all three of these trending marketing devices. A Westminster liquor store owner captures the email addresses of customers and sends them Constant Contact messages with coupons that can be accessed on a mobile phone. There are also a number of restaurant owners who embrace marketing online, giving their customers a website with the ability to make reservations, review the meal and obtain repeat-customer discounts at the same time.
There are countless ways to embrace new and evolving marketing trends to keep your small business alive and generating revenue. When you employ these methods or others that are successful for your sort of business, you'll be on the right path.
Marlene K. Titus, Coordinator of the Miller Center for Small Business at Carroll Community College can be reached at mtitus@carrollcc.edu.
