Innovative Marketing Strategies: Reaching a Wider Audience as You Scale
As a company grows from a small startup to a larger business, expanding and diversifying its customer base is crucial. If you don’t do this, you risk stagnating and losing traction as other companies enter the market.
Reaching new demographics and geographic locations requires adopting innovative marketing techniques tailored to broader audiences. Here are some strategies for widening your reach as you scale your business.
Leverage Influencers and Micro-Influencers
Social media is massive these days and influencers with large followings have a huge reach. Working with an influencer in your niche could help you reach people you might otherwise have missed.
Influencers with large followings can rapidly expand your brand exposure and credibility. Seek out influencers relevant to your industry and product offerings. Because well-known influencers can be expensive to work with, rather than going after the top few most famous influencers, also consider micro-influencers with smaller but highly engaged niche audiences.
Gifting product samples in exchange for reviews and sponsored content is a common and effective influencer marketing tactic.
Venture into New Social Media Platforms
Take advantage of emerging social media platforms gaining steam among untapped audiences. For example, TikTok now boasts over 1 billion monthly active users and is gaining adoption across a wide variety of demographics. It’s great to work with as any post has the potential to go viral.
Getting an early start on a new platform like this can help establish your brand. Tailor content and engagement strategies to each platform’s culture and mechanics.
Reach Communities Through Content and Media Partnerships
Pursue partnerships with media companies, online publications, podcasts, and other outlets that engage your desired expanded customer base. Provide your own custom content, sponsor their content, collaborate on co-branded content, or advertise through their platforms. Think creatively about win-win partnership opportunities.
Localize and Customize for New Markets
When expanding to new domestic or international markets, avoid a one-size-fits-all approach. Localize messaging and content that resonates in specific markets. Adapt visuals, translations, ad messaging, products, and brand voice for localized appeal. Deeply understand each market’s nuances, values and preferences – topics like this are covered in Houck’s Newsletter.
Tap into Current Cultural Trends
Stay on top of popular cultural, lifestyle and social trends to integrate themes that captivate broader demographics. For example, sustainability and environmentalism are surging in importance across generations. Incorporate culturally relevant themes into campaigns, products and brand purpose. Support social causes aligned with your target consumers’ values.
Test Inventive Ad Formats
Continually test out innovative digital ad formats and placements to capture new audiences. For example, expand into digitally streaming ads on CTV platforms like Roku. Try audio ads on top podcasts or interactive mobile ads on gaming apps. Monitor performance to double down on what works.
Let Target Segments Drive Content
Analyze data to identify your most responsive target segments, then develop content that speaks to their specific interests. For instance, current customers may signal one target segment, while a new demographic represents an expansion segment. Create a content calendar tailored to each one and see which one performs the best in your marketing campaigns.
Refresh Branding and Messaging
As your business grows into new spaces, refreshing your visual branding, logo, taglines and core messaging can help boost appeal to evolving audiences. Protect brand equity by retaining elements of familiarity balanced with updated innovative elements.
The possibilities are endless when utilizing both proven and emerging marketing techniques. Continually testing and optimizing your strategies will widen your reach both demographically and geographically. Maintain flexibility and innovation in your marketing as you progress on your growth journey.