Most people associate marketing with promotion and advertising. They either want to know what they need to do or they believe it is a waste of money. Each business will advertise itself in some way to get off to a good start. When you inform others about your company and what it has to offer, you are promoting it. This can be accomplished by word of mouth, networking groups, or sponsored advertising. If you never told anyone about your existence, no one would know, and you can’t make money if no one knows about your business. Every business needs advertising for three reasons: it informs people about what you provide, it allows you to grow quickly, and it positions your business in the market.

Promotion Tells People About What You Offer

In its simplest form, promotion is critical for spreading the word about your business. It informs your target market that you exist. It informs them of what you have to offer. It shows them that you are capable of meeting their needs. The key to any campaign is to have a clear message that connects with your ideal customers. It shows them that you understand them and are willing to assist them. Promoting your company is a full-time job. You never know how many friends, neighbors, and strangers could be interested in finding out about your company. You can’t help others unless you inform them about what you do. Pro tip: Wear a company shirt, dress professional, talk about your business on social media. You don’t have to be a billboard for your business, but it sure helps. (Do need to be selling, just a billboard.)

Promotion Allows You To Grow Quickly

There are two options for rapid growth: virality or effective promotion. Effective promotion allows you to get your company in front of your ideal consumers at the right time. When you place your company in front of your ideal customers, they are more likely to buy from you. Effective promotion will result in the quickest growth. The more perfect customers who notice your business, the faster you will be able to convert them into customers. The right message, to the right audience, at the right time is one of the most valuable ways to scale your business quickly with a constant return on investment. Word of mouth is an excellent strategy. It allows you to have the strong trust from new customers, and it is free or relatively cheap for you. However, it is limited by the amount of time it takes for information to spread and the people network’s reach. Occasionally, you will gain virality. This happens usually by a shout out from someone with a large following, or it is a video that connects to people and makes them want to share with others. The hardest part with virality is ensuring people want to share it, and ensuring it survives after the initial viral moment. There are some businesses that have seen success from virality, but it is never a guarantee.

It Builds Your Positioning

In some industries where competition is fierce, positioning becomes critical to success. The phone companies are prime examples of this. As of 2023, none of them have exclusive technology that genuinely distinguishes them. (Yes, T-mobile and Verizon have the 5g fad, but it’s not that effective compared to each other.) AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile are all relying on positioning to differentiate themselves from their competition. If you are promoting a specific service or feature and your competitors are not, you will be remembered by those who view your promotion as the only one providing it. It can also be utilized to advance your position inside another community. Consider sponsorships for sporting events or sponsorships for local business groups. These enable your brand to become linked with a specific neighborhood, attracting customers to your business. When you and your competitors seem to be the same, then the only differentiating factor is price. So unless you’re the cheapest, it’s important to differentiate.

Promotion when done right is one of the most powerful and effective ways to grow your business. It puts your business with the right message in front of your ideal customers.