How often do you practice offline marketing for your online business?
For many affiliate marketers, online marketing has become the focus of their marketing efforts and for good reason.
It’s often less expensive and more easily measured compared to the time and effort of offline marketing methods.
But, that doesn’t mean you should neglect offline marketing altogether.
On the contrary, there are many things you can do offline to help build a thriving internet marketing business.
Truly effective marketing campaigns typically include both online and offline strategies in order to obtain the best results.
When done together, this complete strategy of including both on and offline marketing techniques will prove to show that one supports the other and gives the best return on investment.
One of the most effective ways to build your online business offline is to take part in networking opportunities.
JVZoo makes it a point to attend several offline events every year in order to get face-to-face with our Sellers and Affiliates.
The connections we make in person are extremely valuable.
Being able to put a face to the name of a person or brand can help foster loyalty among your clients and customers, that which is deeper than those made from relationships based solely online.
It also can drive website traffic as interest is sparked about your business and what you have to offer.
If you have the opportunity, you should also consider taking part in speaking engagements.
These put you directly in front of a highly targeted group of people who are specifically interested in what you have to say.
They’re also a great way to build credibility and establish yourself as an expert in your field.
While securing a speaking engagement may prove challenging when you’re first starting out, if you start small such as with local organizations and take advantage of unpaid speaking opportunities, these experiences will help increase awareness of you and your business.
In time, bigger and better audiences will make themselves available.
Branded merchandise is another way you can advertise offline.
Whether you’re wearing a fashionable T-Shirt with your logo, tagline and website URL or driving around with your business’s information on your car, the more eyes that see your branded merchandise the better.
Branded merchandise is a great way to get brand recognition and spark curiosity about what you’re all about.
Some branded items you could carry with you to give away include pens, keychains, magnets, notepads, chapstick, sunglasses, visors or hats.
Everyone loves free stuff!
And you don’t have to pass out freebies to everyone you meet. Be selective and target those people who you would like to build a business relationship with, either as a client, customer, or business partner.
A good place to find such people is by attending niche-related activities.
Just as you would hang out in groups where your online customers gather, making yourself known in offline areas where your target market spend time is a great way to get your business noticed.
This is especially useful for those who have a very specific niche, but with a little thinking outside the box, you’re sure to come up with some places where you can bump into people who would benefit by your services.
When marketing offline, keep in mind that you will want to direct your offline contacts to your website, Ecom store, and especially your email list.
One brief face-to-face connection will most likely not produce an increase of profits, however, if you establish a way for you to continue your relationship online, with more exposure to your content, those contacts that you’ve made offline will have a better chance of becoming online customers!
What kind of offline marketing are you doing to build your online business? Let us know in the comments!
