Two-Thousand-Twenty has been a tough one for many businesses, but on a more positive note, many of us finally have time to slow down and make improvements. At UpFrame Creative, we are passionate about small business and education, so we decided to share five of our favorite marketing tools that you can start doing RIGHT NOW to help get you back to business in 2021.
Check in with clients and customers.
It is a great time to start thinking about and implementing updates to your services, products, or offerings. And what better way to understand what to improve than by asking those who are already invested in you, your customers. Send them a survey to learn how you’re doing and gain constructive feedback to make your customer experience better.
Work on your website.
Many small businesses struggle with maintaining their online presence and making website updates is often one of the first things to put on the back burner when we are busy. Don’t feel bad; we’re guilty of it too!
However, the appearance of your website is a direct reflection of your business. Your website may not be sending the right impression of your business to your visitors.
Did you know, making frequent updates to your website will help with search engine optimization (SEO) so people can find your website?
Here’s a list of updates that are simple to do, but can make a huge difference.
- Review your content and make sure everything is accurate. Do you no longer provide a service listed on your website? No worries, take it off! Have new members joined your team? Now is the perfect time to add them!
- Update images. Images help attract attention to your website and visually lead visitors through your content.
- Do your images relate to your text?
- Are they high quality?
- Do they fit your brand standards?
These are all questions you can ask yourself while making your updates.
- Back end updates. Make sure your plugins and themes are up to date. (If you’re an UpFrame Client, we have you covered ????
Get active on social media.
Along with your website, social media is also one of the first things to fall off your to-do list when you're low on time. However, it's a valuable tool for small businesses, and now is the perfect time to take a dive into creating a social media plan. Without a plan you have no clear goal for what you're trying to achieve, not to mention, a social media plan helps immensely while writing content.
Is it time to refresh your brand?
Every design communicates a message. What is your business saying? When you update the look, feel and message of your brand, you have to make sure that what you’re telling customers really represents who you are and where you want to go.
Maybe you just need a brand refresh! Sometimes businesses have their messaging right, but just need a facelift: color updates, typography, stronger logo, etc. If you’re ready to explore the possibility of rebranding, we’re happy to help!
Take a look at your printed marketing materials.
Have you been sending out the same rack card since 1982? Sure, it’s a digital age, but small businesses can always benefit from updating their printed marketing materials. Just like professional branding, thoughtful, unique, and creative printed marketing materials help build your business’s reputation.
Printed collateral includes things like business cards, brochures, folders, postcards, etc. Take a look at your current materials and ask yourself these questions.
- What printed materials are you missing?
- Do the ones you have now include current information?
- Do they represent your business accurately?
At UpFrame Creative, we think every organization should have fantastic marketing. A professional logo. Professional branding. A website that sends just the right message. We provide professional and personable design services with an educational approach. Whether you’re an organization, startup or a well-established business in need of a little update, we’ve got your back and are here to help you weather this storm and help get you back to business.