never stop marketing.

fact: as you can see from the pie chart above — based on nothing but our own thoughts and experiences and bright colors — marketing is a huge piece of the overall success of a business.

notion:creative was recently interviewed for and featured in two articles about marketing in the North Bay Business Journal: even in tough times, marketing key and marketing tips for small and startup businesses. not only are these feature articles a great way for us to share our knowledge and encourage small businesses, which we LOVE working with, but it helps us get our story into the public eye.

funny story: i met the author of these two NBBJ articles at a restaurant. we were sitting next to each other at the bar and I overheard her order for a gluten-free pizza. so of course being the pushy broad that i am, i asked her about being gluten-free. this quickly segued into a discussion about eating gluten-free and thus the gluten free lab, our gluten free sweets cookbook and eventually notion:creative. we made a genuine connection, i left all my business cards with her, and that was that. UNTIL she contacted notion:creative a few months later to talk with us about marketing. i guess i made an impression…

i admit that i am shameless about marketing our businesses and i know it’s 100% dorky to have three business cards, but it pays off. i am genuinely passionate about all the projects i am involved in, thus i am excited to share them with others. when people understand the breadth of who you are and what you do, it builds trust. and the truth is that we all want to work with people we trust.

the high level of marketing we do at notion:creative trickles down to include our clients: Once they’re in the family, they will inevitably see their business being promoted by us somewhere, whether it’s Facebook, on our blog, or spreading word of mouth in our day-to-day convos. since we completely understand that we’re all in this together — and of course because we want success to spread — we put together a basic marketing plan to help make the often overwhelming process of marketing a business more approachable. we believe that every business should be marketed differently based on their service or product and who they are marketing to, so bear in mind that what follows is a set of very general ideas. when you’re ready to get focused we can help develop a creative marketing plan tailored to your business. now is a great time to gear up for next year…

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implementing a marketing plan: build the framework, build your business.

identify your client.
know your market: know who you are targeting and know your competition. who are your existing, potential and ideal clients; research what’s happening in your industry on a local and national level; fit into what’s happening but carve out a niche that highlights your uniqueness and sets you apart.

create a brand.
hire a professional [we recommend notion:creative, they do great work.] to develop a brand and that represents your business and appeals to your desired clientele. a cohesive brand includes logo, stationery, point of sale materials, ads, website and any other material that interfaces with the public eye.

create a buzz.
promote, promote, promote. talk about your business; attend professional mixers; offer your products or specialized services pro bono; send press releases, your product or a newsworthy story to a writer at a local newspaper, magazine or blog whose point of view and audience is aligned with your business goals. since each generation receives and absorbs information differently, it’s important to utilize the proper media platform for your message.

build trust.
connect with your desired clientele and peers via your story. do something for nothing; get involved in your community by sponsoring or volunteering at a local event; meet new people and spread your story in a non-business environment; building trust with these new connections is an invaluable marketing tool that will spread through your clients’ and peers’ network of personal and business connections.

maintain the relationship.
never stop marketing, even when business is booming. maintain a consistent and broad marketing plan that reminds consumers why they need your services, highlights all facets of your business and targets multiple markets.