Strategies you can apply in your business to reach new customers

By applying some of the newest technology and opportunities in marketing today, you can better reach future customers.

An estimated 234 million Americans use mobile devices an average of 2 hours per day with 51% researching a product or service from their devices. New geographic targeting opportunities can increase your conversion by delivering your message directly to the hands of your future customers.

You can target your ideal customer and expand brand awareness by reaching people based on where they are in real time. Ads can be served to consumers on their smartphone, the device many of us have with us 24/7. By using digital advertising that applies geo-fencing technology, you can establish a virtual barrier. When a device enters a specific area, a digital ad delivering your message can be displayed. For example, you could have an auto insurance ad target customers on their mobile devices when they are at a car dealership.

With so many people using mobile devices, it should not come as a surprise that more than 50% of emails are read on smartphones. Your company may be like the 87% of businesses who use email as a marketing tool to increase sales with their current customers. Now you can use email marketing to attract new customers by targeting your ideal demographic based on location, lifestyle, interests and income. Any email marketing campaign you engage in should result in a minimum of 8-12% open rate. You can increase your chances for conversion by deploying unique follow-up emails with special offers to recipients who have opened your emails.

With all the new marketing methods today, along with many traditional advertising and public relations techniques, you need to look at what works best for you based on your specific goals for new business. You should embrace new opportunities and judge them next to what your business is already engaged in for marketing. Your marketing is about reaching the greatest amount of new customers and existing customers in the most targeted and efficient means available today.

John Houle is the president of JH Communications and consults for small businesses throughout New England. He can be reached at 401.831.6123 or at john@www.jhctesting.com.