If you work in Florida and want to succeed in marketing your business, you should employ marketing strategies that are both local and fully up to speed with contemporary standards. And while you might think you have a good grasp on what this means, it never hurts to step back and take an objective look at where you stand.
Making a consistent effort to keep your marketing campaigns and standards up to snuff will help ensure that you are on the same page with your target audience. While it is not the only element that you need to succeed, it is an important one.
How to win over a Florida audience
Let’s take a closer look at how you can win and maintain the hearts of your fellow Floridians. While some of these concepts can be applied more broadly, it doesn’t hurt to have both local and global features in mind as you go about campaigning.
1. Localize technically. We know, this is obvious. But it is a sorely often-neglected practice. Technical localizing means several things:
- Directing your SEO to local audiences by using relevant keywords, hashtags, and content.
- Keeping your Google Business Profile accurate, up-to-date, and straightforward so that people can easily reach you physically, by phone, and through social media.
- Having all of your promotional literature synced so that potential customers can easily hop from one medium to the next.
2. Use affiliate marketing channels. If you want to attract large numbers of people to your site, using affiliate marketing is essential. Check out affroom.com for more.
3. Get your Florida game on! You know that it means to be a Floridian. So flaunt it in your marketing. Your precise content will depend to some extent on what you are selling, but remember what your neighbors are looking for and infuse this into your strategy as much as possible (in other words, none of that doom and gloom Northeast stuff).
4. Find influencers to help your cause. Selling beachwear? Find your communities. Find yourself a well-known surfer or model to help you out. If you’re working with retirement communities, reach out to someone who has a heart for the elderly and can resonate with them. This will help multiply your efforts significantly.
Figure out your marketing type(s)
Every season, occasion, or other significant temporal factor should influence the way you market. If you live in Florida, this should include:
- Florida-specific seasonal influences. Obviously, Florida is not like many other parts of the country where stores start selling winter parkas in September. There are, however, seasonal factors that play a big role in many businesses. Preparing for the spring break crowd is one: the college stampede arrives in March! And don’t forget hurricane season. If your industry can be in any way affected by these seasonal monsters, include information about it in your marketing.
- Variable marketing. Just exactly what type of marketing strategies you employ depend on many different factors. You don’t want to focus on TikTok if you are working with the elderly, for example. And you don’t want to count on print advertising for the college crowd. But using a variety of strategies is generally a good idea. Everyone moves around, for example. It can be hard to miss a billboard if you drive down a main highway.
- Appropriate social media. There are tons of different social media out there these days. If you think having a Facebook discussion group would serve your greening Florida interests, open one up and get the conversation going. If you are selling bikinis, it is probably better to focus on something more visual. And don’t forget that social media is getting super advanced. If you offer services that have visual appeal to them, get on the video bandwagon as fast as possible and start creating high-quality videos for your YouTube page.
Get involved with the community
To whatever extent possible, try to integrate your business with the local community. If you are a native, you know which other businesses have a strong reputation and which ones don’t. Reach out to businesses that complement yours and see if you can collaborate on something. If you work in the health food business, find a yoga guru to co-sponsor a community event with you. Anything that you do together will multiply your exposure and help secure the trust of your audience.
An essential part of this is gathering testimonials. Any time you are working with a local community, word of mouth will be critical to gaining loyalty. Don’t be afraid to ask for comments from satisfied customers. You can even incentivize this through freebies or discounts, which will further enhance your reputation.
Keep at it!
Even if things seem to be moving slowly during certain periods, perseverance means a lot. So keep studying the competition, stay on top of the standards, and continue asking people for feedback on your products or services. If your heart is in it and your mind is focused, you will continue to succeed.
