Local Marketing Guide

A S H O RT G U I D E TO

LO C A L M A R K E T I N G F O R C H I L D R E N ’ S AC T I V I T Y P ROV I D E R S

LOCAL

The Rule of 7 There’s a marketing principle called ‘The Rule of 7’ that states that prospective customers need to see or hear your marketing messages at least 7 times before they really notice you and start to take action.

What can you do?

This is a guide to just some of the things

‘Word of mouth’ may have prompted somebody to

you could be doing when it comes to

contact you, but before they did, they’re likely to have

marketing your business locally.

checked out your website and social media pages at the very least.

If you’re a franchisee or licensee, you’ll probably have been given some training

Chances are they’ve also seen a Facebook ad in their

and guidelines by your head office, and the

newsfeed, spotted a poster, picked up a leaflet, found you

information in this e-booklet should be

in an online listing, and maybe seen a story in the local

considered alongside those guidelines.

press about you, too.

But before we get into some of the

Which means that your marketing activity must be ongoing

aspects of local marketing you might

if it’s to have any chance of being effective - there’s no

be considering, a quick word about

‘magic bullet’ to quick success.

something that’s very close to my heart . . .

BRAND

...

The stronger your brand, the more it will increase the value of your business. And how you apply your brand across everything that you do massively impacts its strength.

So stay on brand. Follow your head office’s guidelines - don’t just create something that you think is on brand. There’s more to branded content than just a logo.

If you’re part of a larger organisation you’ll probably have guidelines on approved logos, colour palettes, fonts, paper quality - even tone-of-voice and preferred words. Make sure you follow them.

If there are systems in place for quick and easy access to branded content that’s personalised for you, use them.

They’re there to make your life easier, and your business more valuable.

“The stronger your brand, the more it will increase the value of your business”

U S P s, RT B s, a n d ke y m e s s a g e s

M a rke t i n g c o l l a t e ra l

Make sure you know your USP (Unique Selling Proposition) -

Printed marketing collateral helps reinforce your brand awareness – the more places prospective clients see your brand (offline, as well as online), the further your brand and its credibility is reinforced.

what sets you apart from your competitors.

But just as importantly, pinpoint your RTBs - your ‘reasons to believe’. These aren’t necessarily unique to your business but are compelling reasons why parents and carers should choose you.

Things to consider include:

• awards • professional qualifications • accreditations • endorsements.

These all add layers of credibility to your brand, so shout about them in your marketing and PR activity.

Then identify your key messages and make sure you use them as appropriate across all your marketing channels.

Sometimes it’s hard to see the wood for the trees, so if you’re

TARGET MARKET Yo u r t a rg e t m a rke t While you may already have had your target audience broadly defined for you by your head office, bear in mind that there could be regional variations.

So take the time to get to know your target market and what your ideal customer ‘looks like’. Don’t just assume you know who they are - do some local research and build up a picture of them.

Thinking about things like where they live, where they shop, where they get their parenting information from, what social media channels they use, etc. will help steer your local marketing more effectively.

“...take the time to get to know your target market”

struggling to identify your RTBs or key messages, try talking to somebody who’s not directly involved in your business.

People still enjoy the reassurance of a welldesigned piece of printed marketing material that they can handle and carry around with them.

It’s an opportunity for them to get a real feel for your brand, and a good piece of collateral can intrigue them enough to drive them to your digital channels.

So if you’ve got a stock of leaflets or posters, or have access to them via your head office, use them!

• Check all the places where you display your posters to make sure they’re still up and not looking tatty.

• Replenish your stocks of flyers or leaflets wherever they’re being carried.

“People still enjoy the reassurance of a well-designed piece of printed marketing material...”

Email m a rke t i n g

Local digital m a rke t i n g

No doubt you’re in regular email contact with the parents and carers

Interacting with your target audience online

who come to your classes, as well as those who’ve made enquiries or

is good - the more places you’re visible, the

are on your waiting list.

better (remember the rule of 7).

When you’re writing your emails, always keep in your mind that most of the time you’re emailing people who may be sleep-deprived or busy (sometimes both!), and will probably be reading their emails on a mobile phone.

With so many emails filling up inboxes these days, attention spans are short.

• Keep to the point – keep your messaging simple, and try to only have one call-to-action per email.

• Before you send your email, always test it by sending it to yourself first and read it on your phone to check how it displays.

There may be more scrolling than you anticipate, so be prepared to edit your copy down.

While free listings are always good, think about taking out paid-for advertising or listings on some of the popular sites to help get your name higher up the list.

• Check that the sites you choose to spend money on are widely-used by your target audience.

• In today’s busy digital world people often have very short attention spans, so

• Test that any links work as they should do.

use well-structured, SEO-optimised copy

• Vary the day and time of the send to find what works best.

(that’s been approved by your head office

• Make sure you’re fully GDPR-compliant.

where available).

...

PUBLIC RELATIONS You’ve probably heard the saying: ‘Advertising’s what you pay for; publicity’s what you pray for.’

Editorial coverage is generally perceived to be 3 times more valuable than the same amount of advertising space as it’s seen as coming from a neutral source.

However, because you’re not paying for it, always remember that press coverage can never be guaranteed, no matter how compelling the story. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still try.

PR isn’t just about firing off press releases and hoping for the best.You need to have a good story to tell, and then tell it in a way that captures journalists’ attention.

Sometimes you may be too close to those stories to see them yourself, so try talking to somebody who’s not as close to things as you are – you might be surprised what they come up with!

Awards are a great way to add more credibility to your business, raise your profile and get some local PR at the same time. There’s often more than 1 bite at the cherry to get media coverage – first as a finalist, and then (hopefully) as a winner.

Other types of stories that are good for local PR include: • opening in new areas • charity fundraising events • any new initiatives.

“You need to have a good story to tell, and then tell it in a way that captures journalists’ attention”

A d ve rt o ri a l s An advertorial looks like an editorial feature, but it’s actually

E ve n t s & b a by s h ow s

paid-for. Which means you control the messaging, and its placement is guaranteed.

You may get the chance to provide your own copy, so always check with

Not all events and shows will be right for your business, so do your research

your head office to see if they’ve got a bank of approved copy for you

carefully and choose those that best

to use. That way you won’t have to reinvent the wheel, the messaging

meet your needs.

will always be consistent, and the writing style will be on brand.

Decide on your main reason for exhibiting – is it to raise brand

Cross ma rketing

awareness in your area, or to generate new leads? You may also see it as an opportunity to build relationships with

Cross marketing with other local businesses and providers is a great way to build relationships and reach new audiences, while sharing any

A d ve rt i s i n g While effective advertising helps to attract new clients, it also helps reinforce brand awareness among your existing clients.

Local opportunities - and effectiveness - vary enormously. What works in one part of the country won’t necessarily be as effective elsewhere. So do your research carefully.

Before agreeing to unsolicited advertising opportunities that come your way, do your homework first to determine whether they’re a good fit for your business.

• Check who the publication is aimed at.

• Ask about the circulation (how many people will see it).

• Always ask for a media pack. And if you’re not familiar with a publication, ask if they can send you a physical copy so you can touch and see it for yourself (don’t settle for a pdf).

• Choose the best spot. Not all ads are equal – depending on their placement, some will have more impact than others.

associated costs.

Ideally, you’ll choose events that will

There are simple ways to work together, such as swapping leaflets or

allow you to do all these things. Then

offering incentives to one another’s customers.You might even consider

you need to do everything you can to

a co-branded promotional leaflet.

make sure you make the most of them,

Or you could try collaborating on a special event, charity fundraiser or

both in terms of exhibiting on the day

paid-for feature to really showcase your individual strengths and create

and following-up with those lovely new

some serious marketing noise!

contacts afterwards.

WORK TOGETHER “What works in one part of the country won’t necessarily be as effective elsewhere”

other like-minded companies.

SEO SEO stands for ‘Search Engine Optimisation’. In a nutshell, it’s when you try to get your website to appear as high as possible when somebody searches online for what you do,

PPC PPC stands for ‘Pay Per Click,’ a

without you having to pay for it.

form of paid-for online search

If you’re part of a larger organisation, the nitty gritty of SEO

advertising.

will probably be taken care of by your head office so you

The beauty of it is that you only

shouldn’t have to worry about it. But if you’ve got a local web

pay for actual traffic generated by

page, there are still things you can do to optimise

your ads – so if nobody clicks, you

its SEO.

don’t pay.

• Link to your page whenever possible to make it easy for

There’s lots to consider when set-

people to find it.

• Get inbound links to your page from other reputable

ting up effective PPC campaigns, and it isn’t for the faint-hearted.

websites – this helps with your own page’s credibility in

As well as making sure you’re

Google’s eyes.

bidding on the right terms, you

• Claim your Google My Business listing, then populate and update it regularly.

• If you’ve access to a news section, update it regularly so that Google recognises your page as being live

should be constantly monitoring

TRACK

and adjusting your activity. So always take advice from your head office where appropriate.

...

and kicking!

“In a nutshell, it’s when you try to get your website to appear as high as possible...”

Social media

Track, monitor & adjust

Social media is such a massive area that it’s going to have its own dedicated e-booklet (coming soon)!

Whatever you do to market your business, it’s crucial that you track and monitor everything – if you don’t, you’ll never really know how effective something is.

Whichever social media platforms you use, make sure they’re the ones your current and prospective clients use.

If you’ve a head office, then make sure you follow their guidelines and use approved content where appropriate.

You’ll need to consider business-tobusiness networking, too. But make sure the content you post on each channel is relevant for whoever you’re trying to reach – don’t just adopt a ‘one size fits all’ approach.

If your head office has provided you with a spreadsheet or similar, make sure that you use it.

It will help keep you on track and make life easier in the long run - especially if it also has clever formulas that do all the maths for you!

Even small tweaks to what you’re doing can make the world of

difference to its success. Be prepared to make changes as you go along, eg: • use different copy or images; vary their placement on a page • amend your call-to-action • change the colour or placement of a call-to-action button or graphic.

Keeping track of what you’re doing, when, how much it costs, what the results were and what the conversion rates were will give you valuable information to help you make informed decisions moving forwards and enable you to adjust your activity accordingly.

I’ve often heard business owners saying they can’t afford to do any marketing. But the truth of the matter is that in today’s increasingly crowded marketplace, no business owner can afford not to.

While ‘word of mouth’ is absolutely the best endorsement you can have, you need to ask yourself how the customer who referred you found you in the first place.

The good news is that not every marketing activity comes with a massive price tag.

And remember – there are no magic bullets!

LOCAL whatson4kids.co.uk

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