From email campaigns to social media, here’s where to start and what you need to know about small business marketing.
As a small business owner, marketing can be both fun and intimidating. There are many tools available to help boost website traffic, create and design engaging emails, and build social media campaigns, but how do you know what might work best for your company?
The American Marketing Association (AMA) is the leading global professional association for marketers. From students and practitioners to executives and academics, we aim to not only elevate the profession but also help deepen industry knowledge for members and assist those who are indeed marketers but don’t think of themselves that way.
Where to start
So, what does a small business owner need to market their business and services successfully? Email marketing is the largest channel a small business owner has to reach existing and new customers, and in many ways, email marketing can be more effective than some social media channels depending on needs. What are some of the benefits and how do you make it work effectively for your business? In “What is Email Marketing,” AMA offers a beginner’s guide starting with the benefits, moving on to how campaigns work, and discussing the different types of emails that can work for a business.
Digital marketing is also an affordable way to grow your business. Content marketing, social media, and search engine optimization are some of the resources we share in “Top Digital Marketing Tactics to Grow Your Business.” We also offer recommendations from experts in the field that can help spark ideas that might be a good fit with your company.
Need strategies for creating a social media campaign to impress? We offer eight simple steps to show you how to create a killer social media strategy. From setting goals and researching your audience to selecting your channels, all the way through to conducting a competitive analysis to evaluate and improve your strategy, AMA shares the information you need to engage your audience.
Professional development
Looking for training opportunities to build and grow your skills? The AMA provides opportunities that range from beginner to expert. As a professional association, the AMA is dedicated to helping marketers and those looking to gain valuable marketing experience and skills to succeed in a rapidly changing marketplace.
One example of professional development that meets the needs of entrepreneurs is the session “How to Write a Marketing Plan — Build and Implement a Strategic Marketing Plan.” It can be easy to get wrapped up in the daily grind of executing various marketing tactics and initiatives, especially when new tactics are available every day. To ensure that the work you do has the best chance of delivering business results, business owners need a clear and well-thought-out marketing plan that connects prioritized strategies to tactics that will actually deliver on those strategies.
This two-hour online course can help beginning marketers learn the components of a great plan, how to prioritize strategies, as well as gain access to a framework for documenting everything so your efforts align.
Learn more about how to write a marketing plan and other training and professional development opportunities at AMA.org. Knowing that needs and time can dictate learning, AMA offers on-demand, in-person, and live online learning that can work with every schedule. We also offer articles and eBooks that provide fresh perspectives on the latest trends.
About AMA
In addition to professional development and marketing resources, the AMA is home to five premier scholarly journals, including Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, Journal of International Marketing, and Journal of Interactive Marketing.
Our industry-leading training events and conferences define future-forward practices, while our professional development and PCM® professional certification advance knowledge. With 70 chapters and a presence on 350 college campuses across North America, the AMA fosters a vibrant community of marketers.
The association’s philanthropic arm, the AMA’s Foundation, is inspiring a more diverse industry and ensuring marketing research impacts the public good.
AMA views marketing as the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. You can learn more about AMA’s learning programs and certifications, conferences and events, and scholarly journals at AMA.org.
