10 low cost marketing ideas for independent retailers

As part of a presentation to the Norwich Lanes group of independent retailers, I came up with 10 marketing ideas which any small independent retailer (or other business) can simply implement to improve the marketing of a small business. These are focused on marketing for small independent businesses in Norwich but they could be easily adapted for other locations.

1. Give away free samples
Easy if you are a food outlet – simply stand on the street corner with a tray of bite size samples of the food that you make and start wafting them in the face of passers by. Slightly more complex if your products aren’t edible – talk to your suppliers about sample size packs of their products.
COST: Free - Cost of product only

2. Take a look at your kerb appeal
Poor “curb appeal” can put even the most dedicated customer off entering your shop. Even in Summer, you need to make effective use of good lighting to make sure that your shop looks open and welcoming from the outside. Something as simple as a sticky door can send a perfectly good customer away – get your WD40 out and if weather permits, leave your door open. Pick up a tin of paint and smarten up your exterior or perk up your sign. If you can’t stretch to buying a tin of paint, try Freecycle or your dad’s shed.
COST: Free if you beg, borrow or steal the paint!

3. Work on your window display
Attractive merchandising can make a massive difference to the impact of your window display. Makes sure that you change it regularly, in line with the seasons or to highlight new product ranges for example. Rotate items in the window to avoid sunlight damage and to attract the interest of regular passers by. Keep an eye out for dummies or props in local charity shops or ask your suppliers about professional point of sale display equipment such as racks or banners that they can supply you with.
COST: Free with some creativity!

4. Know your customers
Marketing is all about selling stuff that your customers want to buy – simple! Talk to them! Find out where they come from, why they visit you, what else they would like to buy from you and so on. Go one step further and ask for their contact details (postal or email address) so that you can mail them directly with news about special offers, new products and so on. Use a monthly competition as an incentive (cover) for people to part with their contact details. Use address finding software available online so that you don’t need to get their full address, just a house number and postcode.
COST: Free


5. Build customer loyalty
In simple terms, you can build customer loyalty simply by looking after your customers well and always focusing on excellent customer service. Changing your range of products or just your window display on a regular basis will also encourage regular customers to pop back in. To incentivise customer loyalty, set up a simple loyalty scheme using a basic postcard or business card for them to collect “stamps”. After multiple purchases, reward loyal customers with a free cup of coffee or discount voucher etc.
COST: <£100

6. Shout about your expertise
Expertise and advice is one of the key selling points for independent retailers. Use it to leverage more customers away from larger chain stores who offer little expertise in customer service. Enhance the message by running workshops, speaking to groups or getting involved in special events that further distinguish your offer for example a restaurant could participate in the Norwich Wine Festival to show that they have a real interest in good wines.
COST: FREE

7. Engage with existing customers
Engagement is a key word in modern marketing - get your customers involved in your business so that they feel a part of it. Ask them to help you to choose your new product range by welcoming suggestions for new products. Use a customer newsletter (email or printed) to share expertise and further engage with your customers and their lifestyle. A newsletter might include:
Top tip or fashion trend (with illustrated example from your shop ideally)
Info about events in the Lanes, diary dates
Latest news from the shop – new product ranges with pics
Staff news/updates
Topical national news that can be adapted to your shop eg BBC2 Queen of Shops programme
Seasonal news (eg Christmas products, Summer etc)
Contact information
Discount voucher or special offer
COST: Basic e-newsletter <£50 - more professional options around £150

8. Use social media
Social media provides a wide range of opportunities to promote your message via the internet and is a lot more localised than you might expect so it definitely has value for local businesses. Most of it is free too which is great, though it can be costly in terms of time! Use a Facebook business page to reach your customers – post photos of products, updates from in store and news. Twitter is a popular choice for broadcasting short sales messages and engaging in conversation. This is where a lot of people go to seek advice as well so if you are in on the conversation then you can help people and this helpfulness is a key principle of online brand building.
COST: Free (time only)

9. Get in the news
Look for free publicity opportunities in your target media – local newspapers or BBC Radio Norfolk are a great place to start. Read and listen and look for opportunities to get involved by approaching them about new products or interesting news that you think will interest their readers. This type of publicity is free but again can be time intensive. Use the seasons or national events - a Norwich fish & chip shop might use National Chip Week to hang a story from - and start building relationships with local journalists.
COST: Free

10. Its nice in the niche
Be clear about your unique selling points (USPs) and carve your niche carefully. Too narrow and there may not be enough customers to sustain you but too broad and customers wont understand what you stand for or what they can buy from you. This includes keeping your product range tight and “on topic” – be very ruthless with product ranges and don’t let it all get too vague. By all means be creative and diversify but make sure that there is always some logic behind your product choices. Think carefully about your customers and ensure that they would be interested in most/all of your range.
COST: Free