How to Market Better to Small Businesses in under 60 seconds

Tight for time? Then this checklist is for you – how to build stronger rapports with small business owners, in ten bite-size chunks.

  1. Look beyond firmographics
    Don’t forget the human stuff when segmenting. Try psychographics, which look at buyers’ emotional drivers
  2.  Go visit people
    Face-to-face meetings build stronger connections than phone calls and emails ever can.
  3. Stop selling, start helping
    Small business owners feel swamped. Help solve their problems and the sales will follow.
  4. Support networking events
    Offer a space to meet. Run workshops. Invite like-minded businesses to join. That help thing again.
  5. Deliver on your promises
    One minor blip can easily become a relationship-ending fail. Do exactly what you say you’ll do. Never over-promise.
  6. Work with communities
    Do your bit on the ground. It humanises your brand, builds trust and strengthens bonds with small-business owners.
  7. Be a trusted adviser
    A well-informed sales rep who has the buyer’s interests at heart, not the brand’s, can be the clincher.
  8. Know what’s at stake
    Empathy matters. Never forget that small-business owners put their whole world on the line. Every single day.
  9. Remember who’s the expert
    Don’t tell owners what’s best for their business. They already know. Ask what you can do to help.
  10. Ditch the jargon
    No one trusts it. Everyone hates it. A sure-fire way to lose a buyer’s interest. To lose anyone’s interest.

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