How marketers can drive growth for SMEs

One way marketers can drive growth in SME is by developing a strong brand identity.

SME marketers can play a crucial role in driving growth for their companies. With their skills, strategic mindset, and customer-centric approach, these marketers can propel their organisations forward.

There are a number of ways that marketers can drive growth. One way is by developing a strong brand identity. A strong brand can help stand out from the competition and attract new customers. Another way is to focus on customer acquisition and retention. This can be done through a variety of marketing channels, such as search engine optimisation (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, and social media marketing.

More specifically, the following strategic steps will be helpful for marketers:

• Developing a customer-centric strategy: marketers can drive growth by developing and executing customer-centric strategies. They should conduct thorough market research to understand customer needs, preferences, and behaviours, segment the target audience, and implement marketing initiatives such as personalised emails and advertising, and customised product offerings. They should also focus on delivering exceptional, personalised customer experiences across all touch points.

The Dollar Shave Club, a subscription-based shaving kit company in the US, disrupted the traditional shaving industry by focussing on a very specific customer need and convenience — the regular replenishment of shaving and grooming supplies, with a touch of pampering. Their customer-centric approach, coupled with humorous and engaging marketing campaigns, led to rapid growth and a successful acquisition by Unilever.

• Leveraging digital marketing: marketers should harness the power of digital marketing to reach a wider audience, build brand awareness, and drive growth. Using blogs, social media, and videos, they should create engaging content that resonates with the target audience, and establish thought leadership and drive brand visibility. Marketers should implement SEO best practices and optimise website content to improve search engine rankings and increase organic traffic.Airbnb, which started off as a small business, used content marketing to drive growth. They created a blog called "Airbnb Magazine," that featured travel guides, insider tips, and stories. This content-driven approach not only attracted new users but also positioned it as a trusted travel portal.
• Embracing data-driven decision making: data-driven decision making enables marketers to optimise their strategies, allocate resources effectively, and drive growth. They utilise web analytics tools to track and analyse key metrics such as website traffic, conversion rates, and customer engagement. They use insights from these to identify opportunities, optimise campaigns, and allocate marketing budgets wisely.

Key to customer retention

Marketers conduct A / B tests to compare different marketing approaches and drive performance, as also to see which creative and call-to-action work best.

Swiggy and Zomato continuously analyse customer data, including dietary restrictions / preferences, ordering patterns, etc., to personalise their offerings, and improve customer retention and growth.

SME marketers can also drive growth by developing new products and services, and by expanding to new geographies. While these carry risks, they can also be very profitable. If a business is able to successfully enter a new market whether by way of a new product or geography expansion, it can tap into a new pool of customers and grow its revenues.