FORTUNE Small Business:

Tips for a local marketing campaign

Search engine marketing can still be useful for targeting local prospects, according to Ask FSB's expert.

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Ask FSB
Get small-business intelligence from the experts. Here's a chance for YOU to ask your pressing small-business questions, and FSB editors will help you get answers from the appropriate experts.
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(FORTUNE Small Business) -- Dear FSB: I am co-owner of a fairly new company that helps companies get better pricing for the products and services they currently use. In effect, we enable you to outsource your purchasing department. Since we do a personal assessment of our customer companies, our business to date, is in the local market. What is the best way to market our services locally? Is online marketing still a viable option?

- Alecia Chrin, Macungie, Pa.

Dear Alecia: Online marketing could definitely be a powerful tool, but it should be only one part of a multi-faceted marketing campaign, according to Angela Morsa, president of the Philadelphia chapter of the American Marketing Association and president of Active Integrated Marketing, an agency that focuses on lead generation for clients in Glenside, Pa.

Morsa suggests investigating search engine marketing. "Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) and Yahoo (YHOO, Fortune 500) and business.com can all set up their programs for local searches," she says. "In conjunction, I'd absolutely set up a Web site capable of capturing leads, so your sales people can turn them into new business. I'd also recommend some heavy direct mail to prospects.

"Partner with a good marketing agency to identify the best route for your specific business," she says. "Find one that understands your target market and how to reach them."

When shopping for agencies, "the biggest thing is chemistry," Morsa says. "It's like any other kind of relationship. Think about whether you'd enjoy working with these people."

Once you find your marketing partners, work together to create a strategic marketing plan. "It's the most important thing you'll do," Morsa says. "That way you'll have a road map with clear budgets and ways to measure future success." To top of page

Have you had a bad experience with a marketing agency? What techniques do you use to market locally? Talk back here.

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Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.