Expand Your Marketing Efforts Offline

Building your online brand is important, but that doesn't mean traditional, offline marketing efforts should be abandoned. It's easy to write off old-school marketing tools as outdated, but then you'll also be missing out on a number of audiences you might not be reaching online. This post from Small Business Trends offers five offline strategies to help your business get noticed in the real world.

Networking: It's not what you know, but who you know. We've all heard this and although there are exceptions to this belief, it usually rings true. Get out there and start forming relationships. You never know when they might pay off.

Flyers: One of the oldest marketing strategies, flyers can be an effective option when you need to get the word out to as many people locally as possible. Though printing and distributing can be costly, flyers are a method to consider it you have an event or a specific promotion coming up.

Business Cards: A must for any small business owner. You may give the most memorable pitch in the world but new contacts probably won't remember your email address and phone number. Help potential customers and investors remember your name by handing out business cards to everyone you meet.

Newsletters: Think of these as flyers targeted to a specific audience. Newsletters can be a great way to give your regular customers business updates and tips about upcoming promotions.

Sponsorship: Everybody likes businesses that give back to their communities. Whether you're buying the uniforms for a local little league team or donating goods or services for a school event, getting your business's name out there in such a favorable light will likely lead to loyal customers and a spike in sales. The karma points don't hurt either!

Add these offline marketing strategies to your current online efforts to make sure your messages are reaching as many people as possible. Read the full post from Small Business Trends here.