• Marketing strategies that help you stand out from other local retail businesses?

A marketing strategy that will stand out from other ‘local’ retail businesses is one that can be successfully executed. Sorry, but I'm not really sure what that means? Big national retailers have lots of bucks and lots of people who’ve been developing marketing strategies for a long, long time. You don’t and neither do your local competitors. You need to make every penny count and that means avoiding the trap of coming up with an ‘I’m doing backflips’ marketing strategy that you don’t have the bucks or the horses to execute properly. With that in mind:

1. Dare to be different – (yes in the words of Trout and Ries, “Differentiate or DIE!”) even if it means different in what might seem to be a dangerous way. If you don’t dare to take a risk, you’ll never differentiate yourself. Odds are, none of your local competitors will. Your larger regional or national competitors don’t have to take risks – they’re loaded and have a national brand reputation to lean on.
2. As a local retailer, your marketing strategy should embrace your ‘localness’. Don’t even try to be like the big boys. Most people will see through it and consider it either an act of desperation of simply pathetic. Be proud to be local. Build your marketing plan around the community, the things that matter to it and especially the things that matter to your customers.
3. Customer loyalty brand strategy. Most local retailers work harder and spend more on trying to get new customers and work less and spend less on trying to keep the ones who come into the store or visit the site happy. Don’t you hate it when a company you’ve been loyal to for years offers ‘new customer only’ promotions? (note I will not mention AT&T here.) A bird in the hand really is worth more than a bird flying around out there who may or may not land in your nest. Plus, when you treat your current customers right, have exclusive offers ‘just for them’ and keep them engaged – they tell others. A happy, satisfied customer is the best ‘new customer’ advertising medium in the world.