Due to its low cost and direct access to consumers, social media is often touted as the cornerstone of any successful marketing strategy. However, relying solely on platforms like X and Instagram may not be the right fit for every business, especially considering how ever-changing algorithms and user behavior can be. If you’re looking for alternatives, don’t worry—there are still plenty of other effective ways to promote your company and build strong relationships with your target clients without having to go all in on social media.
Word of mouth is one of the oldest forms of marketing, dating back long before even print advertising, and it remains among the most reliable. After all, there is perhaps no greater trustworthy source for a potential customer regarding the value of a product, service, or overall brand than the endorsement of someone they know and like.
To capitalize on this, focus on delivering products or services that routinely exceed expectations. By working to ensure a positive experience in all interactions with your business—whether that means revisiting your employee training program or finding areas to improve your website—you can foster strong, loyal relationships with your existing customers. In turn, they may instinctively tout your organization to others, eager to share what they love about you.
If you’d like to incentivize them further to become vocal brand advocates, a great way to do so is through a referral program. For instance, you could offer a discount or free product for each successful referral, which can have your clients jumping to spread the word. (As a bonus, it may even foster greater repeat business from them.)
Though an equally old-school approach, you can’t go wrong with networking to build relationships and generate leads. Joining local, regional, and national business organizations, attending trade shows, and participating in industry conferences and events will generate numerous opportunities for interactions with potential clients and business partners. And unlike the impersonal nature of digital platforms, getting face-to-face with these individuals will allow for more authentic connections that may ultimately lead to future deals and collaboration.
Forming community ties can also help promote your brand to those in your surrounding area. Wherever you’re located, get in the habit of joining nearby charity events, sponsoring neighborhood activities, or partnering with other local businesses to cross-promote your services or products. Such active participation establishes goodwill and demonstrates your commitment to your town—all while getting your name out there—which could encourage others to want to buy from or work with you in the future.
Speaking of local connections, though digital advertising continues to dominate, print materials such as direct mail are still highly effective for many enterprises. If your primary target market is in your immediate area, this tactic can provide substantial visibility for greater brand recognition without too much of a cost.
For instance, a lawn-care service seeking new clients could send targeted postcards or leave flyers in the community recreation center to get in front of their ideal audience. Meanwhile, a financial advisor specializing in retirement strategies may find success posting ads in the local newspaper, a medium many older individuals still enjoy. These avenues establish a physical presence and local credibility you can’t necessarily achieve with social media, leaving a lasting impression with potential customers.
While it may not be as flashy as social media, email can still be valuable since it allows you to send personal content directly to your audience. As an example, a targeted campaign giving tips for tackling a common pain point your customers face will deliver highly relevant content they may be grateful for, making your brand more memorable and strengthening their bond to it.
To get started, build your list by creating an item of value, such as a free e-book or exclusive discount, and offer it through your website in exchange for an email address—you want the giveaway to be something that will attract people but also leave them wanting more. Then craft emails that are informative (about your products or services, upcoming sales, industry insights, etc.) and visually appealing. Just make sure not to send them too frequently since not many customers will want to get a new email from you every day. It’s also a good idea to segment your list so you can craft tailored messages for specific audiences, increasing the chances of conversions.
SEO is a critical tool for any business and can actually drive more traffic to your organization than social media. If potential customers are seeking products or services like yours, you want to guarantee that your website appears at the top of their list of results. This means optimizing its content, structure, and performance to ensure that search engines like Google can easily index it and rank it for relevant keywords. The higher your site ranks, the more likely it is to get on customers’ radar.
It may seem like social media is the be-all and end-all for marketing, but that’s not necessarily the case. By strategically incorporating other methods into the mix, you can open up even more avenues for people to become raving fans of your company.
TAKE ACTION:
Examine your current marketing strategies, and see if any of the above tactics would allow you to better connect with potential customers.
Long before the Industrial Revolution and the internet, one industry dominated the country’s landscape: farming. In fact, 90 percent of the population lived on farms back in the 1700s. And though this number has dwindled since, the USDA’s latest America’s Farms and Ranches at a Glance report indicates that there are still approximately 1.9 million farms in America today, with nearly 97 percent of them owned by families. When you look at the challenges and rewards of modern farming, you can gain a greater appreciation for the innovative spirit of those in this essential field.
Much like any other businesspeople, our agriculturists face numerous trials, some of which would test even the most seasoned entrepreneur.
Uncertainty
Risk seems to be in never-ending supply in this sector. For example, success largely depends on the weather, a fact made even more critical when you consider that many farms are already seasonal. And if that weren’t enough, farming is highly subject to market fluctuations.
Money
Because of such volatility, farming revenue can be inconsistent and profit margins tight; the venture tends to have a lower ROI than in other industries as well. Another huge factor in all these money concerns is the complex American agricultural system, which involves many channels and great distances—our food travels between 1,300 and 1,500 miles on average to get to our tables. Because of this, a mere 15 percent of customer food spending makes it to those who grow the crops, per the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Time
Long hours are the norm for farmers, rivaling those of many entrepreneurs. “We juggle a lot,” says Katey Evans, who owns Evans Farms with her husband, Kevin, in Bridgeville, Delaware. “Kevin and I regularly work eighteen-hour days and almost seven days a week. We have three kids, and sometimes even family time becomes work time. At night, I’m on the phone, researching, doing social media, or texting our vendors for orders for the next day. Kevin sets his alarm clock for the middle of the night to check on irrigation. I tell people that we don’t sleep much; we just nap.”
Despite the inherent and new challenges in the twenty-first century, the appeal of farm life persists. Here are just a few reasons why.
Self-sufficiency
While being a farmer isn’t totally self-sufficient, these businesspeople are close to it: living on their own land and running their own enterprises while making all the critical decisions. The results of their effort can make the venture even more worth it (though the payoff can vary widely based on the size and type of farm, of course). For example, the USDA predicts the average net cash farm income to be almost $129,000 this year, an over 11 percent increase from 2024.
A greater purpose
“Make a difference” is a sentiment that’s incorporated into most companies’ mission statements, but arguably no profession personifies this like agriculture. It is a rare dynamic where your hard work helps people survive—it’s estimated that each American farm feeds 169 people around the world annually. In addition, family farming fosters, if not necessitates, closer-knit community ties by nature and allows you to sit back during your downtime and enjoy the wide-open space that is your homestead.
Legacy
Agricultural entrepreneurs thrive on building something that becomes a lasting legacy. As mentioned earlier, most ranches have been family owned for generations, and passing down property and knowledge continues not only a farm’s hard-earned reputation for production and reliability but also, in many cases, a family’s name. Similarly, sustainable agriculture is a growing trend, meaning that best practices are being used to minimize the impact on the environment, potentially increase income for farmers, and better guarantee food availability in the future.
If you have considered the farm life or are just starting out, it’s vital that you adopt a businessperson’s mindset. As Dr. Cindy Ayers-Elliott, owner of Jackson, Mississippi’s community-focused Foot Print Farms, succinctly told Heifer USA, “I don’t care if you’ve been in business for one month or twenty years—you need to be looking at everything it takes for you to get from seed to sales.”
Formulating a solid business plan is a must for staying on top of your responsibilities rather than being overwhelmed by them. Think about your goals, and determine how they’ll mesh with your chosen market. Then calculate what kind of initial investment is needed and develop a budget, assessing your likely expense and income categories. And don’t neglect to establish key relationships and possibly hire workers.
Concerning the ample financial risk involved, you can take steps to mitigate it. Sound fiscal management from the get-go helps, such as starting small and earning proof of concept before allocating for growth. Minimizing debt as much as possible is also ideal, though it isn’t always completely avoidable. If you need to borrow, consider contacting the USDA about its various agricultural loans to get vital financing.
In addition, farmers today are finding that, much like a stock portfolio, having a diversified portfolio of products can pay dividends—and they are getting more creative than ever with their offerings. As an example, Ayers-Elliott, who has long incorporated agritourism into her business, started an ag-education podcast for greater reach. And several years ago, Evans Farms launched The Frozen Farmer to make ice cream and sorbet with its unused “ugly” fruit, which led to a Shark Tank deal and national distribution.
In the end, the agricultural path isn’t for everyone. It requires seeds of passion, steadfast commitment, and wise business practices—but the harvest is also often more meaningful than any other entrepreneurial venture. Evans perhaps summarizes the business of farming best: “Work is life to us, and life is work; farm and family are one and the same. No day ever seems like ‘work,’ though, when you love what you do as much as we do. I couldn’t see myself doing anything else.”
Content marketing has become a powerful tool for businesses to expand their reach and engage with their audience, especially in recent years. And one option for achieving these aims is gaining significant traction: Substack. This newsletter-based platform offers a unique approach that differs from traditional blogs and social media, allowing creators to publish and even monetize their work. Leverage its tremendous potential, and you can establish authority in your field while building a loyal community in an underutilized space.
Substack makes it simple to upload and share written, audio, and video content that suits your marketing goals. Once you make an account, you’ll set up a page, called your “publication,” where all your posts will be found. Give it a catchy name, decide your URL domain (unique to each user), and customize it from a selection of templates; adding details such as categories and an About page will also help you brand your Substack and shape your audience’s expectations of what they can gain from it. Readers can access your publication via a shareable URL—which you can post on social media and embed into your business’s website—and then scroll through all available materials as if reading a blog.
The crown jewel of this platform, though, is its email newsletter capabilities. Everything you post to your publication can also be sent directly to interested individuals, including those from an existing mailing list and those who choose to subscribe. All you need to do is create and upload content, and Substack will handle delivery, automatically notifying your contacts when you post updates.
Your publication and newsletters will be free by default, and people don’t need a Substack account to visit or subscribe, making your content accessible to a wide audience. You also have the option, though, of putting all or even just some of it behind a paid subscription. By designating certain posts as exclusive, you can earn both extra income and guaranteed invested followers.
There are various ways in which Substack could benefit your business, the first being direct audience engagement. Unlike social media sites that employ algorithms to determine visibility (even when it comes to followed accounts), it delivers content directly to subscribers’ inboxes, ensuring that those who wish to view your articles, videos, and more can consistently do so. And while Substack is primarily a newsletter platform, your publication will be discoverable on Google, making it possible for new readers to find you organically. Additionally, the site makes it easy to share excerpts on social media, repurpose newsletters as website blog posts, and utilize its email newsletters as extensions of your broader email marketing campaigns.
Further, using Substack’s subscription features to sell premium, exclusive content has boundless potential—think videos that promote upcoming events, live webinars, and teasers for products in the works. You could even generate more personalized content; for example, a landscaper could upload plant-of-the-month videos, indicating to subscribers why certain species are ideal for the local climate and how they add stylish appeal to any home garden.
Should you choose to pursue this avenue, be transparent on your publication’s About page regarding the costs and benefits of subscribing and make it a top priority to craft high-quality and subscriber-focused media. If you want to see membership fees start to roll in, advertise in your free posts what’s available in your paid ones and tease occasional complimentary content, like one free video per month. Such approaches can help you foster strong relationships and, eventually, a loyal subscriber base that returns often to engage with your brand. This essentially means that you’ll be paid to market your organization.
Because your goal with Substack should be to nurture subscriber engagement, your content should always aim to either educate, entertain, or endear visitors. Here are some ideas for accomplishing each:
In particular, sharing your expert insights in an appealing way will help position your business as an authority in your field, boosting public trust in your brand. But whatever you post on the platform, always keep the audience’s value in mind: Why should they read, watch, or listen, and what can they gain from doing so? Striking the right balance between informative and promotional content is key since overly sales-driven messaging can put off subscribers.
With written content, for example, consider formatting it similarly to blogs, which typically introduce a topic, dive deep into it, and then conclude with a call to action that directs the reader to consider your products or services. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean it always has to be long; vary the length of your content, alternating between longer essay-like posts and Substack Notes, short-form pieces meant to share quick discernments or make audience shout-outs.
And remember one of the simplest keys to fostering engagement: be conversational. Encourage members to post comments, respond to their thoughts frequently, and even invite them to submit queries for Q and A posts—this will not only nurture a sense of community but also further increase the value subscribers gain from your content.
To help ensure long-term success, analyze all relevant metrics for your Substack by checking individual post statistics on your Posts page. Among other data, you can review total views, open rates, and link clicks. Likewise, monitor your subscriber growth to gauge the effectiveness of all your promotional efforts. Pay attention to feedback, whether through direct responses or comment sections, and you can continually refine your marketing approach to deliver the content that will best resonate with your target audience.
For more info, visit substack.com
TAKE ACTION:
Discuss your marketing goals with your team, then list ways that you could roll out these initiatives on Substack.
Referral sources are like having unpaid salespeople—they can promote your products and services, inspire trust in your brand, and help connect you with potential customers you might not have reached on your own. However, choosing the right people to enlist as brand advocates isn’t always easy. Referral expert Dan Allison, founder of the Advisory Development Community and The Exchange, offers his advice, sharing the traits he instructs professionals to seek in clients and tips for fostering those relationships to generate greater referral activity.
When identifying suitable referral sources for your company, focus on the following characteristics. Even if someone doesn’t possess all five, having the first two will increase their ability to provide a valuable connection—and with some coaching, you can help them develop the rest.
Comfortable providing referrals
First and foremost is determining who among your most important clients is actually willing to take a leap and make a referral. Allison refers to those who are happy to do so as “gold mines” and those who would never as “land mines.” A simple way to learn which category a person falls into is to ask during an interaction. If they are comfortable with it, you may have found a referral source. But if they aren’t, make a note so you know not to bring it up again to avoid harming that relationship.
Fanatical about your company
Your biggest fans will be some of your best referral sources. These individuals are easy to spot because they’re the ones continually giving repeat business and going out of their way to post reviews. Beyond delivering top-notch services and products, Allison recommends investing time in getting their honest feedback about what is exceeding their expectations and what you can do to improve—in other words, demonstrating appreciation for them and their opinions. “When a client feels valued in all their experiences with you,” he says, “they will confidently take the risk and recommend you to somebody incredibly important to them.”
Knowledgeable about what you have to offer
Of course, it takes more than enthusiasm to be a strong referral source; they also need to be able to articulate your company’s products or services. Allison notes that the average client can only list about 20 percent of the offerings that the business owner would, which could limit the number of referrals that person is able to give. After all, if a friend or family member has a need you can fill but your client doesn’t realize it because they don’t use that service themselves, they won’t think to recommend you.
Further, if they aren’t confident in your value proposition—why you are different from other companies who do what you do—it may be harder for them to give an impactful referral that convinces someone of your worth over your competitors. That’s why you should continually reeducate them on what you offer and why it’s top-notch whenever you see or speak to them to help ensure that this vital information gets and remains locked in.
Aware of your ideal client persona
Similarly, if you expect an existing client to be an effective advocate for your business, you need to make sure they clearly understand the key demographics you’re targeting. And that starts with understanding them yourself. “I see a lot of businesses that can’t really define who their target market is,” Allison says. “What do they look like? What characteristics do they have? And if you can’t say, there’s no way you should expect your clients to be able to.”
Take some time to discern the attributes of your ideal customer: their typical family situation, job, etc. Then subtly work that in during conversations with your clients, such as when emphasizing your value proposition, so they know who, exactly, your company aims to help. This will make it easier for them to recognize which of their connections—from friends to family to colleagues—may benefit from working with you and who to direct their recommendation to.
Willing to be active
A passive interaction where a client shares your contact information may not go anywhere unless there is a sense of urgency. Rather, you want someone who is willing to make a personal introduction, and that may mean discussing various methods with them to decide which will help make doing so the easiest. While such conversations may feel selfish and awkward, they don’t have to be. Allison advises to set aside “I” and “me” statements to focus on the value you provide. “For clients, referrals are truly about being helpful to people they may care about,” he says. “If you frame it that way when asking for one, there is no salesmanship involved in it.”
The process of recognizing ideal referral sources starts with a careful examination of your database. Schedule an in-depth conversation with your top clients to gather feedback and see if they possess, or could develop, the right characteristics. This interaction will not only tell you what they like about your company but may also help build stronger brand loyalty in the process.
After flagging a few potential advocates, you need to continue nurturing these relationships. You can keep your connections strong by:
Identifying your best referral sources could yield a wealth of untapped potential to serve new clients. Initiate steps for enlisting them, and you may just see your business grow by leaps.
TAKE ACTION:
Set up meetings with clients who typify your ideal audience, and assess their ability to provide valuable recommendations.
