Marketing will always be a major activity for any business. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), however, the entrepreneurs may feel like they won’t be able to grab a bigger market share than their large competitors with bigger budgets. This also holds true for SMEs doing vape shop marketing. This shouldn’t be the case though, as the best strategy is to ensure that your vape marketing practices can effectively capture your target market even with zero or minimal budget.
So what are the effective ways in marketing an online vape shop or a brick-and-mortar one?
Entice people to subscribe to your email newsletter
Contrary to common misconception due to the popularity of social media these days, email marketing is still considered to be an effective strategy today according to many companies. When you want to grow your vape shop, an email newsletter allows you to directly inform interested subscribers about availability of new products and special deals.
How to collect email addresses with consent?
- A subscription option on your website’s checkout page
- A guestbook in the cashier area of your physical shop
- Product discounts or free samples in exchange of email address
Choose the right social media platform
There are over 200 online social platforms today but it doesn’t mean you have to use them all for your vape shop marketing strategies. Instead, you should identify the social platform that most of your target audiences are using. Running and maintaining a social media profile is free but you’ll have to shell out some money if you decide to run ads.
Have a dedicated website with a blog
Whether you opt for a free hosting platform or invest in premium full web development services, having your own website is a step closer to boosting your visibility when people search for vape products and services online. Unlike your social profile pages, your website allows you to implement the right search engine optimisation strategies on your pages and blog articles so you can strengthen your presence on search engines.
Promote links of your online profiles and website on every marketing channel
For online marketing, this means that your website’s footer and your social media descriptions should list all the links to ensure cross-platform visibility. On the other hand, traditional channels where your links should be listed include the back of your receipts, labels on shopping bags, outdoor signage, newspaper and magazine ads, and billboards.
Make use of niche websites and magazines for vapers
Just like ensuring that the social platform to use is where most of your target audience can be found, promoting your products through article submissions or paid ads on vaping websites and niche magazines (both printed and digital) is an effective marketing move since these platforms already cater to your target market, and thus, can help in boosting your brand.
Conclusion
Vape shop marketing doesn’t have to cost so much especially for SMEs. With the practical tips offered above, you can be sure of turning your target market into loyal customers without the high expenses.