Small Business Ideas

Promotional IDEAS for Business

Since more and more small businesses battle over the same clientele each year, finding new and effective promotional ideas that work to target those customers is critical. The line between success and failure often comes down to promotion – it’s as simple as that. So how do you tackle the challenge of getting people to find out about your service or product?

Sometimes all you need is a good idea to give your business a promotional boost. Here are 80 simple ways to help thrust your product or organization into the spotlight.

Sales promotion ideas

These are techniques that involve making a product or service more accessible or affordable, or simply adding value.

1. Have a sale – You can offer a holiday or other discount to either the general public or your best customers. Just be careful not to offer too many; your customers might begin to wait for a sale instead of buying things at regular price.
2. Hold a contest – Offer to automatically enter your customers into a contest when they make a purchase. You could also offer your product as the price for one being held by other small businesses. Either way, make sure that the contest revolves around you and your product.
3. Give something away for free – Hand out samples of your product, promotional products branded with your logo, or other gifts at a key location. This lets people experience what you have to offer first-hand at a key location.
4. Frequent shopper cards – Offer customers a discount or free product after they’ve made a specific number of purchases.
5. Give discounts to targeted groups – This could be a specific club or association, or simply a group of people who have attended a specific event.
6. Offer a trade-in – Reward customer loyalty by encouraging them to trade in their old product for a discount on something new.
7. Point-of-sale displays – Present your in-store products in an unusual way. Stack them in a huge pyramid, or use oddly shaped signs. If you have a window out front, create a wacky display using mannequins or other fun objects.
8. Offer free shipping – The word “free” is always attractive to customers, and free shipping is usually a reasonable discount.
9. Offer easy payments or installment plans – These are simple ideas that attract customers by making your products more affordable.
10. Offer a group or referral discount – These are the sort of discounts that get people talking. Encourage customers to share a deal with others, and they’ll do the promotional work for you.
11. Bundle products or services together – Package no-selling products with your more popular products. Giving a customer more for less both encourages them to buy and clears your idle inventory.
12. Upsell – Highlight your...