3 Stages Of Business For Advertising: What Stage Is Your Business?

Today’s topic will be a short one. Identifying the different stages of generating business for your business.

At LSL, our primary clients are small businesses providers and contractors. So oftentimes it is the clients first time advertising or attempting to generate traffic through online channels. With the rising popularity of SEO, search engine optimization, small business owners hop on the search for SEO services. To later be surprised by the costs and time it takes to rank keywords. Giving the bad first impression.

That’s why within our agency, we identify our clients into 3 stages. I believe it would be helpful for small businesses to first identify their stage then proceed to search for the right type of marketing. 

Stage 1: You are a newly developed business, still working on establishing a clientele and finding your market. 

At this stage, you should not be looking for advertising or other avenues to generate more leads. First establish who your market is and identify the niche you are in. 

Stage 2: You have clients and are relying on referrals but ready to expand.

This is the stage when advertising is most suitable. When your business has the capital to advertise without major risk of likelihood, have availability to accept the additional leads, and know who your target audience is. These are the major identifiers for a business that is ready for advertising. 

Stage 3: Have advertising experience, have >1k advertising budget, able to make long term investments. 

At this stage, it consists mostly of seasoned businesses that have a lasting reputation. This stage is best for brand advertising, targeted email marketing campaigns, and SEO. Which is more of a long term approach to acquire additional leads. These leads are often higher in conversion or are simply more cost effective. 

So before you look for advertising options, first identify the stage your business is in. It will save you a lot of time and money before you invest.