Published 18 August 2014

Many of us in the startup community are fluent in the language of marketing our brands online. We’ve built optimized social media pages, websites, and landing pages designed to lead users to convert. Some of us have advertised on Google and Bing, setup retargeting campaigns and sent out dozens of emails.

So question is, now what? Where can your marketing go from here? Should you throw a flash mob? Hire a spokesperson? Have a sweepstakes? If you’re considering the next step, take a moment to consider some of these to little known ways to market your startup.

Build The Community Around Your Audience

Picture your target audience. Who are they? A community of young early adopters? A group of high powered venture capitalists? Every mom from here to New York? Whoever they are, rather than fighting against dozens of other startups for their attention, invite your audience to come to you. There are a number of ways to use your startup as a catalyst for your audience to come together. Consider the following:

1. Start a Group:

Start a LinkedIn/Facebook group about a common interest related to your business. For example, if you are trying to reach first time moms, start a Facebook group or page called, “Mothers Giving Tips to First Time Moms.” Then work within your personal network and existing brand audience to grow it and cultivate engagement. The same principle applies to LinkedIn. Would you like to reach the startup community? Start a LinkedIn group called, “Lesser Known Ways to Market a Startup.”

2. Get (a little) Competitive:

Sometimes the best way to engage others is in friendly competition. Offer your audience a chance to compete against each other in fun, low intensity competitions. This could be outdoor fun like a kickball league, or indoor fun like Fantasy Football. It doesn’t have to be sports related, and could be as old school as a “New Moms Monopoly Night” or “Startups Poker Night” (Hosted by your company).

3. Throw a Party:

This is the probably the most popular option when it comes to community building. Whether it’s an official launch party or not, dozens of local bars and restaurants will be more than happy to help you throw an industry event if it means bringing in a paying crowd on an off night. Just make sure you do the marketing basics – get emails and other details about attendees so they can convert to become customers rather than just drink your booze.

Be a Thought Leader (No Really)

Yeah, we are sick of the term “Thought Leader” as well. But there is something to getting out in front of audiences and demonstrating your expertise. Whether you realize it or not, at this point you know a lot about at least several topics related to your startup. Consider seeking opportunities to demonstrate this knowledge, including:

4. Give a Talk:

Your first reaction might be “What qualifies me to give a talk?” To a room full of business or marketing students anxious for some real world perspective, your experience and insights could be truly eye-opening. There are likely at least a dozen MBA or graduate marketing programs in your area that would be more than happy to have a professional come in to address their students. Not only will leading the talk open up your startup to a community of interested individuals, it will also build your resume as a thought leader in your industry.

5. Submit a Guest Blog Post:

The truth is many blogs are hungry for original content. In many cases it doesn’t take more than a well written, relevant, original post to get published on the top blogs with relevance to your audience. Sure it is a gamble, but on the other hand it probably won’t take you that long to write a compelling post.

6. Launch Awareness PR Campaign:

No, don’t launch a PR campaign about your brand – but instead consider the costs of your audience not supporting your startup. Launch an awareness campaign about the issues in your industry. In many cases journalists and bloggers are more willing to cover the work you are doing if it is for a good cause. Be a leader – fight for what’s right.

Be Extremely, Maybe Even Overly, Transparent

The story of your young business is a good one. It has twists and turns, successes and failures, and characters that a reader could really get behind. Why not share this story with the world in the form of a blog?

You don’t have to be the greatest storyteller in the world, just be honest. Let readers know what’s going on behind the scenes of your startup. Include photos and videos. It might even be worth it to do a podcast once in a while. Keep it professional, but not TOO professional. Just remember to keep it positive. It’s ok to discuss failures, but always frame the posts as “learning from mistakes”. Never bash your neighbors or a supplier who let you down, but congratulate them when things go well. The truth is the world rewards authenticity. So take the risk and be authentic. It’ll be uncomfortable, but can pay off with a big audience.

Old Fashioned Communication – Really

Email blasts are easy to send, but also easy to ignore. Writing a handwritten thank you note to an important individual who attended one of your events takes time but makes a real impact. Too often these days, we rely on marketing automation to do the work for us. These tactics are informal, impersonal, and often downright forgettable. Not only do you likely remember the last handwritten note you received, but you also probably told a friend or two about it.

Here are a few more old school tactics that can bring big impact to your marketing efforts:

7. Tell Everyone About Your Startup:

This may seem obvious, but you would be surprised how many entrepreneurs clam up in social situations. Tell your friends, family, tell the mailman next time you say hello. You never know who might be the guy, or know the guy, the takes your startup to the mainstream. One of the best ways to do this is by offering a “friends and family” discount. Another is to hold an open house at your office or place of work. Create opportunities for your personal network to engage in positive ways and chances are they will. Don’t be annoying, but don’t forget passive opportunities either. What does your email signature say? What about on your personal email address?

8. Be a Super Connector:

It’s always great to make a new friend or business contact. If you have two contacts who you think should meet, introduce them. Not only will they be happy to have the new contact, but they will always think of you as the common link, and someday may return the favor. People value connections and the more you can create them the more likely they will be created for you.

9. Pick Up the Phone:

This can be tough. We’re so used to text and emails that the idea of simply cold calling someone (or even stopping by) makes us feel anxious. The truth is, one personal phone call can do the job of 10 emails back and forth. While it may feel like a bold move, a quick phone call really is the most effective and easy way to get real business done. Been relying on email to grow your business? Dive it and make some calls. You’ll learn very quickly what customer objections are and what it takes to grow your brand.

Got another little known way to market a startup? Have anything to add to the above? Leave it in the comments.