Five Offline Advertising Mantras for Startups

The stream of business is ever demanding. People in the marketing department of a business startup have to be on their toes to stay abreast the rapidly changing marketing trends and consumer behavior. This is to be backed up with creativity and a lot of quick-witted advertising tactics. Amongst a number of challenges a startup faces, competition from established counterparts and other new players entering the market can pose a threat. Therefore, it becomes imperative for a startup to be more considerate towards its marketing and advertising techniques.

A decent online marketing strategy is essential for a brand to get noticed. However, digital marketing is not the only way to muster customer attention. There are potent offline advertising strategies that give better brand recognition and consumer response. If you haven't considered taking up offline marketing, give a boost to your startup with the following five mantras:

1. Outdoor Advertising 

- Outdoor advertising is fundamentally meant to publicize your business. There are a number of touch points using which you can expose your business to the public such as billboards, taxis and business vehicles, exteriors of buses, etc. Out of these, putting billboards on high traffic areas of a city is a significant way to catch attention. Digital billboards score even more on the attention meter. While attaining billboard space is not easy and reasonable but it is worth it given the kind of brand exposure it gives. Roam around your city and you will find McDonald's, Subway, Pepsi and adverts of telecom companies gleaming on the billboards.

2. Flyers, 

-pamphlets & catalogues - These seem to be quite old adverts. However, they do get results. The thing to be taken care with them is not to miss out on the creativity. Rather, try putting in some exceptional creativity on these print materials. Flyers should be in the form of informative info-graphics to catch the readers' attention seamlessly. Some marketing gurus underrate this form of advertising in this internet-age, but remember; there are people who happily welcome and read "glossy papers" (what flyers and pamphlets are colloquially called). Flyers, pamphlets and catalogues have a unique audience of their own and they don't much bother the expense sheet. Cosmetic giants like Lakme and Oriflame utilize this form of advertising and benefit from it.

3. Trade Shows 

- Participation in trade shows is another potential way to enhance brand recognition and creating leads. Trade shows offer a great platform to display your product range, target a specific stratum of audience, sell the products and create leads within few days. Discounts and free samples offered while the trade show is on will make people flock towards your brand. Trade shows are also a great way to boost a business via word of mouth since happy customers captured on a trade show are bound to talk about the brand / product with others in their social network.

4. Paper cup advertising 

- Paper cup advertising surmounts many other offline advertising techniques. Probably, this is the only form of offline advertisement technique which offers undivided brand exposure. While other offline and even online ads have considerable chances of getting unnoticed, this form of advertisement promises high engagement of the targeted audience. A paper cup can be used to get an ad printed on it. This may include a company's logo, contact number, website address, a crisp punch line, a call to action sometimes accompanied with a discount coupon code for a product or service, etc. An easy to carry cup becomes an effective ad on the go since it accommodates nub of the message a company intends to convey.

Why paper cup advertising promises undivided user engagement?

Paper cups are a common sight in corporate offices, eateries, school and college canteens, small food joints, etc. At every place these cups are used, people are bound to spend time while consuming their beverages or maybe even water. Everybody spends time having a cup of coffee or a cold drink. Don't they? So, if a cup in their hand is bedecked with striking graphics and crisp words depicting a company's objective, it surely gets noticed. With paper cup advertising, the exposure time of a brand and its message is high. It is within this timeframe that ad on the paper cup effectively plays its part.

How a startup can use it?

Printed paper cups can be distributed at popular places like corporate offices, food joints, restaurants, shopping stores, school and college canteens, etc. where they are likely to come in contact with loads of people the advert is being aimed at. However, it is recommended to consult an expert cup advertising team to carry out a successful campaign. Startups like Scripbox (investment consultants), NestAway (a company that provides houses for tenants), Chillr (a money transfer app), etc. have consulted GingerCup to use paper cup advertising to their advantage.

5. Branded Merchandise 

- Away from the din of other marketing techniques, a startup can make optimal use of branded merchandise. In that context, company's logo or a one liner to heighten its impact can be printed on small useful merchandise like pens, diaries, mouse pads, etc. that could be distributed on charity events and can be donated to local organizations. Doing this, a company projects itself in a positive light and harvests bigger benefits in the long run.