Best Small Business Marketing Consultant in Pittsburgh

Myself and the rest of my consultant team at ProStrategix have worked with small businesses on a number of marketing jobs and pitches. But the most common question, whether in Pittsburgh or New York, potential clients is:  

“Why do I need a marketing consultant for my small business?”

Well, the answer is threefold. First, we can help you identify the best target for your business. You can waste a lot of time and money trying to sell to the wrong people. Second, we can help you craft the right message that is motivating to that target. Finally, we can help you choose the right media so that message reaches its intended target.

Marketing Consultants Can Find the Right Audience and Campaigns for Your Pittsburg Small Business

One of the hardest parts of small business marketing is finding the proper audience to target. As a result, both messaging and media buying can be sub-optimal.

According to the Digital Marketing Institute, a digital marketing consultant's skills include strong communication skills, proof of marketing success, marketing automation experience, knowledge of branding, and more.  

Beyond that, there are a few different responsibilities for a marketing consultant to have.

A small business marketing consultant can help find right audience

Identifying an audience for your small business is one of the first skills expected for a marketing consultant, as it should be. Knowing your target well is the most important step in creating effective marketing. 

This isn't just about knowing your audiences' demographics ages, genders, and income level; but it is also about the psychological needs and habits of the types of people who are looking for solutions that your company provides.

Small business marketing consultant build the right message for Pittsburgh

Fundamentally, humans are emotional decision-makers. We like to think we aren't, but emotions have been proven to be more compelling than facts, repeatedly.

Marketing is fundamentally about behavioral change.  By knowing and solving the emotional need that customer has, you can have a more compelling message.

Ultimately, motivators are personal and can vary by region. What people value in Pittsburgh can be very different from those in LA, for instance.

As a result, a small business marketing consultant, who knows the local market well, can help uncover the best motivator for you, versus, just reapplying a result from somewhere else.

Determining the campaigns to run

Since there are so many different types of marketing strategies, it can be hard to pick what is right for you. A full service advertising and marketing agency or consultant can shine, here.

The agency or consultant will determine which platform(s) that are right for you based on your message complexity and your customers' media use.

Again, media consumption is different in different areas. People in the Mon Valley are likely consuming different media than a more educated area like Shadyside or even a high-income area like Pine, for instance.

Small business marketing consultant can find the most cost-effective marketing 

Anyone can run hundreds of campaigns or target the widest audience possible. But a small business marketing consultant has the experience needed to simplify this process, and more importantly, save your money. Since they know your customers' media use, they can provide the most efficient media buying.

Local search and localized, targeted advertising tends to have the best ROI. Therefore, it is important to have a marketing consultant who knows the differences between localities across the Pittsburgh area. Thus, they can guide you the right localities or neighborhoods that are best for you. For example, they would direct a construction company away from McKeesport and towards Cranberry.

Forms of Marketing Consulting to Consider

There are different breeds of marketing consulting firms that your small business might want to hire. Here are some of the most common forms of marketing consultant roles.

1. Client Acquisition Consulting  –  Simply put, this is lead generation. Lead generation is important mostly for expensive service based industries, for example, lawyers, real estate agents, and the like.  
2. SEO Consulting  –  Visibility is important to all small businesses. As a result, all businesses should consider search engine optimization (SEO). By having the proper web design and localized keywords, you are more likely to found in search or on maps.  
3. Social Media Consulting  –  This is critical for Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, for instance. If you're reaching out to people through social media, you'll need the right skill set to interact with your potential customers.  

ProStrategix handles these and other types of small business consulting when it comes to marketing so that we can help you with all of this and more.

Small Business Marketing Consultants for Pittsburgh

In Pittsburgh and similar cities with large small business communities, competition is competition can be tough. Therefore, differentiating your business from the rest in important.  Luckily, this is where small business consultants are most useful.  

When we work with businesses in Pittsburgh, we know that there are important differences to highlight based on the neighborhood, suburb, or even, the whole Greater Pittsburgh area. As a result, we provide specific kinds of help for small businesses across the region geared to meet these challenges.

We take our responsibilities seriously when it comes to your marketing needs. If you want to reach just Squirrel Hill or the entire Greater Pittsburgh region, for instance, we're happy to help.

Final Thoughts

These are 3 reasons to hire a marketing consultant, which, importantly, all boil down to saving you time and growing your sales:

• Find the Right Targets:  If you haven't verify you have the right target, you're likely wasting money. Here, marketing consultants can help you greatly.
• Send the Right Message:  Marketing is about changing behavior. If you message isn't relevant or motivating, you're wasting money. Again, a marketing consultant can fix it.
• Use the Right Media:  Making a small business successful in Pittsburgh is possible! Few cities are so supportive of their home town and shop local. A digital marketing consultant can find the media that your audience uses so you save money.