The world of marketing is constantly in flux.
For example, in the last five years alone, mobile has majorly shaken up how companies advertise to consumers. Who knows what other changes will come down the pike in the future?
That’s why it’s always advantageous to have some innovative marketing ideas up your sleeve.
The right strategies will put your business in a more competitive position, a must in 2025 when so many companies of all sizes are trying to maximize their marketing.
I know how hard it is to run a small business and try to prioritize your marketing simultaneously, let alone learn new marketing strategies.
In this blog post, we’ll take a look at the different marketing ideas and tactics, the various strategies you can use, and future trends.
Let’s get started!
Table of Contents
Exploring the Different Types of Marketing Strategies
Of course, marketing is a blanket term, wouldn’t you say?
I would, especially considering there are so many types of marketing out there. Here they are for your reference.
Digital marketing
We’re living in an age of digital marketing as we speak. There’s a reason, after all, why business ad spending is projected to cross 1 trillion USD in 2025. As the name implies, digital marketing is about using today’s many digital measures to reach target audiences.
For example, there’s email marketing, SEO, content marketing, social media marketing, not to mention digital advertising. You can post ads on websites, search results pages, email platforms, social media feeds, you name it.
Considering how much of our lives are lived online (the average American will spend 17 to 18 years of their adult lives online if partaking in seven hours of internet usage daily), it only makes sense that digital marketing has become so prevalent.
It’s not the only marketing method businesses use, but it is the dominant one.
Traditional marketing
The more old-school form of marketing is called traditional marketing.
This is still in use today, although it’s primarily been usurped by digital marketing, which is more convenient and often more cost-effective.
The various forms of traditional marketing include broadcasting, radio and television ads, print ads in magazines and newspapers, billboards, and direct mail.
Traditional marketing is an excellent way to stand out in a primarily digital landscape.
However, compared to digital marketing, where you can measure every click and view, it’s more difficult to gauge the success of traditional marketing strategies. You have to hope your marketing message reaches the intended recipient.
Experiential marketing
Experiential marketing is all about creating a memory. Instead of just telling people about your brand, you give them something to feel and talk about.
Take IKEA’s famous Sleepover event. The brand invited a few lucky fans to spend the night inside one of their stores. There were cozy beds, bedtime snacks, and even massages.
It felt like a sleepaway camp for adults, and people could not stop talking about it. It was fun and made customers feel more connected to the brand.
Another great example is augmented reality. Beauty brands now let shoppers try on lipstick or foundation virtually before buying. It takes the guesswork out and makes the shopping experience more personal.
Amazon has a feature that lets you see how furniture would look in your room. These are not just cool tech tricks. They are useful, hands-on ways to build trust and help people feel confident before they buy.
Guerilla marketing
Why not make a splash with guerilla marketing? The whole point is spending as little as possible while still going viral for a crazy infectious marketing technique.
And guerilla marketing doesn’t all have to be cheap shock tactics.
Sometimes, the small and simple things make the most significant difference. For example, do you remember when IHOP was briefly called IHOB, changing its name from the International House of Pancakes to the International House of Burgers?
People were outraged, and rightfully so! And you know what? This guerilla marketing campaign worked because people were so upset. Suddenly, people were talking about IHOP everywhere, including on social media.
Of course, IHOP didn’t leave people in suspense for too long and soon went back to its original P instead of B.
Here are a few guerilla marketing ideas to add to your playbook:
- Do an unconventional giveaway.
- Look for a Guinness World Record you can reasonably break, then do it.
- Change your company name for a holiday or seasonal promotion.
- Create a social movement or join in on a big one.
- Gather a flash mob.
- Host a treasure hunt.
- Take over a public space.
- Go for a publicity stunt.
Influencer and affiliate marketing
The last forms of marketing involve third parties.
Influencer marketing is the professional partnership between your business and an influencer. Their clout can motivate a new audience to learn about your small business and try your products and services.
Affiliate marketing works similarly. An affiliate will promote your products or services. When someone buys your goods through a special link, the affiliate receives a commission for each purchase.
Both forms of marketing can increase your credibility and reach.
Innovative Digital Marketing Ideas and Tactics
Given that digital marketing is the driver of so much small business success, it was only fitting to share some of my favorite marketing ideas in the digital space.
Prepare to wow your audiences with these intelligent, snappy strategies.
Start a blog that works for SEO (and LLMs)
Yes, blogs still work in 2025. No, SEO is not dead. Blogs are still a fantastic starting point to build your online presence. But don’t just post blogs for the sake of posting them.
You need to be strategic, especially with LLMs in the scene now. One of the quickest ways to stand out is by sharing original research and personal opinions/experiences — because that’s something LLMs can’t replicate.
And by sharing unique data and perspectives, you not only attract backlinks but also increase your chances of being quoted by AI chatbots and AI overviews.
With strict algorithm updates wiping out entire sites’ traffic, it’s high time to ditch the spammy low-effect techniques and adopt best practices. Stick to topics relevant to your niche, exchange links with high-authority and relevant websites, and hire authors with experience and expertise in your niche.
With a consistent schedule and some high-quality SEO love, your blog can quietly work behind the scenes to bring in steady traffic.
Start an email newsletter
One of the best ways to customers’ minds (and hearts) is through their email inboxes. Focus on providing value and unique perspectives. Rigorously study open rates, tweak your subject lines and content, and check deliverability.
It goes without saying that you have to follow the best email marketing practices — take proper consent before sending emails, personalize your messages, segment your audience, etc.
It’s difficult to do it right, but once you get the hang of it, newsletters are a great strategy for nurturing your subscribers.
Build a visual content library
When so many of us talk about content, we only consider the written word. I’m a big proponent of the written word, but today, it’s all about visual content.
More than half of today’s marketers believe that visual marketing is key to successful strategies, which is saying a lot.
Visual media can include images, videos (although I’ll talk more about them separately in just a moment), infographics, and other graphics. Social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram are made for visual media.
I recognize that we live in an age where you don’t have to make anything original. You can always search for a stock photo to get the point across, right? Sure, but the original is where it’s at.
And it’s so much easier to produce original visual content than you’d think. You can use tools like Canva or even generative AI. The visual media you produce can go on your website, your blogs and written content, your email campaigns, and, yes, on social media.
Finally, remember to repurpose your old content. Add new life to your old blogs, LinkedIn articles, or social media snippets by reuploading them, adding new insights, or tweaking and using them in new formats to maximize their content value.
Produce short-form videos
It’s all about short-form videos these days. More than 70% of consumers prefer these brief clips when looking up services or products.
And really, can you blame them? As they’re called, a short is anywhere from a few seconds to a minute long. It doesn’t require a significant time commitment like longer-form videos.
Better yet, consumers can understand whether they’re interested in your products or services by watching the short, so they can make instant decisions.
This benefits you both. It’s good for your business because you’ll entertain fewer leads who are unlikely to convert. And it’s great for the consumer because they can make that snap choice and then move on with their day.
Use AI for personalization and better audience targeting
Digital marketing has wholeheartedly embraced AI.
Whether you love it or hate it, AI is the next evolution, so you should get used to it. AI has proven its uses across many marketing areas, but one of my favorites is using it to benefit your audience.
Gone are the days when you must manually go through your audience data and meticulously organize your audience into buckets.
AI can do it for you. Not only that, but AI can also personalize your marketing messages.
For example, AI can review a customer’s shopping behavior and guess what they might purchase next, giving you recommendations to provide.
Host a virtual event
Virtual events exploded in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, when virtual or no events were the only options. And while we’re thankfully far away from pandemic times, many of us who have hosted or participated in virtual events have realized something.
Virtual events are convenient and cost-effective. You can make more money by hosting more people than in an event hall. They’re a win-win.
So, why not start one yourself? Here are some best practices to bear in mind as you do:
- Plan a unique event. If it could be done in person, why not just do it that way? Niche down and come up with something exceptional.
- Determine the target market for your event theme and scope.
- Plan goals for your event, such as more leads, higher sales, or more conversions.
- Promote your event early to give people time to buy their tickets.
- Create an engaging itinerary with games, activities, speeches, and interactive elements.
- Review analytics related to your event after it wraps up.
Produce interactive content
Interactive content is going over like gangbusters right now, with 62.3% of companies prioritizing it in 2024 versus only 36.1% in 2023. That was nearly a twofold increase, and we can safely expect the trend to rise in 2025.
With low-code and no-code AI tool-building platforms like Cursor and Replit, it has never been easier to make interactive content. Try running a poll, a question box, or a short challenge. You can also share these on your emails and blogs.
Interactive content works because it’s the antithesis of passivity. Your audience has to get involved to reap the full benefits, which builds a connection between them and your small business. You can often end up with helpful user behavior data from this content.
Here are some more types of interactive content for your digital marketing campaign:
- Quizzes
- Contests
- Giveaways
- Trivia
- Interactive infographics
- Calculators
- Image sliders
- Webinars
- Interactive videos
Effective Traditional Marketing Techniques
Okay, those are digital marketing ideas, but I’m just starting.
Traditional marketing is not dead and gone; it is far from it. As I discussed before, it’s an excellent way to stand out in a crowded digital marketing space, so let’s look at some ways to differentiate yourself.
Personal selling
One strategy that should shoot to the top of your sales and marketing ideas is personal selling. As the name might have made you guess, this form of selling is about forging a professional relationship between you and the prospective customer.
Personal selling is valuable for building a rapport, getting insights directly from the source (your customers!), and qualifying your leads.
However, it does have a few downsides. For example, your team will pour a lot of time, effort, and manpower into each lead, even those that don’t work out. You don’t know which will necessarily convert, so you must give each lead the same attention.
With this strategy, it’s also hard to reach a large portion of your target market. There are only so many hours in the day, and only so many calls a salesperson can make before their eyes cross and their tongue goes numb.
Physical promotions
Don’t underestimate the power of physical promotions, including banners, billboards, stickers, posters, leaflets, and good, old-fashioned direct mail.
As I mentioned, you can stand out in a crowded market by going against the grain with these forms of marketing.
I want to reiterate that there’s no way to quantify your marketing success with physical promotions. You can count how many fliers you send out or billboards you post, but you have no idea how many people see them.
Phone calls
I’m sure you’re disappointed to see phone calls on the list. After all, who likes picking up the phone and talking to strangers? What’s that? No one?
Exactly.
However, cold calls can be successful, although often not on the first try. According to The Tech Report, 82% of buyers who have gone on to meet with salespeople started with a cold call.
You can think of them as an extension of personal selling.
With all these methods, don’t be afraid to mix digital and traditional selling. If anything, I’d advocate for it. This way, you can more easily track the metrics that matter to your campaign’s success.
Creative Low-Cost Marketing Ideas
Do you have a shoestring budget?
It’s tough to gain much marketing traction when you can’t afford to spend thousands to tens of thousands of dollars. However, you’re not totally without hope. I have some awesome marketing ideas that don’t cost a small fortune to implement, so let’s get right into them.
Claim free ad credits
You can start by claiming free ad promo credits from Google & Facebook Ads. This is a much more affordable way to experiment with advertising without spending a huge amount initially.
New users also get extra credits to use these services more effectively. Before diving into paid campaigns, try out these free credits to get a hang of the process and see what works.
Social media promotions
If we set aside social media advertising (which can be pricy), you can use social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Pinterest to springboard your small business.
The key is to experiment, research, and find out what works for each platform. Start with one platform—it is important not to stretch yourself too thin. Once you gain good traction there, you can shift to other platforms. But even then, don’t try to be at too many places at once. Find out where most of your users are. That’s where you need to be.
Staying on top of social trends can also help. If you spot a viral challenge or a trending sound, get creative and join in. These moments pass quickly, but when you catch them early, they can bring in new followers and more engagement.
You can also host giveaways or start referral programs to bring more attention to your brand. A simple giveaway that asks people to tag a friend or share a post can increase your reach without needing a big budget.
Another great strategy is user-generated content (UGC). Encourage your customers to post about your product and tag you. People are more likely to trust real stories from real users, and you can reshare that content on your own page.
Oh, and also, ensure your website is ready for the traffic. The goal is to direct your social followers to your site to get them to make a purchase, so your website should be cleanly designed, responsive, and mobile-optimized.
Low-cost and free tools
Here’s another great thing about low-cost marketing: plenty of tools to support your budget. Some are available at inexpensive prices, and others are entirely free.
For example, EngageBay’s all-in-one marketing, sales, and service software has a CRM that’s free forever as well as plenty of digital marketing tools you need to get underway.
You can also use free versions of other helpful tools. Browse high-quality visuals on Pexels and Unsplash. For team collaboration and task planning, Notion and Trello are great options. And if you’re looking to automate workflows, Zapier’s free tier lets you connect your favorite apps without writing code.
Google Keyword Planner is also free, as is Canva for graphic design and Ahrefs for SEO.
Local marketing ideas
Marketing often starts in your own backyard. If you are a small or growing business, local strategies can go a long way in getting attention and building loyalty.
- Start with your Google Business Profile. If you have not claimed it yet, that is step one. Make sure all your info is accurate. Add high-quality photos and highlight your services. This helps you show up in local searches and maps when people are looking for what you offer.
- Next, focus on local SEO. Create landing pages for your specific locations using local keywords, customer reviews, maps, and photos. These small changes can make a big difference in how visible your business is to people nearby.
- Don’t forget your community. Show up at local events or partner with other small businesses in your area. It is a great way to build word-of-mouth and connect with your neighbors.
- And finally, make your social content local too. Use location-based hashtags and geo-tag your posts. People use social media like a search engine, and this helps you get discovered by the right crowd.
How to Build Customer Relationships
No matter which of these marketing ideas you decide best suits your small business, you’ve got to put the customer first all along.
After all, long-term customer relationships will help your business grow and keep you afloat after you reach a higher level of stability.
So, how do you hang on to these cultivated bonds between you and your audience? I’ve got some pointers to help you.
Consistent engagement
This first tip sounds like a no-brainer, but I figured it’s worth mentioning. Some businesses get so caught up in capturing more leads and converting them into customers that they can forget all about their existing customers.
However, you’ll lose the customers you want to keep, so try not to gloss over them. The ones who have been with you for the long haul are your most valuable customers.
Listen to customer feedback
When your customers say something, do you listen or sweep it under the rug? You can send feedback surveys, but there are many more places to put your finger on the pulse of what your audience wants.
For example, read reviews. Check out some UGC. Look at social media comments and DMs (and respond to them as time allows).
Once you’ve gotten some feedback, sit down with a few other key team members to determine which feedback is the most recurrent and thus needs the most prioritization. Implement changes and let your audience know that they made their voices heard.
Keep accepting feedback and making positive improvements based on what your audience wants to see. Your customers will feel like their opinions matter, driving more brand loyalty.
Prioritize customer service
Putting your customers’ needs above all else is never an unwise decision. Evaluate your current level of customer service and look for any gaps. Customer feedback is valuable here.
Next, take a step back and determine what you can do to improve your customer service. You should hire additional staff. Maybe you should begin using AI chatbots to help your audience. It could be as easy as hastening your response times.
Once you improve your customer service, connect with your audience again and ask for their feedback. Continue making tweaks and adjustments from there.
Personalize interactions
Another of my favorite marketing ideas for elevating customer relationships is personalization. Using a customer’s name in an email is not enough.
You must show you know them by segmenting them, identifying their pain points, and making product/service recommendations based on their purchasing history.
Fortunately, all these tasks are easily achieved with the help of an AI tool. You can look like a personalization guru even if you aren’t doing it all yourself.
Make them feel like a VIP
Customers love feeling special. Harness that and give them opportunities to rejoice often. Start a referral program with tiered rewards, provide early product/service access to your most loyal customers, and offer exclusive discounts.
Word of mouth is still a valuable form of marketing, and when your customers have a positive experience with your brand, they won’t be able to help but want to talk about it.
How to Measure and Adapt Marketing Efforts
By now, you’ve executed your first campaign due to the awesome marketing ideas you read here. Congratulations. But did your campaign do well? You can be assured of that by studying analytics.
Many marketing tools provide analytics, from EngageBay and Ahrefs to social media platforms and Google if you use Google Ads. The analytics are available in real-time and often configurable, so you can focus on the ones most important to your business at the moment.
There are so many KPIs to focus on depending on which area of your marketing you’re eager to improve. For example, impressions, engagement rate, and brand mentions exist if you build a social media presence. If you’re more concerned with email marketing, you’d focus on open and click-through rates.
Of course, the classic marketing metrics include conversion rate, website traffic, sales-qualified leads, marketing-qualified leads, and overall sales.
Analytics are key to tracking your marketing success, but you might not hit a home run right out of the gate. That’s okay. Adapting your strategies according to the data is the best way to improve.
Besides your data, you must be agile and responsive to changes in consumer behavior and market trends.
Business Awards and Networking
Sometimes, the best marketing does not come from your own mouth. Awards and recognitions can do a lot of the talking. Getting nominated, or better yet, winning, adds credibility, builds trust, and puts your brand on people’s radar.
Business awards are not just for well-known names. Small and growing businesses can benefit, too. People enjoy rooting for the underdog, and even a nomination can help you stand out in a crowded market.
You do not have to wait for a formal industry ceremony either. Customer-driven badges from platforms like G2, GetApp, and others give smaller teams a real chance to earn recognition, build trust, and get noticed.
And while you are at it, take the opportunity to network. Trade shows and industry events are full of people who are open to new connections. You can meet potential customers, future collaborators, and even competitors who might become partners. Conferences are also great for sharing your story, picking up new ideas, and keeping up with what is happening in your space.
Future Trends in Marketing
Okay, so what are some emerging trends that will continue to impact the marketing landscape throughout the rest of the 2020s and beyond? Here are a few predictions of mine.
More AI
AI is no longer just a content-writing tool. It is now helping marketers to personalize experiences, predict customer behavior, and respond to messages in real time.
Platforms like ChatGPT, Jasper, and Copy.ai help you write emails, ads, and blogs in seconds. Midjourney and Canva’s AI features let you create scroll-stopping visuals without hiring a designer. Even ChatGPT has come a long way with its image-generation capabilities.
Many brands use these tools to segment audiences, recommend products, and automate campaigns with impressive accuracy.
Of course, all this raises some big questions. As AI-generated visuals and content get harder to spot, marketers are being pushed to think about where to draw the line. Posting unedited AI content or images is not going to do you any favors when everyone else is doing the same thing. Brand differentiation and distribution matter more in this “age of AI”.
Even if you use AI, you’ll still need to add your own voice, tone, and identity to stand out. And now, more than ever, you need to invest in things that AI can’t replicate. You need to diversify your marketing and build a community.
Short-form video will continue to rise
Short-form video is not going anywhere. TikTok may have lit the spark, but now every major platform has caught up. YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, and even LinkedIn are pushing bite-sized videos to the top of the feed.
Most viewers prefer content that is under 15 seconds. It is easier to consume, easier to share, and perfect for the scroll-happy audience we are all trying to reach. If you are not creating short videos yet, now is the time to start.
Of course, TikTok is still a major player. But with growing scrutiny in some regions, it is smart to make content that works across platforms. That way, your reach is not tied to a single app or algorithm.
An increase in social commerce
Social commerce will continue to grow in the near future, with projections that its sales volume in the US will hit 150 billion dollars by 2030. It allows people to discover and buy products directly on social platforms without ever needing to visit a company’s website.
Consumers love it for the convenience. Brands love it because it speeds up purchasing decisions and keeps potential buyers engaged for longer.
Features like shoppable posts, in-app checkouts, and live shopping events are making it easier than ever to turn a scroll into a sale. Platforms are even using AI to recommend products based on browsing behavior, making the experience feel more personal and timely.
If you are selling online, now is a good time to explore these tools. Social commerce is not just a trend. It is becoming a standard part of the buyer journey.
UGC will be the new advertising norm
User-generated content, or UGC, continues to grow for one simple reason. People trust real people more than ads or brands.
More brands are now using UGC in their ads, social posts, and product pages because it feels genuine. With AI tools, it is also easier to enhance and repurpose customer content across platforms without losing thier authenticity.
If your customers are already talking about you, start sharing those reviews on your socials. Even a simple review or photo can go further than a polished campaign.
Conclusion
The most creative marketing ideas put small businesses on the same playing field as the bigger fish.
Experimenting with diverse business marketing ideas and marketing strategies to find the most effective mix for your business will elevate you to an advantageous position to enjoy more growth.
EngageBay is an all-in-one marketing, sales, and customer support software for small businesses, startups, and solopreneurs. You get email marketing, marketing automation, landing page and email templates, segmentation and personalization, sales pipelines, live chat, and more.
Sign up for free with EngageBay or book a demo with our experts.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What are the most effective marketing strategies for small businesses in 2025?
You should use digital marketing above all else. Your small business can also experiment with traditional and guerilla marketing tactics to undeniably impact your target market.
2. How can I integrate traditional and digital marketing methods?
Combining digital and traditional marketing is easier. For instance, you can add geotargeting to a billboard, promote your website via a flier, or advertise on Pandora or Spotify.
3. What are some cost-effective marketing ideas for startups?
Guerilla marketing, social media marketing, and content marketing are cost-effective ideas.
4. How do I measure the success of my marketing campaigns?
Track analytics like engagement rate, email open and click-through rate, qualified leads, conversion rate, sales over time, and website traffic (organic and inorganic).
