DJ Khaled. This larger-than-life music personality is everywhere right now. How do I know this, you may be asking? Snapchat. My love for social media, music, and pop culture collided when I started following the 40-something hip-hop hit maker on the social media app.
Shortly after that, an interesting thing happened. I started seeing DJ Khaled everywhere. Literally.
Unless you’ve been living without the internet for the past year, you know that DJ Khaled is now mainstream. The Snapchat star and all-around marketing-and-music mogul is making a big name for himself on the internet and in cities across the U.S. with Beyonce on her national Formation tour.
You may have seen him on your screen with his new T Mobile advertising campaign, or maybe you’ve seen “Major Key” updates across your social-media feed, media coverage of his new album that is out July 29th, or maybe you haven’t heard of him at all.
Either way, it’s undeniable that now is DJ Khaled’s time and he’s not going anywhere but “All The Way Up” from here.
How did he get there? A lot of collaboration. What does this have to do with small businesses? A whole heck of a lot. Major Key Alert!
Use these three tips (dare I say… Major Keys?!) to partner up with businesses and influencers in your community to make a big impact for your small business.
1. Connect with your fans.
DJ Khaled calls this “Fan Luv.” He makes a point to meet his fans in cities across the country while he is on the road. I know this because he documents it all for 24-hours at least, on his Snapchat story. While you may not be on tour with Queen Bey this summer, you can take this branding idea and make it work for your small business.
One of the best ways to amplify your business is to create an experience that keeps your customers coming back for more (get those customers on repeat!).
You can team up with your customers by using tactics like contests, referrals, or rewards programs to entice your customers to continue to buy from you.
2. Partner with the best in the business.
DJ Khaled is no stranger to teaming up with fellow musicians to create mega-music hits; he even has an album-turned-anthem dedicated to the name (We The Best). While you may not have the likes of Drake or Jay Z in your network, you can let DJ Khaled’s initiative inspire you to create partnerships within your industry.
It’s no surprise that an “All We Do Is Win” mindset is a great one for small business owners. As a small business owner you can channel the power of “we” by connecting with fellow entrepreneurs in your community to see how you can support each other and help your businesses grow.
Find local business owners in your area through your Chamber of Commerce, Local First organizations, or other networking groups.
3. Cross-promote your brand.
Whether it be on Snapchat, in national advertising campaigns for T Mobile, Zappos, or with the media — DJ Khaled is a promotion pro. You, too can promote your small business brand with a little cross-promotion.
Have fun with your cross-marketing efforts — there is no limit to how you can use this to your business advantage. You can use a variety of marketing strategies to effectively promote your brand to a new audience using this tactic. Partner with a local business or organization to help each other get the word out via social media, email marketing, or other marketing campaigns.
Take a cue from DJ Khaled and seek out opportunities that allow you to get your brand and business out there for your community to get familiar.
Just remember that in business, relationships matter and surrounding yourself with the right people is a major key to success.
When it comes to small business, collaboration is a great way to market your brand.
Will you use these DJ Khaled strategies to promote your business brand?
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