The more people who know about your business, the better.
For small ventures, however, generating interest you don’t pay for isn’t always easy. This is especially true in media spaces dominated by big brands with more money, larger marketing teams, and established customer bases.
GoDaddy wants to help you get noticed.
We believe in creating opportunities for small businesses.
We’re taking applications for the newest small business stars of our national TV ads and campaigns. Here’s what you need to know.
Getting the word out
Of the 1.22 million employer businesses in Canada, 1.20 million are SMBs, which works out to just under 98% of all companies across the country.
And while this bodes well for the success of small businesses in the digital age, it also creates a challenge: When it comes to getting the word out about your brand, the competition is fierce.
Add in the 22,725 medium-sized businesses and 2,936 enterprises with substantive advertising budgets and bigger social reach and it’s no easy task to stand out from the crowd.
Viral social campaigns and word-of-mouth efforts are great, but the potential benefits are often hard to quantify. According to recent research, meanwhile, 80% of businesses that used video marketing found it directly increased sales.
By leveraging GoDaddy’s reach, you can get your business noticed by the group that matters most: Potential customers.
This is even more critical in a world driven by online sales and service. While consumers are returning to retail stores in a post-Covid era, they’re not shifting away from digital purchasing. Instead, they’re adding this approach to their shopping arsenal.
As noted by the Harvard Business Review, for example, pre-pandemic buyers hoped that businesses would have what they wanted online. Now, customers expect it.
Benefits for your business
So what exactly do you get if you’re chosen as our next national small business star?
It starts with a 30- or 15-second TV and online commercial that runs across English Canada that champions your business and puts you in the spotlight. This ad is supported by:
- Digital and social media advertising
- Outdoor billboards
- Video stories
- Case studies or articles
- Press releases and potential media activities
In other words, we’ve got all the advertising bases covered.
But don’t just take our word for it.
Consider the experiences of Harpreet Banwait, owner of the Pizza Hub restaurant business, and John Macdonell, founder of Mac’s Metalworks — both featured in last year’s national campaign with Olympic medalist, Andre De Grasse.
For Banwait, the GoDaddy website builder helped bring his website up to speed and help him secure the future of the local pizza place started by his father.
It also helped his business survive.
“GoDaddy helped us be seen during the pandemic,” says Banwait. “Our website not only gave our loyal and returning customer base access to our menus, but also helped new customers discover our business.”
For Macdonell, meanwhile, success with his custom metalwork business meant combining the chase for perfection with passion, patience, and precision. What he lacked, however, was expertise in getting noticed.
“Basically, I’m pretty good with metal but really bad with marketing,” he says. “I needed help. I needed something that was going to make this easy for me. Something that could help me present my work to my clients – and that’s what I’ve been doing with GoDaddy for more than 15 years.”
Macdonell puts it simply: “It’s the perfect marriage. GoDaddy made sure I had everything I needed for my business — from my domain name to website templates.”
GoDaddy customer and owner of IS Training Karlie Ramlogan starred in a 2020 GoDaddy Ad featuring her business.
“Getting to be part of the GoDaddy commercial was so much fun and an experience I’ll never forget,” says Ramlogan. “Spending the day with the GoDaddy team and other small business customers made me feel like we were one large group working towards the same goal.”
“I’m happy I get to show Canada how GoDaddy Website Builder made it easy for me to start my business and how easy it is for anyone to do the same. I never expected when I started two years ago that today I would have my own website and a spot in a TV ad.
“2020 didn’t turn out so bad after all.”
Who qualifies (and how to apply)
Ready to take the plunge? Criteria for submission include:
- Must be a current GoDaddy Customerwho hosts their website with GoDaddy
- Must have been operating your business for at least three years
- Must be passionate about what you do
- Must be comfortable being on camera
- Must be willing to do media interviews and a potential case study
Does this sound like you (and your business)? Then what are you waiting for? It’s time to apply!
The process is easy:
- Record a 1-minute video about your business and why you think you should be the next GoDaddy Canada small business star.
- Send us an email at canadaevents@godaddy.com with a personal cloud link to your video along with your full name, business website URL, contact phone number, and GoDaddy customer ID (if you know it).
And that’s it! We’ll take a look at every submission that comes our way and who knows? Your business might just be the next big thing in Canadian SMBs.
