The miracle of marketing in Samoa: Why growing businesses need an online presence
We’re always excited to welcome new members to the Business Link Pacific Advisory Network and once they’ve become a BLP approved partner, start connecting them with growing businesses in need of quality advice and financial support.
This week we chatted with Mats Loefkvist, owner and operator of Miracle Marketing in Apia, Samoa, a small business specialising in web design, social media marketing and SEO marketing, about why an online presence is essential for growing businesses in the Pacific.
Originally from Sweden, Mats Loefkvists’ career trajectory was anything but traditional, having spent time working on luxury yachts, working in and operating 5-star hotel accommodations in Austria, and as a hotel consultant in Miami. In the mid-90’s he moved to Samoa and put his hotelier experience into practice, owning and operating accommodation businesses with his wife – Seipepa Samoan Travel Home in Apia and then Virgin Cove Resort in Saanapu village.
Over a 13 year period, Mats managed the marketing and web design for these accommodation businesses, and locals were intrigued by the marketing methods he was utilising to attract bookings. He had gained his marketing experience and know-how from a combination of industry experience, self-learning and online courses with some of the world’s top internet marketers.
Following the major earthquake and tsunami in 2009 that devastated the island nation, Mats and his family moved back to Apia from Saanapu. It was at this point that Mats decided to formalise his marketing experience into a small business and start sharing his marketing expertise and advice with the wider Samoa business community. He was passionate about helping business owners establish a marketing strategy and use effective marketing techniques to attract customers and increase revenue.
Mats Loefkvist, owner of Miracle Marketing
Beginning with clients from the tourism and accommodation industry, Mats has since broadened his client base to include working with Government departments, water companies, public trust offices and car rental companies. Most are established businesses, who have commissioned overseas companies to build their websites but then encountered trouble with managing the logistics and high costs of technical maintenance. These clients have since approached Mats to create their website, with a desire to handle the process locally rather than outsourcing it.
Through the clients Mats has already worked with, he’s discovered that the marketing service growing businesses are most in need of is a website, with very few opting to engage in social media marketing. As Mats explains, setting up social media pages requires the business to put aside time to plan and post content, which they don’t always have, and online promotion isn’t always possible either, as many clients do not have debit or credit cards.
The Miracle Marketing office in Apia, Samoa
Alongside the design and creation of the website, Mats assists the client to set up SEO (search engine optimisation), so that their website is attractive to search engines and more easily discoverable. Prior to the website build however, Mats shares that clients often need to be convinced of the benefits of an online presence:
“It’s very very important. Any marketing you do, you have to lead it back to your website, this is where you give people an opportunity to book or buy your product or service and receive all the necessary information about your business. If people don’t have their product or service available on a website at the very least, it’s a huge disadvantage.”
“I also always teach the basics of content management of the website, so the client can easily edit their website, update text and images. Anything more complex than that, I do it, and the whole process from design to build to ongoing maintenance and technical support, is affordable. It’s a wholly beneficial investment in the growth of your business.”
Mats became a member of the BLP Advisory Network this year after a recommendation from BLP in-country partner, the Samoa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who was aware of his high level of professional marketing and web design experience.
After joining the BLP Network and going through the quality assurance process to become a BLP approved advisor, Mats was put in contact with two local growing businesses, Craig Construction and Talofa Green Hills Accommodation, both in need of initiating an effective online presence. Both projects are at their beginning stages, but Mats is excited to be assisting them via the BLP programme.
“I know for a fact that larger accommodation resorts usually outsource their marketing services from New Zealand and Australia, but smaller accommodation businesses, like the one I have just started working with, do all of their own marketing, sometimes through brochures and posters, a simple website and a social media platform, but the overall marketing and communicating with their audience isn’t consistent and regular. Building and launching a website will help this client reach a wider audience, and help her link her traditional marketing methods with this online marketing.”
Mats believes the marketing and communication industry in Samoa is growing slowly and has plenty of potential, with only a few businesses currently offering professional marketing services.
“The digital future of Samoa is bright, there are certainly a lot of digital services popping up, like food delivery, taxi’s etc, becoming more and more sophisticated. The younger generation are definitely more engaged in these digital platforms, but I think it’s important for the older generations, some of whom are business owners to also engage.”
“You definitely need an online presence of a website, even if it’s quite simple. Marketing, that is your bread and butter. Statistics say that you need to spend 60% of your time doing marketing, to grow your business and the way it is now, maybe people spend 10% or 15% of their time doing marketing. They need to wake up to that fact and engage people that can help them and see the value in it. Make sure you go out there and do enough marketing to grow your business, otherwise it will not work.”
If you’re interested in gaining access to quality marketing advice and support, or not sure where to start, take the free online Business Health Check, available HERE.
To connect with Miracle Marketing via the BLP Portal visit: https://businesslinkpacific.com/organizations/75