Read on to know how online marketing can help you take your business to the next level

Congratulations! So you have started a business and it is doing well. However now you are facing a different problem, you have exhausted your local areas and want to tap into new markets. How do you go about it? Or, you have utilized the traditional route of word of mouth, leaflet, advertisements in newspapers etc., but aren’t really the local brand that you wished you would be when you started off. You aren’t big enough to advertise on TV and hoardings. What do you do?

Start off with a checklist for online marketing, next is to follow these seven tips to promote your small business and level up

Google local listing

Google has an option of listing your local business. It is important to list, as that will show your business when people search for things around your area/ search locally for something. It will also show up in various places like Google search and Maps. Listing in local business also helps you review your online presence at one place. You can check the reviews of your business & insights about the traffic. It showcases all your important information in one place – phone number, address, maps, and reviews. The best part is it is free!

Embrace Social Media

A small business means doing a lot of things on your own or without much help. In such a scenario adding another dimension to the existing spread might sound too much. But here are some facts based on the survey by Clutch.Co, which will help put things in perspective.

 

 

 

 

To see a more detailed report please visit Clutch.Co, a Survey 2017.

Try one social channel at a time

If you have the time and resources for just one channel, your best bet is Facebook. If you are open to trying out two or more channels and are a restaurant or, deal in experiential items or things then Instagram is a good choice. Twitter is great for engaging with your audience and gauging sentiments and reputation management.

 Try FB shopping

There are options where you can set up a store right on your FB page. If you deal in products and goods but do not have a full-fledged e-com store, you can try this. It will give you the option to reach your audience faster and get orders quicker from those not in your local area. However having a good delivery service is essential if you wish to try this out.

 SEO company website

Having a website is like having a virtual home. People know where to look for. It is an important place that you cannot ignore. Having a good website with all the updated information is essential when starting out on social media marketing. People will want to know more about you and will look you up before deciding to order. Optimize your website by having a responsive site, adding good images of your products and having good internal links. Make sure that the website content has ‘just right’ mix of keywords and is listing organically when searched. Ensure that you have a good landing page that gives complete information to a first-time visitor and makes ordering simple (if you deal in e-com) Non-e-com sites should ensure that your contact details are easily accessible.

Join relevant communities

Be where your consumer is most likely to be. Just having a page on Facebook isn’t going to work if you don’t post regularly and engage with your audience. Promote your social media handles at the physical store, all offline advertisements, and promotions. Segment your audience to understand their profiles and then join relevant communities and groups on Facebook. So if you are a baker and realize that your audience is health and fitness conscious you could promote your healthy bakes section in popular health and fitness groups.

Retain existing customers

The best investment for a small business is to retain their existing audience. It is simpler to connect with an audience who has tried your products/services and have probably enjoyed the experience. Engage with them by way of regular postings and quick turnaround for messages. Run campaigns targeted towards returning customers (coupons, special sale preview, referral discounts etc.) If you are having an event, put it up on Facebook for wider reach.

Spend on online marketing

Content is and will be the king, however since the recent changes in Facebook and Google algorithms it has been observed that the organic reach has scaled down. Even in normal scenarios, the Facebook feed is cluttered with everyone’s updates – right from a friends engagement to another one’s cute dog image, updates from pages and groups you like, group discussion, to seeing someone’s FB live ( live streaming video) there is a lot happening. Your audience missing your posts in this noise is natural. Supplement your organic efforts with advertisements. This will help you reach the right audience at the right time, and that makes for solid ROI.

Do you have some more tips to share? Do comment below. Or if you are a small business, share your thoughts or doubts with me and I will try and answer them.  

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