Digital Marketing is vital these days for any small business that is hoping to stay competitive in today’s digital age. But your time is often limited and it’s difficult to know which online marketing tactics you should be focused on as a busy entrepreneur.
We’ve compiled 10 of the most essential digital marketing tips for the small business owner.
Make sure that you have a responsive, user-friendly website that is updated regularly. Your website is usually the first port of call when a user searches for your services online and finds your brand. Your website is the most authoritative source of information about your business on the internet, so it pays to make sure that you are well represented, and the information is up to date.
Include your basic information that customers want to: know-your business address, phone number, hours of operation, etc. on your site where users can find them immediately. You might be surprised at how many businesses forget to list this information on their website. From a Local SEO perspective, this is vital information and does influence your search rankings.
Most small businesses use social media to overwhelm their followers with promotions, but research has shown that this might put customers off. If you are engaging with your audience and building trust and brand loyalty, then potential customers will be inclined to engage with you.
Claim your small business on local directories. Google, Yahoo, Yelp and many more are all directories for local businesses. Boost your presence by regularly posting new content and making sure that the Business Name, Address and telephone number (NAP) are up to date.
Email marketing remains one of the most cost-effective and efficient marketing tools for business owners. It is also a great digital marketing tip when looking to grow your brand loyalty and is a vibrant and powerful way to connect with you target customers. With the right incentives, you can not only bring in new clients but also re-attract your existing customers.
Facebook is one of the most important tools for any business to have. The continued growth in social media usage has presented a huge opportunity for small business owners to build a relationship with fans by sharing relevant content and interacting by commenting and liking fans’ comments. Increased interaction with your fans means that their friends are likely to see it, and this increases brand awareness.
Facebook advertising has also proven extremely powerful in the world of small businesses. It is especially effective because there is virtually no waste as with traditional media. A local business who typically does business within a certain radius can promote just to that area. Your targeting can be even more specific as you can target specific age groups and interests and even target your audiences during the time that they are most likely to buy.
One of the best marketing strategies for a small business is blogging. By providing your potential customers with informative content and promote socially, this can not only help establish you and your team as experts in your field. It can also have a positive impact on your SEO as you significantly increase your websites ability to be found on search engines.
Having claimed your listings on Google, Yelp and the vast array of other business listing sites out there, use signage in your location and links on your website or in emails to encourage your customers to leave reviews of your business (ensuring that you can under that platforms terms and conditions). If you receive a negative review, take steps to respond in a timely, professional manner and offer to remedy the situation to the best of your ability. You’d be amazed at how your response can encourage a customer to change their review.
Google AdWords (PPC), very much like Facebook advertising, is an instant way to get your website found locally for targeted keywords. You can focus on targeting only local customers with specific keywords they might use to find your products or services. You can also re-target consumers who have already shown interest in your brand through the display network. Once you’ve decided on the type of campaign you want to run and launched it, you can keep track of how your campaign is performing using Google Analytics.
