Owning and operating a business in any capacity is a
challenge but for small business owners, it can be especially difficult. Having
a local business requires a smart marketing strategy that will attract and
maintain the customers in your area.
While many believe that the bulk of your focus should be
placed on traditional marketing strategies, developing your online strategy is
just as important to your business. If you are starting a brick and mortar
location, here are some tips that will help you to launch successfully!
Don’t Forget to Develop and Build Up Your Physical Marketing Strategy
Online marketing strategies keep customers coming in, but
they need to know that your business is there first. To attract your local
audience, you will want to focus on your physical marketing strategy and build
that up until you have the exposure you need to be found online. Some great
physical marketing strategies include:
- Using eye-catching displays near or on your store to bring more foot traffic to your business.
- Having plenty of deals and coupons that will attract customers and give them an opportunity to experience your products or services.
- Participating in local events to get the name of your business out there and speak with individuals in the community. These events are also a great time to start passing out promotional items and paper goods like business cards and coupons. You may also want to provide people with samples of your product.
- Sending physical invitations and advertisements to your local area or getting featured in magazines or newspapers that receive a fair amount of attention from citizens.
Once your business is relevant in your area and in areas
nearby, your online marketing strategy can begin to grow.
Create Valuable Site Content That Contains Popular Keywords
Google and other search engines don’t simply show your business
to individuals in your area. People have to either search for your business or
search for services that are related to your business. For example, if someone
searches for the term “dog food,” they are going to be shown pet stores in
their area to help them find businesses near them.
No matter what type of business you run, you will want to
conduct keyword research to see what keywords are relevant to your industry and
which ones may appear during searches. You can then implement these keywords
into valuable content on your website so that you will be one of the top
businesses to appear in the search engine when a customer is trying to find
something.
Build Up Your Google Reviews and Respond to Them
When local businesses appear on Google, they pop up at the
top of the page along with location information and information about the
business. You may also notice that each of them have a number ranking. One very
important aspect of ranking highest among local businesses is receiving plenty
of high-quality online reviews.
While you wouldn’t automatically assume reviews would play a
vital part to the local ranking process, reviews actually give search engines
important information about quality, your reputation within your community, and
help to link search queries to keywords within the review as well. They may
only be one section of a good SEO strategy but they are a very helpful section
that you need to focus on to receive the local attention you want!
Beyond the tips listed above, having the right SEO strategy
is about far more than just the right keywords. If you are trying to improve
your online marketing strategy, reach out to a local SEO expert that
can help you build up your website and your business!
0 Comments