Many new local business owners tend to favor traditional forms of advertising, such as local radio and newspaper ads. While these forms of advertising do make customers come through the front door, they are not nearly as cost efficient as most forms of Internet advertising. A lot of people are hesitant at first about advertising on the Internet, but this is typically due to a misunderstanding about how easy it is to reach out to a localized audience. Every client that we work with has different needs, but the following seven tips never fail to increase customer awareness and sales. Although it is definitely easier to work with a professional marketing agency such as mine, these tips can be put into action by anyone who has access to the Internet.
1.) Optimize Your Google Places Page by Using the Five Main Keywords - Google Places is a powerful local advertising tool. It enables people to search for what they need in a specific area, so making sure that you have a strong Google Places presence is important. The best way to drive traffic to your Google Places listing is by taking full advantage of the five main keywords feature. For example, if you are trying to advertise an apartment community with townhouses in Chicago, you would want to consider using the following keywords: apartments, rental, townhomes, townhouses and Chicago.
2.) Get Your Site Listed on Yahoo & Bing's Local Directories - Many people have Bing set up as their default search engine, so it is vital to be listed on their local directory. Yahoo is also a mainstay for many people, making it equally important. The local directory format used by Bing and Yahoo is similar to Google Places, and you should utilize them in the same way.
3.) Submit Citations with Other Local Directories - If your local area has specialized online directories, you should reach out to them and make sure that your business gets listed. Some people prefer to do their online shopping via local websites only, so it is definitely in your best interests to seek all of them out and find out what you need to do to get listed.
4.) Prod Your Happy Clients to Leave Reviews for You on the Citations - If someone is a happy customer, they are a great resource for positive feedback. A lot of people search the Internet for reviews about companies that they are not very familiar with, and seeing good reviews will make them feel more comfortable. Please note, however, that having the same review left on each local directory listing is not a good thing. You should ask your happy clients to leave one review on the directory listing of their choice.
5.) Write Content and Post It on Places like Hubpages, Squidoo, Article Directories and Ezinearticles.com with a Link Back to Your Site - This will not only introduce new people to your company and product, but it will also help to increase your visibility for search engines. The best part about using these websites is that you can control the content that is posted about your business.
6.) Setup a Twitter Account for Your Business - Twitter allows you to engage current and potential customers in a very quick and easy to manage format. You should take the time each day to send out tweets that include links and photos about your business, along with other information that would be relevant to people who are interested in your product or industry. Make sure that you reply to people if they send you a direct tweet. The best way to use Twitter is to treat it as basically a conversation between many different people; it is important to get your message out, but you should also make sure that you do not make every single tweet be a sales pitch.
7.) Setup a Facebook Business Page - Much like Twitter, it is very important to have a Facebook presence. You should take a similar approach for the two different sites, but make sure that you do provide some unique content to just your Facebook fans. You can also setup your Twitter account to push all of your tweets directly to your Facebook page, thereby eliminating the need to double post certain things. Facebook is a very powerful tool, so make sure that you update your page on a regular basis. Also, just like Twitter, you need to monitor it so that you can respond to any comments.
Following these tips will definitely increase your search engine rankings, and in turn, your customer base will increase. Make sure that you do not let any of your online ads become stagnant, however, as that can be a big turnoff to people who are searching for information. Nothing is more frustrating than sending an email that is never replied to or visiting an ad that was last updated two years ago. As long as you keep everything fresh, though, all of the time that you invest into placing Internet ads and running a Facebook and Twitter account will be rewarded.
If you are unsure about how to do any of the steps listed above, or if you simply do not have the time to maintain ads and a social networking presence, then a Lansing Marketing Agency can undertake the process for you. Companies with a larger budget often prefer to go this route, and it can also be a helpful tool for smaller business, too.
1.) Optimize Your Google Places Page by Using the Five Main Keywords - Google Places is a powerful local advertising tool. It enables people to search for what they need in a specific area, so making sure that you have a strong Google Places presence is important. The best way to drive traffic to your Google Places listing is by taking full advantage of the five main keywords feature. For example, if you are trying to advertise an apartment community with townhouses in Chicago, you would want to consider using the following keywords: apartments, rental, townhomes, townhouses and Chicago.
2.) Get Your Site Listed on Yahoo & Bing's Local Directories - Many people have Bing set up as their default search engine, so it is vital to be listed on their local directory. Yahoo is also a mainstay for many people, making it equally important. The local directory format used by Bing and Yahoo is similar to Google Places, and you should utilize them in the same way.
3.) Submit Citations with Other Local Directories - If your local area has specialized online directories, you should reach out to them and make sure that your business gets listed. Some people prefer to do their online shopping via local websites only, so it is definitely in your best interests to seek all of them out and find out what you need to do to get listed.
4.) Prod Your Happy Clients to Leave Reviews for You on the Citations - If someone is a happy customer, they are a great resource for positive feedback. A lot of people search the Internet for reviews about companies that they are not very familiar with, and seeing good reviews will make them feel more comfortable. Please note, however, that having the same review left on each local directory listing is not a good thing. You should ask your happy clients to leave one review on the directory listing of their choice.
5.) Write Content and Post It on Places like Hubpages, Squidoo, Article Directories and Ezinearticles.com with a Link Back to Your Site - This will not only introduce new people to your company and product, but it will also help to increase your visibility for search engines. The best part about using these websites is that you can control the content that is posted about your business.
6.) Setup a Twitter Account for Your Business - Twitter allows you to engage current and potential customers in a very quick and easy to manage format. You should take the time each day to send out tweets that include links and photos about your business, along with other information that would be relevant to people who are interested in your product or industry. Make sure that you reply to people if they send you a direct tweet. The best way to use Twitter is to treat it as basically a conversation between many different people; it is important to get your message out, but you should also make sure that you do not make every single tweet be a sales pitch.
7.) Setup a Facebook Business Page - Much like Twitter, it is very important to have a Facebook presence. You should take a similar approach for the two different sites, but make sure that you do provide some unique content to just your Facebook fans. You can also setup your Twitter account to push all of your tweets directly to your Facebook page, thereby eliminating the need to double post certain things. Facebook is a very powerful tool, so make sure that you update your page on a regular basis. Also, just like Twitter, you need to monitor it so that you can respond to any comments.
Following these tips will definitely increase your search engine rankings, and in turn, your customer base will increase. Make sure that you do not let any of your online ads become stagnant, however, as that can be a big turnoff to people who are searching for information. Nothing is more frustrating than sending an email that is never replied to or visiting an ad that was last updated two years ago. As long as you keep everything fresh, though, all of the time that you invest into placing Internet ads and running a Facebook and Twitter account will be rewarded.
If you are unsure about how to do any of the steps listed above, or if you simply do not have the time to maintain ads and a social networking presence, then a Lansing Marketing Agency can undertake the process for you. Companies with a larger budget often prefer to go this route, and it can also be a helpful tool for smaller business, too.