If you own a small business you know how nerve racking it can be to grow your business and take it too the next level. This day in age having an online presence is extremely important to gaining new customers. This means having a website, marketing on social media, and some SEO optimization. When people look for a specific business in their area they will search for it online first. When people look for an online store, they are more likely to choose an online store that is ranked front page. This is why having a quality website is so beneficial for any small business that wants more customers and more profits.
Everyone knows that mobile phone use has been blowing up over the past few years. More and more people around the world use their mobile device to find local business’ as well as find online business’. This article will discuss the basic process to create a quality online presence for your small business.
Small Business Online Marketing
A small business is a local shop, restaurant, or online business that typically caters to a specific population. They have either a physical storefront where they either sell goods or services to people or an online store that customers find through a search engine or social media. As the population of towns continue to grow, competition for local services will continue to grow as well. To stay ahead of the curve business’ will need to build an online presence by creating a quality website, with quality content, and quality marketing.
Online Marketing for Small Businesses – Website
The website for a small business should be easy to navigate and up to date. When I look online I see businesses that look like they have had the same website since 2001. This is not good for business. When customers come to a business’ website they should find a smooth, clean, organized, resource, that answers any questions they may have about the business. The website should also have a fast page speed (amount of time it takes a page to load) that doesn’t leave customers waiting for pages to load. When a customer is on a business’ website, they want the information they came for and they want it fast. If a business’ website can get them what they came for fast, the customer will be more likely to end up doing business with that business. Mobile readiness has also become big in the world of small business marketing. It is important that a business’ website is mobile friendly so that it functions effectively on a mobile platform. When a business’ webpage is optimized for a mobile platform it will be easily navigated from a mobile device which is very valuable considering the ever growing use of mobile devices.
Online Marketing for Small Businesses – Content
Building quality content is another great strategy to creating a quality web presence. When a business’ website can answer potential questions it will make the customer trust that business more than another and the customer will be more likely to do business with the business with the more informative resource. People want to spend their money where it will do the most for them. If a business has a resource with poor grammar and worthless content, customers will see that as a lack of professionalism. Quality content will also help a business rank in Google search. Google ranks business’ based on relevance to a keyword. So if a business’ resource answers a question being asked on Google, it will rank front page and earn the business more profits. If you have any trouble creating quality content email me at jacob@otlsm.com and I will be able to help.
Online Marketing for Small Businesses – Social Media
Social Media is another tool businesses can use to gain more customers. Any small business should have a social media account with a few different social media platforms; Google Plus, Facebook, and Instagram are the three basic accounts any small business should have. Google Plus is valuable to a small business because it has a direct link to the search engine giant Google. Posts on Google Plus can also rank in search which is always good. Facebook is valuable to a small business due to the sheer amount of people that use it. Instagram is valuable to share images of a product or services that customers may be interested in.
With any of these social media accounts, the goal is to gain more customers as well as keep them up to date on the products or services that your business offers. Gaining followers is a great way to help market a business. The great thing about having a following on social media is that the following is known to have an interest in a business, because they followed the business. So when a business shares a post to the following. It is going to be under the eyes of a group that is known to have an interest in the product, or an application of the product. If your business needs some help with a social media profile, email me at jacob@otlsm.com and I can help set up a professional social media account.