Your small business is struggling to survive. You are finding it hard to get new clients. You’ve invested in marketing without the desired results…
You are not alone. That’s how many small businesses operate locally. While you may be serving your existing customers well, marketing with a good ROI is not easy.
That’s why you should read this brief guide to local business marketing. Applying the following tactics, ideas, and tips should bring in more prospects and customers than you can cope with.
- Invest in Social Media Marketing
Customers now use social media platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn to research and communicate with local businesses. So, develop a social media marketing strategy that will help you build strong relationships with potential and existing customers.
For business-to-customer (B2C) marketing, you should join appropriate Facebook groups and provide helpful information that will make readers share your posts. For B2B marketing, be active on LinkedIn. Connect with influencers and build lasting relationships by offering insightful posts to your potential clients.
- Use Local SEO
Google provides a low-cost platform that can help you reach many prospects in your locality. First, you should register your business on Google’s local business directory for your city.
Google can use this to show your business on search results for relevant local searches. For example, when a potential customer types a phrase like “memory foam near me”. Google will display a list of businesses that sell such products in the user’s location.
Local SEO goes beyond claiming your spot on Google My Business. You should also build a business blog that has well-written articles. Optimizing these articles for local search terms can help you to maintain a top spot on relevant Google Search page results. Remember that about 46 percent of searches on Google are for nearby businesses.
To boost your local SEO efforts, ensure that you have good customer reviews. While you will be penalised for paying for reviews, you can still ask for reviews decently. Send a message to every satisfied customer to give you a good review. And strive to have a rating that is above 4 stars.
- Try Direct Marketing
Several decades ago, residential mailboxes were inundated with brochures, catalogs, bills, and bank statements. However, with the growth of email marketing, businesses abandoned snail mail.
Today, people can receive up to 100 email messages in one day. This huge number of emails has reduced the effectiveness of email marketing.
Now, with the empty mailboxes in most homes, businesses that use physical direct mail brochures or ads will certainly get their clients’ attention.
This old-school marketing method will grab the attention of at least 90 percent of your prospects. Using a simple thank you card or special offer notice is enough to acquire new leads and customers.
When designing the brochure, ensure that you add all your business contact details and a discount voucher or coupon. Put a call-to-action with a limited time to claim the discount or special benefit.
- Participate in Community Events
Show prospects that you contribute to the development of your community and you will be rewarded with better patronage. Some of the opportunities to promote your business include volunteering, fundraising, and creating awareness for eco-friendly business practices.
You can work with a well-known local charity to host a fundraising event on your business premises. Then donate the funds to a charitable cause and bring in a lot of traffic to your business.
- Provide Loyalty Rewards
Customers love appreciation and a good way to show it is by offering them a reward for repeat purchases. Your existing customers will be more loyal and even become brand evangelists if you offer them a loyalty reward after a specified number of purchases.
If all purchases are recorded on a computer, simply install a loyalty reward app and use it to track and reward loyal customers. Otherwise, you can print a card and use a stamp. After each purchase at your shop, stamp the card. When the card has a specified number of stamps, give the customer a thank-you gift.
Promoting your local business requires commitment and consistency. Use the ideas and tips provided above to create a plan to improve your marketing and get more leads, customers, and sales.