Are you considering various marketing venues to increase traffic and drive sales? As a small business owner, you likely find that your monetary success depends heavily upon the immediate community where you run your business. This means that those local customers who visit your business and purchase your merchandise and/or services are essential to your overall support and success. In this guide, we will expound on the benefits of local marketing for your overall success.
What is Local Marketing?
Local marketing refers directly to the various strategies and the numerous tactics used by a business for the promotion of the products and services offered to potential customers within a unique geographic location. If you have a small business that operates in a specific area and are attempting to connect with those that are part of your locality, as well as online, local marketing is the way to go.
You Must Target the Right Audience
If you want to take advantage of the potential in and around the area that your business serves, you must first start by identifying your target audience. In short, this is the foundation on which you will build your success. There are numerous ways you may do this; these include the following:
- Engage in the process of demographic segmentation.
- Zero in on residents that live in a specific region, city, neighborhood, and/or zip code.
- You may target by interests, behaviors, and unique needs.
- You may outline by gender, race, and age.
- You should use data and analytics to increase the effectiveness of the local marketing efforts that you engage in.
- You should track certain metrics such as actual foot traffic, traffic from search engines, website engagement, and even social media interactions in order to measure your local marketing efforts.
Use Local SEO to Your Advantage
The online presence that you establish for your business is necessary in unlocking a high level of local customers. You must use local SEO to your advantage. This is the factor that will help in boosting the visibility in search engine or “SERPs”. It will let you connect to potential customers that are in or near the neighborhood where your business is located. Today more than ever before, consumers are using the internet to discover local businesses – just like yours. If you are capable of moving up your business on the top of local search results, you will find that your business just takes off! Investing in local SEO is a great but inexpensive way to identify customers that need what your business has to offer.
Creating Your Local Identity
The identity of your business is more than just a logo – it is the actual story of your business. You should place an effort on being transparent about your business and sharing the story how you came to be, outline challenges that you have experienced, and talk about the passion that actually drives you. This narrative will help immensely in customers connecting with your business on a personal level. Be sure to offer some type of valuer proposition – it could be a special sales pricing model, a secret type of menu, or maybe a resident dog – whatever will make your business highly memorable.
Develop Your Online Presence
The website that you have a professional set up is your digital-based storefront. You must make certain that it shines. We here at Brick Road Media are capable of handling this aspect of your local marketing efforts. We will make sure your website is user-friendly, optimized for search engines if you elect to purchase unique, original articles from us – which, by the way, is one of the best steps you will ever take in terms of search engine optimization. When building that online presence, be sure to claim your Google My Business profile and ensure that your website is mobile-responsive. Finally, use keywords that pertain to your area.
Harness the Sheer Power of Social Media
You may not realize this, but social media platforms are now considered to be the biggest marketplaces on the internet. You should build an account where your target audience hangs out. You should then focus on interacting with those in your target audience on said platform. Be sure to respond to messages and comments. Be creative in what you share – do not just try to get the sale, work on building the relationship!
Localize the Content Strategy That You Use
You cannot simply use generic content. You need professionally-written and optimized content like we can provide here at Brick Road Media. You should have content that uses geo-targeted based keywords and keyword phrases. This helps to make sure that your content is reaching the right audience to build your business.
Instantly Boost the SEO of Your Online Presence
By now, it is likely that you have gained the knowledge that local SEO efforts are the keys to your online visibility. You should focus on optimizing your Google presence, list your business in local directories, and encourage people to provide positive reviews. Include your business name, address, phone number over as many platforms as you are able to!
Engage with the Community
Take part in your community by joining local events and charity projects. Support local sports teams through sponsorships and performances and join volunteer activities for various causes as well as enter local contests. Community engagement builds goodwill and brand awareness.
Maximize Your Local Business Listings
Take control of your Google My Business listing and perform regular updates to keep it accurate. Provide essential information such as your business name followed by address and phone number together with operational hours and website URL. Add enticing photos to attract customers. Include your business listing on Bing Places and Apple Maps to reach a wider audience.
Focus on Local SEO
Enhance your website for local search terms to achieve better search engine rankings. Identify search terms your customers might use like “bakery near me” and produce high-quality content to get links and traffic from local publications and blogs.
Build Local Business Contacts
Network with other businesses in complementary industries.
Become a member of your local chamber of commerce or business associations. Work together on events and advertising campaigns or make referrals to grow your customer base.
Create a Loyalty Program
Run a loyalty program that uses cards and mobile apps to reward customers who make frequent purchases. Customers earn a free coffee after making 10 purchases or they receive a free haircut after multiple visits. Loyalty programs encourage repeat business.
Increase Customer Referrals
Implement a referral system that gives rewards to both existing customers who make referrals and new customers who join. Use discounts and special offers to motivate customers to promote your business through word-of-mouth marketing.
Make Your Staff Brand Ambassadors
Encourage employees to participate in marketing efforts. Use your staff members in behind-the-scenes videos as well as blog posts and advertisements. Implement referral bonuses as an additional incentive for employees’ participation.
Use Public Spaces for Marketing
Distribute flyers, brochures, and business cards through local cafes, supermarkets, and community bulletin boards. Establish partnerships with complementary businesses to distribute marketing materials together.
Launch a Coupon Campaign
Distribute discounts via online services such as Groupon and through printed local advertisements. Create marketing strategies that motivate customers to make multiple purchases or larger quantity orders to achieve optimal results.
Offer Free Consultations
Use free advice sessions to demonstrate your professional expertise. If you work as an accountant, you can organize a tax seminar at the local library to offer it for free.
Get Featured in Local Media
Promote your expertise to local newspapers and blogs as well as TV stations. Gain exposure by sharing your knowledge about industry trends or local matters.
Collaborate with Local Bloggers
Contact local bloggers and online journalists to get your business featured. Articles written by local bloggers and journalists about your business can attract visitors to your website and boost local SEO performance.
Use Direct Mail
Send personalized mailers to local customers. Direct mail appeals to millennials while allowing businesses to focus their efforts on distinct neighborhoods.
Embrace Branding
Create a powerful brand identity and maintain it consistently. A recognizable brand helps you become visible and build trust within your local market space.
Contact Us Today
We here at Brick Road Media are the leading experts on all aspects of the online business component. If you elect to work with us, you will find that your business soars with the website that we create and the content is optimized for both local and online searches. We can help you reach new levels of success. While it is true that your business may only be online, you could reach an immense amount of success by going local.
Do not wait too long, contact us today about setting up your website and creating content for you that will help in your rankings! You may call us today by calling the following phone number: 765-439-4029