‘Not Available at All Locations’: Why Franchises Need Localized Web Presence
Do your franchises have their own localized web presence? Here’s why its important and how not thinking local, could be costing you customers.
10 Ways to Grow Your Local Business for (Almost) Nothing
Most local businesses don’t have big budgets. But that doesn’t mean that their marketing efforts have to stay small. There are plenty of strategies that local businesses can use to drive customers to their stores while getting the most out of their marketing dollars. We launched our first list of free and cheap marketing tactics back in 2017. Now, we’re updating that list with the most powerful and cost-effective ways to grow your local business today and beyond. Be Active in Online Communities Being helpful was a tactic we talked about back in 2017, and it’s still relevant today. Online communities like Nextdoor are now even more popular and filled with thousands of people who could be looking for your expert advice. Online communities that are specifically related to your industry are a great way to establish your authority, as the editorial team at WPBeginner notes. Some of these communities are obvious. If you run a hospitality business, Tripadvisor is a must. Don’t join just any community, however. It’s important that you only invest your time in places where potential customers are active. Bean Ninjas’ Meryl Johnston recommends trying out several communities to get a feel for which ones suit you and your business. When you’ve found one or two communities that work, focus your attention on being as helpful as possible to other members of that community. When it comes to posting, our advice hasn’t changed since 2017: Be as helpful as possible without expecting anything in return. Just make sure you link back to your company’s website in your profile. Create a Business Profile on Facebook Facebook remains a pivotal platform for local businesses today. In fact, it's possibly even more important now than in 2017, given Facebook's increased emphasis on local communities. Facebook visibility can also improve your business’ rankings in Google, writes entrepreneur Alyssa Gregory. All of the content that you post to Facebook, including your page itself, can be indexed by Google and show up in results pages. It’s essential that you create a separate page for your business, says social media strategist Saige Driver. You won’t be taken seriously as a local business if you’re posting from your personal account. Filling out your business profile as much as possible is also important. This includes photos of your business, contact information, a link to your website and your operating hours. Then, Post Interesting Content to That Account As we said back in 2017, it’s not enough to create a Facebook account. You need to keep posting high-quality, engaging content that your audience loves. Writer Christina Newberry recommends that business owners take a quality-over-quantity approach to content creation. Focus on helping customers and building a relationship rather than trying to hammer home a sales message. Your audience will be much more likely to engage and share your content if it offers value. You don’t have to create all of the content yourself, however. Curating content from other interesting voices in your space can be a great [...]
10 Ways Local Businesses Can Beat Big Box Retailers and Ecommerce Giants
The fight is on for local business. Here are 10 tactics to help them compete with big box retailers and ecommerce giants.
A HOT!Content Quick Start Guide
HOT!Content is certainly a lot more than a daily collection of articles. There's a lot you will learn over time, so here's a Quick Start Guide that will help you get the most from HOT!Content right away: Activate. Your first step is to "introduce" or enable HOT!Content to work with the pages and sites (including Google, Facebook, Yelp and more) that will be important to your LOCAL SEO success. There are these SEO Driven Web Services that'd be able to help you give you that kick-start you'd need. You will always maintain complete control - HOT!Content will never publish or interact with these sites without your express permission. Claim Google My Business. You will be able to "claim" your Google My Business ("GMB") page once you activate in Step 1. It's so important to your LOCAL SEO that it merits its own step! Claiming your GMB requires a bit of know-how. So, again, don't hesitate to contact us for help. Post. LOCAL SEO in a nutshell means getting found online by your customers and prospects - no matter where they are looking. Publishing content of interest increases the likelihood that you will be found. Think of posting as investing in your online presence. Marketing experts recommend posting 5x/week! Get started here or simply by clicking on "POST" in your HOT!Content email. Respond to your consumers. LOCAL SEO values reviews highly and HOT!Content's Reputation Monitor captures all consumer reviews posted by customers of your business. Be sure to respond to each review, even if it's just a "thank you." No reviews? Get in touch with us and we'll explain how to encourage people to say nice things about you online. Promote your business. HOT!Content is a great way to target ads at just the people you want to meet. Let us help you build a campaign that will achieve your objectives, within your budget. Questions? Comments? We're here to help: Email: support@engage121.com Facebook Messenger: @engage121
HOT!Content is DIY
HOT!Content is a comprehensive solution for local businesses; but not all local businesses! HOT!Content only makes sense for those businesses that can afford the time and effort to do-it-yourself. And, no one should underestimate that cost! Since you have not (yet) activated your HOT!Content subscription, we are thinking you may be one of the many local businesses that need an expert to manage your LOCAL SEO for you. We would like to introduce our Digital Marketing Assistant to you. A couple of quick comments: You will enjoy your own dedicated Assistant to work with you - personally. Your Digital Marketing Assistant is comprehensive and will expertly manage all 6 primary elements in developing your LOCAL SEO success. We manage LOCAL SEO for more than a thousand local businesses. One of our Assistants knows and understands your industry, and your business. There are components of LOCAL SEO success that are only available to our Digital Marketing Assistants. Make sure you are doing all you can to achieve success by exploring our full service solution. It's affordable! Unlike other digital marketing services you may have heard about, we know local business and we understand your budget. Your best next step is to request a LOCAL SEO Assessment. It's no cost, only takes about 30 minutes, and we promise, you will learn a lot! Questions? Comments? We're here to help: Email: support@engage121.com Facebook Messenger: @engage121
How Are You Doing?
You have been working hard on improving your LOCAL SEO. Are you interested in an objective analysis of what progress you are making? Engage121's LOCAL SEO Assessment can help. An Assessment can be completed in less than 1/2 hour and will cover all key elements contributing to your LOCAL SEO, including: Google My Business Website Links Online Content Directory Listings Consumer Reviews Social Activity Are you just getting started working on your LOCAL SEO and want to develop a baseline understanding of your current situation? Or, have you been diligently pursuing LOCAL SEO success and want to evaluate your progress? A LOCAL SEO Assessment is quick, and there is no obligation of any kind. And, we will provide you a follow-up report at no cost. Request a LOCAL SEO Assessment here. Questions? Comments? We're here to help: Email: support@engage121.com Facebook Messenger: @engage121
How Is Your LOCAL SEO?
LOCAL SEO is the ability of a business to be found online. It's important! And, for a business focused on a local market, LOCAL SEO success means a lot more than just being on Google. So, how are you doing? First, do you have a website - and, is your website structured correctly to work for you? If you have any questions or concerns, contact us. We can help. Next step, consider the following questions: Is your business "claimed" on all the relevant search engines (Google, Facebook, Bing, Yahoo! and more)? Are your "backlinks" correct on all the online business directories (YellowPages, Zillow, Foursquare)? Are you utilizing content strategically (on GoogleMyBusiness and social sites like Facebook? Creating and posting PR and newsletters? Encouraging consumer reviews?) This may seem obvious, but is your contact information current and correct across all business directories? This matters a lot to the major search engines! Have your customers mentioned you positively and prominently on the consumer review sites most relevant in your industry (Yelp, Trip Advisor, Google, Facebook)? Are your social sites (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) active and up-to-date? Your Engage121 Team offers a no cost, no obligation LOCAL SEO Assessment that will provide you an objective view of your online presence - and some of our ideas for improvement. Questions? Comments? We're here to help: Email: support@engage121.com Facebook Messenger: @engage121
What’s Different About LOCAL SEO?
What's different about LOCAL SEO? "What" and "where" – that's the difference between brand SEO and local SEO. For your franchise system's brand presence you want people to know what you do. But, your franchisees want people to find them locally – in other words, not only what they do, but equally importantly, where they do it! LOCAL SEO ensures your franchisees are where they need to be online. To be found locally, you need to cover all six factors that most impact LOCAL SEO. You can do it! Get a great start with HOT!Content. Or, our Digital Marketing Assistants can do it for you. Contact us and we'll be glad to review your options. Questions? Comments? We're here to help: Email: support@engage121.com Facebook Messenger: @engage121
What is LOCAL SEO?
We describe HOT!Content as much more than "content." It's the beginning of a journey towards LOCAL SEO success. And, if you are a local business, LOCAL SEO success is a very big deal! "SEO" means "search engine optimization," which simply describes whether, and how easily, your customers learn about you. Add "LOCAL" and we're talking about the many ways your customers not only learn about you, but also literally find their way to your place of business. No matter what business you are in, no matter who your customers are, they are online accessing information (and may be looking for you!) from a connected device, including a computer, but today, most probably a smart cell phone. Let's go into just a bit more detail: Most information is found through a search engine; the most well-known example is Google, so, of course, your business needs to be prominent on Google.NOTE: You definitely need a website that is structured correctly to work for you. Any questions or concerns, contact us. We can help! But, LOCAL SEO means much more than Google. And, that's because there are many other search engines that matter. Consider: Facebook, Yelp, Google Maps, Trip Advisor, YellowPages and many, many more sites all have search engines. And, your business needs to be prominent on all of them! And, once your business is found, you need to present a consistent, professional, up-to-date and compelling face to your customer. Your online presence is the equivalent of your 21st century business card. We can help you do this! Your business is being judged every day based on your online presence. Let's work together to make it shine. Questions? Comments? We're here to help: Email: support@engage121.com Facebook Messenger: @engage121
How to Optimize Google My Business
Claiming and Verifying your Google My Business location is the first step to ensuring customers can find your business in Google Search and Google Maps. If you are new to this concept and do not know much about it, I would recommend you contact Nimbus Marketing and take their assistance as I did when I started my own business. Now let’s ensure your customers see the best digital storefront possible! Business Info When you Created and Claimed your business, you provided the basics, but there’s more to a business than the address and phone number. Making sure your customers find accurate – and helpful - information is key to starting off on the right foot. Confirm your business category. Check to make sure you have the correct category or categories selected for your business. This will ensure you're showing up in the right search results. Enter your business hours. No one wants to show up to a store to find it closed. Let your customers know when they can expect to find your doors open. You’ll also be able to enter special hours for holidays so no one is left guessing. Confirm your phone number(s). If you have toll-free and local numbers, you can add both here. Confirm your Website. Your Google listing will include a link to your website so make sure it’s sending customers to the right place. Depending on your business, you may also be able to add links for appointment booking, online ordering, or menu. Add your list of services. If you have a list of standard services, you can list them here along with prices. You will find this source useful to assess your current and prospective clients. Add a description. Add a paragraph or two to let prospects know what you’re all about. Add an opening date. Let your prospects know how long you’ve been in business. Photos & Videos According to an SEO Source, your customers (and prospects!) will want to learn about your business. Adding pictures and videos provides your customers and prospects a preview of your business before they hop in the car. Exterior Photos. Adding a good exterior photo or two of your storefront will help prospective customers know they’re in the right place. Interior Photos. Add interior photos to showcase the look and feel of your business. Videos If you have a video that tells the story of your business, this a great place to put it on display. At Work Photos. Add pictures to the “At Work” section to show off your friendly staff helping customers. Team Photos. Add pictures to the “Team” section to introduce prospective customers to your team before they even step foot in the store. Messaging Not all customers want to make a phone call. These days, more and more customers would rather text or message you than talk on the phone. Google’s Messaging integration allows customers to text message you without making your mobile phone number public. Reviews Being responsive to customer [...]