Small businesses across the country have shifted to online selling due to the pandemic. With the majority of their customers going online, these businesses were compelled to follow them to reach their market.
The situation saw the emergence of a new set of challenges since the businesses had to increase their online presence due to the tighter competition. This is particularly true for businesses that set up their websites recently. Here are the things these businesses should do to connect with customers online.
Set Up a Website
Setting up a website is the first thing these businesses should do to reach their market online. Businesses should make sure the pages of the website load quickly. They should also have optimized images and responsive designs. They should also make the website look professional since it will increase the trust level of visitors to the site. The website should also feature images and videos relevant to the brand. The content these businesses post should be appealing to their target market so they can increase their conversion rate and encourage customers to purchase their products or services.
Work on Your SEO
After setting up the website, businesses should work on their search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. SEO is the process of increasing the visibility of the website to the target market of the business. SEO involves a lot of on-page and off-page tasks that businesses should do. They can work on finding relevant keywords to make their website visible to their market. They should also work on posting relevant content to drive traffic to the website.
For off-page SEO, businesses can create high-value links with other websites, work with influencers, and perform social media marketing. The entire SEO process is complicated and may take some time before the business will see the results. The main aim of SEO is to increase the rank of the website on the search engine results page (SERP) to increase the chances of customers visiting the website.
If businesses have no idea how to develop and implement an SEO strategy, they can hire digital marketing companies to work for them. These businesses should also consider their line of business since some companies focus on helping specific types of businesses. For instance, Care Marketing is an ideal partner for home care businesses aiming to connect with clients looking for home healthcare services.
Create Engaging Content
One of the ways businesses can bring traffic to the website is to create and post engaging content. To do this, the business should know its audience and tell a story with the content. The story should be real and authentic. It should also provide value to the customer, which can encourage them to explore the website and eventually buy the products the business offers.
The content should also connect with the audience at an emotional level. They can do this by focusing on a problem that the audience may be facing. Then, the business can provide a solution to the problem through its products and services in the market.
Listing on Online Directories
Listing the website on online directories can also help generate traffic to the website. These directories are also important for the business to come out in local searches and increase the rank of the website organically. These directories also increase brand awareness, which is important with the current situation where businesses are facing tough competition online.
Some of the directories the business can consider are Google My Business, Yelp, Apple Maps, and Bing Places. These directories also allow businesses to post their business information and receive reviews from existing customers. They can also provide backlinks, which are important in SEO.
Create a Social Media Presence
Around 70 percent of Americans use social media to connect with family and friends, engage with news content, and keep themselves entertained. With this, it’s a great idea for businesses to create a social media presence to increase their visibility online. They can create accounts on major social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and even TikTok.
Their social media accounts can gradually build trust with their target market. It also increases transparency in the way the business operates. These businesses can use their social media pages to launch promotions, introduce new products, and interact with their customers.
Due to this, businesses should be active online. They should post on their social media pages as well as update their websites regularly. Being responsive is beneficial for the business since it shows its customers that it wants to provide them with solutions through the products and services it offers.
Increasing online presence does not happen overnight. So, businesses need to be patient and keep their eyes on their long-term goal.