July 4, 2018 •Claire Archer-Davis
Okay, so first thing’s first, if you’re a complete online novice, you need to set up profiles for your business on all the major social media platforms. Keep things simple with a Facebook profile and Twitter profile and keep these two up to date in regards to opening and closing times, phone numbers and location. When you get into the swing of things, you can add an Instagram or LinkedIn profile too. Google Business
If social media isn’t your thing, you at least need to have a Google Business listing for your business. This will be the main port of call for anyone who is looking your business up online or trying to find a business that does what you do. Again, keeping your opening times, phone number, address and any holidays updated is key to securing business.
Set up an online newsletter
A newsletter is a great way to share with your customers any exciting updates within your business, tips and tricks relating to your sector as well as just keeping in touch, you can also invite your customers to engage with you through the newsletter or give them a coupon or some money off a purchase to encourage sales.
Use an auto-responder
After you have setup a newsletter or monthly email bulletin, then it’s often a good idea to set up an auto-responder which is an automatic email welcoming the person to your email list. You can also include a coupon, some helpful advice or just an update of your opening hours and services to keep your customers in the loop.
Optimise your website
No matter whether or not it’s extensive, you should have a website for your website, and even if you aren’t regularly updating it, you should at least have a useful landing page with your contact information and relevant services on it. If someone is looking online for a business that does what you do, you want your business to jump out at them, and a website is a great way to show some credibility. It’s also important to make sure that your website is optimised for mobile as over 80% of your customers will be using a mobile device or tablet to browse online.