Your online presence is critical to making a great first impression. In today’s digital environment, potential customers are relying on online searches when researching your product/service. Chances are, they’ve done some research before picking up a phone or walking through your door. Make sure you’re making a lasting impression. Below are some quick and easy tasks that you can do to make sure you’re establishing an online presence.
Create/Update Your Google Business Listing
If you don’t have a Google Business listing, do it NOW. Type in business.google.com/us/business-profile/ in your browser and get started. There is some basic information that Google will need, including your business name, address, phone number, website, etc.
Fill out as much information as you can and get verified. This step is the equivalent of getting listed in the Yellow Pages…before Google was invented. Just a heads up for small mountain towns that get mail delivered to a PO Box. You may have to get verified via a video phone message with Google.
Add Your Business To Any/All Business Listing Sites
In addition to Google, seek out all listing services that potential customers will use to find you and create a listing. These include Yelp, Bing, Apple Maps, Angi, Yelp, etc. You can easily copy and paste the same information that you use for you Google listing. Keep a paper and pen handy to write down your passwords.
Make Sure You Website Is Updated
Business owners should be looking at their website on a daily basis and look for ways to improve. Make sure all information is correct and up-to-date because this is your first impression on a potential customer. If your information is wrong on your website, it doesn’t look good on you.
Consistent Posting To Your Social Pages
Stay up to date with all your social pages. Post atleast once a week with news, exciting photos, updates, new offers, etc. Doing this ensures that you’re consistently communicating with your followers, but also shows that you care and are open for business. An easy way to do this is to pull out a calendar and start adding ideas to post on each day that align with any news, promotions, sales, and events that are happening at your business.
Start Writing
Use a post-it, blank sheet of paper, tablet, email. Write down any and all ideas you have, and when you have 15 spare minutes, expand on those topics. Talk as if you’re talking with a 5 year old. These are the kind of articles your customers want because it shows you’re an expert in the field and are willing to share your knowledge. Once you’re done expanding on those ideas publish your final thoughts as a blog post. Blogs post aid iin SEO and the search engines are hungry for your words.
Final Thoughts
Your online presence is your invitation. Your invitation to pick up the phone, confirm that meeting, reply to that email. Your online presence is your chance to make a great first impression and a customer for life. Make sure your Google listing is updated and correct, continue updating your website with up-to-date information, be attentive to your social pages, and WRITE. These are the things that are so easy to do, but so easy to forget.
If you need any help in any of these areas, please feel free to reach out to Dot Zero Multimedia for help.
dotzeromedia@gmail.com or 970-401-3044. We’re here to make you successful.
Thanks for reading.
DZM