All businesses, whether big or small have a huge challenge to be facing over the coming months during the Coronavirus Pandemic.
So many businesses have already been greatly impacted, with so many UK physical shops closed. As a business owner, you’re likely to be looking for ways to survive this pandemic, and many are looking to increase their online presence.
We are all trying to stay positive, things will get better.
With the constant news updates and daily briefings, many of us are wondering when things will get back to normal, and no one has the answer. This situation however, will not last forever, but getting your business more visible online will help your business now, and also when the world gets back to our ‘new normal.’
Digital Marketing Ideas to help your business
Self Isolating? Take the opportunity for research!
If you are having to self isolate or are shielding, take the opportunity to look at your current digital marketing strategy, if you have one. If you don’t have one you should! Set up your accounts and explore how Social Media can help you. If you are already active on social media, spend time researching and joining Facebook Groups or Twitter hours, create some Instagram posts, write a blog about your industry, update your social profiles. Just take the time, where you can, to look to explore Social Media in ways that you havn’t before. It could go a long way to gaining that online visibility we will all need down the line!
Missing Networking? You can do it on Social Media
Regular networking is a key element for so many businesses. There may be networking groups running online, so you can benefit without leaving your own home. You can also look for local networking hours and groups that can promote your page. Engage daily with other local businesses where you can to build your brand awareness.
Running events on Live Video
I’m at home with 3 small children. I have been amazed at the creativity and productive ways small businesses are able to still continue to run.
My family alone does online singing lessons, online karate, Facebook football sessions, Facebook online choir and YouTube exercise sessions. Think of your service and how you can offer it online, even if it is just to maintain engagement with current customers. You can broadcast live from your channels, or create private Facebook groups so you can charge people to watch your live stream. Think outside your business box, and try something new! You may even find a new revenue stream for your business in the process!
Not sure what to publish?
It isn’t just about pushing your products or services on social media, you also need to add value to your audience. A good range of content is important, as no one wants to follow an account that is only advertising. You want to publish varied, value adding posts, think about your audience and how you are targeting. For example, as a company that offers web design, we could post information for small businesses, uses for websites, small business tips & tricks, SEO tips and articles that would be of interest to business owners. A yoga teacher could publish articles around wellbeing, healthy eating and fitness as well as their timetables and lesson information.
Other content ideas include:
- Share blog posts/articles that are relevant to your field, or links to your own blog.
- Reviews, testimonials and photos
- Interviews with your team
- ‘Behind the scenes’ photos of your team, products being made
- Product or service updates
- Case Studies
- Competitions & Giveaways
- Ask questions to increase engagement with your customers
Make sure your business website can be found online
At the moment, more people are online than in their cars, in shops or out and about. Search traffic has hugely increased over the past few weeks and will continue while the lockdown is in place, and for some time after. Shopping online could even become the norm.
Any product or service that is online right now will be searched and consumed more than ever before – so your business needs to be found. If you have a website, good SEO practice and strategies will be helping you climb to the top of Google searches, so your business can be easily found. SEO is a long term strategy, but making sure your pages are optimised for SEO and beginning to rank will help down the line.
If you want to optimise your website yourself, we can help you along. You can download our free SEO optimisation guide here.
Remember, things will get better!
Unfortunately, as small businesses, we have to find ways to keep our businesses afloat. We have to come up with innovative ways to promote our products and services, and social media is a great way to do this. It is a way to engage with your audience and reach large numbers of potential customers while we are sat in our homes.
One last thing, remember to #shoplocal.
It is this time above all else that we need to support our small businesses. Take time to promote your local partners, suppliers, businesses and let’s support each other in these difficult times ahead. If you promote them, hopefully they will do the right thing and promote you too!
Glade SEO & Design specialise in building your search engine visibility (SEO) and we also create strategically designed, eye catching websites to increase conversion rates. If you are looking to increase your online presence, contact us today for a free, no obligation quote.
