Having a strong online presence is essential for the growth of a business. It also boosts the effectiveness of future internet marketing campaigns. The merits cannot be overemphasized. If you want to drive traffic to your site, you have to manage the online presence of your small business as efficiently as possible. The following tips will be helpful.

1. Determine Your Target Audience

Knowing your audience is crucial to planning an effective online marketing campaign. You need to know the categories of internet users you are targeting, and choose the best strategies to reach them.

2. The Perfect Domain Name

Your domain name needs to serve its purpose by leading internet users to your site easily. Take your time in choosing a domain name because it may serve you forever.

3. Optimize Your Website for Mobile Devices

First-time visitors can get discouraged if your site is not properly optimized for mobile viewing. Website optimization can lead to higher rankings on Google’s search results.

4. Be Responsive To Customers

Engaging visitors and customers by responding to their questions, and asking for feedback is a good way to get them more interested and build loyalty. You can do this on social media and your site’s live chat section

5. Get Listed on Online Directories

Being listed on online local directories means that search engines can verify your location. Your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) has to be consistent on all directories for better optimization.

6. Google My Business Page (GMB) Optimization

This is linked to the previous tip, but there is need to emphasize on it. GMB is a free service, and you can make the best out of it by giving good descriptions, aiming for 5-star ratings, and garnering great reviews.

7. Make Use of Social Media Influencers

This has become a popular strategy in recent years. Many brands have benefitted from having influencers promote their products and services on their accounts. Influencers have huge communities of followers, making it a lucrative strategy.

8. Utilize Both Paid and Organic Search

You can use as many strategies as possible as long as your budget can handle it. Paid searches entail having your site automatically listed on the first pages of search results, while organic search requires you to engage in SEO to improve rankings.

9. Connect With Other Companies

Consider connecting on social media platforms tailored for companies and professionals. You will have great networking opportunities such as connecting with professionals on LinkedIn available to you.

10. Evaluate the Success of Your Strategies

This is crucial to know if your time, money, and efforts are paying off. Do not wait until the end of any campaign to do so. Make it a regular thing, and see what changes are needed in order to achieve better results.

The above tips will help you convert site visits and social media profile views to patronage. Apart from patronage, you will be able to build customer loyalty, make connections, and improve your service delivery.

Promoting a business is hard, especially if you’re one of the smaller businesses.
Here are ten inexpensive ways to help promote your business:

1. Basic SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Set up your website such that search engines understand the content and will link to your web pages when searched on the internet. You can always improve the SEO of your site. One way is to use common phrases that people search for in the page title, and another is to use the H1 tag to boost SEO rankings.

2. Set up a listing

Google offers a free listing in their directories for local businesses.

3. Set up a business profile on social media:

It should include a good description and a link to your website. The information and photos you post on your social media should be interesting to your target audience. Relevant posts that offer tips on how to improve lifestyle are likely to get likes and shares. Special offers can also catch their attention. You can then pay to boost the most popular posts you have on your social media.

4. Sign up for email service

Send newsletters, updates and promotional offers to your customers and prospects for your business. One way of encouraging your customers to subscribe to your newsletters is giving something away. Maybe a tip-sheet on something related to your product. Another incentive could be a signup discount on your products or services.

5. Memberships in groups that attract your target customers

Pay for membership in these groups and check if the group has a website. If the site has a published list of members, make sure your name and the link to your website get added. Be actively involved in at least two or three of such groups so that there are more chances of meeting possible prospects. Remember that opportunists get spotted easily. You need to make real contributions to these groups by offering ideas and helping with projects whenever possible. Avoid the groups you feel would take a lot more of your time than you are ready to give.

6. Find what is unique about your product/service and publicize it

Local newspapers, radio stations, cable TV stations and magazines are some of your options. Make sure their audiences are audiences that would be interested in your product. Don’t forget to hit up one or more online press release services and include links to your website. Send a photo along to increase your chances of having your material published.

7. Publicize the publicity

Whenever you get publicity, get permission from that publisher to reprint the article. Make photocopies and mail them out with the sales letters you use to market the product/service. These clips make the claims you make on your product credible.

8. Ask for leads

Contact your friends, former employers and maybe other businesses linked to your own business. Ask if they need your services or know potential customers who may be interested.

9. Attend events

There are always local networking events you can attend.

10. Cross-promotion

Get together with businesses of the same market that sell a different product/service. This way, you can pass along leads, make referrals and share mailings.