Most small businesses are set up to service local customers. Dentists, carpet cleaners, plumbers, chiropractic therapists, divorce lawyers and hundreds of other types of firms use either a store front, office or drive on-site to supply services and products to a local customer base.
If you are Starbucks or a retail chain, you benefit from wide advertising and a distinguishable building. But over 95% of companies aren’t attached to widely known brands and corporations. For them, the most important and challenging task is getting new accounts.
Yellow Page directories have historically been the very first thing tiny firms include in their marketing mix. Some would do local paper advertising, perhaps include a card in a US mail pack sent out by others, do some direct mail shots of their own to local residents, test a radio ad and, if they felt especially generous, pay for local television commercials. Sadly, none of these methodologies will generate the quantity of new accounts they used to. In most instances, the owner of a small enterprise will now really lose cash on each of these marketing approaches.
The Internet is the solution to successful customer signup, for 2 reasons:
1. Consumers make less and less use of the normal media. Yellow Page directories are usually recycled upon delivery, or used to hold doors open and prop items up. Newspaper readership is way down, as people like to get today’s stories today (online), versus getting yesterday’s stories today (in print). Radio is being skipped in favor of online music services. TV commercials get skipped as spectators TiVo their way past them.
2. When you publicize in a newspaper, direct mail or radio, the majority of the people who receive the message aren’t at all curious about what you are selling. Yet, you are paying for each one of them to get the wasted ad. Meanwhile, prospects who go surfing to search for “houston chiropractor” or “carlsbad carpet cleaner” are definitely keen on that service in their area.
The key for each business is to start phasing out the promotional techniques that aren’t producing new buyers, and step up efforts to become visible on the internet. It’s possible to get ranked high on Google and other search websites, as well as listed in the various online directories that consumers use, whether or not you have a internet site. Don’t delay. Your potential customers are going to the competition who appear online, while you are waiting to start.
The Molosomar Team are professionals at online marketing for organizations that want more business. They go beyond just the technical stuff, helping their clients be more effective at converting protential customers into actual accounts. Molosomar specializes in the three keys to your online success – visibility credibility and conversion.
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