Promoting a small business locally is not necessarily an easy endeavor, especially when the marketing budget is constrained. However, the good news is that there are a few things small town enterprises can do to build trust, increase visibility, and drive real results without spending a fortune. In the article below, we discuss actionable, affordable, and proven local marketing ideas that will help your small business be seen and grow exponentially.
Growing Where You’re Planted: The Value of Local Marketing
Before we dive deeper into useful steps, it’s important to understand the current conditions of small businesses in the US. According to national reports, the United States has over 33.2 million small businesses. With almost 99.9% of them being registered, almost half of the American workforce (roughly 61.6 million) is employed by them. Which, most importantly represents just under half of the nation’s GDP. Even though there are so many success cases, 65.1% of all small-scale enterprises fail within 10 years of operation. Therefore, to ensure the survival of your small-town enterprise, it’s essential to think beyond conventional marketing strategies. Instead of focusing on ‘pushing promotions’, try building relationships with the local community by fostering a positive public perception of your business thorough supporting the surrounding population that can help your business survive and thrive in an ever-changing world.
Actionable, Affordable, and Proven Local Marketing Ideas
- Claim and optimize your Google Business Profile: Based on a ‘Birdeye.com’ article, written for businesses managing their online presence, they noted that, on average, verified business listings on Google receive 1,803 monthly views, with 84% of them coming from discovery searches. With numbers like that, imagine how many leads those views could generate! Therefore, the first step you should take is to claim your Google listing. Once it’s verified, you’re able to boost your business’ online presence to ensure it appears to searching people who are nearby.
- Host or sponsor local events: A 2022 report by the National Association of Local Businesses highlighted that sponsoring local events can significantly improve brand recognition by as much as 25%. Aside from being able to identify your brand amongst others, sponsoring local events like school fairs, charity fundraisers, and community cleanups can also help you build a loyal customer base of individuals who prefer supporting businesses that give back to the community. These efforts can foster close relationships with potential customers, cultivate a positive public perception, and may even help with tax deductions.
- Run a local referral program: The data shows that referrals have a better conversion rate compared to someone finding your business and services/ products on their own, meaning that they are the most effective customer acquisition method. It’s also evident that customers acquired through referral programs are more likely to stay loyal to the brand. In an article written on ‘Invespcro.com,’ they pointed out that direct incentives, social recognition, and access to an exclusive loyalty program, encourages more than 50% of customers to refer a business. When it comes to small, location-based enterprises, we recommend running personal referral programs by offering discounts, freebies, and loyalty points to existing customers to encourage endorsements.
- Collaborate with neighboring businesses: When you allow your business to collaborate with your neighbors, you strengthen your local presence while also supporting the broader community. These efforts can help your business in many different ways — from reaching new customers to sharing resources, running joint promotions is a great way to collaborate with nearby businesses. Whether it’s co-hosting local events, creating and selling bundle products/services, running a joint loyalty program, or sharing resources for cost efficiency, such collaboration allows all parties involved to have access to each other’s customer base and promote all businesses to a broader audience without the need for hefty advertising budgets.
- Leverage local SEO: It’s common knowledge that we are living in the age of the internet. In this time of history, people searching online are usually categorized by their device’s IP addresses, rather than by their names. Therefore, if you want your business to thrive in this era where the average individual spends 6 hours 38 minutes online daily, work on boosting your online presence. Having a strong, easily accessible website is the first step. Once that’s created, we advise optimizing it so that major search engines like Google and Bing can find your site informative and useful for nearby searchers. If you’re capable of making it appear in SERPs for search terms with location qualifiers like ‘Near Me’, you strengthen your chance of being seen and utilized by new customers.
- Make use of different social medial platforms: Did you know that, on average, people spend two hours and sixteen minutes on social media every day in the United States? Not only are people scrolling, they’re also purchasing and getting inspiration from businesses that are on there. With an ability to reach large audiences depending on the content, it’s essential to make use of different social media platforms to connect with new and returning clientele. By regularly posting content that reflects the interests and values of the people around you, you can boost your brand’s visibility. Depending on what your targets and material are, nowadays you can also partner with social media influencers that align with your brand to reach more people and gain a genuine connection with followers.
- Localize your online Ad campaigns: Another way to reach customers in your immediate area is by using hyper-localized online Ads. To increase the relevance and effectiveness of your ad campaign, try targeting people around your business location. For better results, try targeting specific demographics within your geographical area, such as age, gender, household income, etc. Yet, don’t constraint yourself to any single ad platform; try all the available options, ranging from Google Ads to Facebook Ads. After analyzing the ad campaigns, invest more in ones with a high ROI.
- Get featured in local media and blog: Since media and blogs have been around for a long time as a means to communicate information and put businesses out there, they’re two of the most effective ways to boost your business’ visibility and credibility in the local community. We recommend getting featured in local media outlets like newspapers, TV stations, and blogs owned by prominent bloggers in order to showcase your business. When doing this, it’s essential to partner with trustworthy and accessible sources so that you can be seen as reliable and approachable.
Concluding Remark
It’s no secret that starting a business is no easy task. With all the work it takes to get your business going, growing it is a whole other step. From managing cash flow to handling marketing efforts within a limited budget, every decision feels critical, and the pressure never lets up. Therefore, businesses must utilize a variety of methods in order to find success through all these challenges. By connecting with local people, involving yourself in community matters, and having a solid online presence, you’ll be able to secure a strong position in the market. If you’re unsure of how to handle the digital aspect of building your business on your own, reach out to our team at Outreach Digital Marketing for assistance. We’ll work with you to strengthen your place online through SEO optimization, analytics, ads, review management, and social media marketing. Contact us today!
