Social Media for Local Businesses
Brands are increasingly present on Social Media and there is not a week without a mention of a new campaign from companies such as Coke, Doritos or Havana Club. All this focus on big names could make people forget that social media also have an impact on other actors: local businesses. And it perfectly makes sense as they are all about special relationship with customers and customizations. Social media can then be a means to reinforce this and here is a list of tools that can be used to do so:
- Google Map (or Google Local Business Center)
As people are increasingly using it to look for locations, if you register your business on it you make it easier for people to find you. And as smart phones and geo-targeting are getting widespread, not being there is suicidal.
- Revue websites
This could be a double edged sword, but you have to be there in order to find what people really think about you: Yelp and Qype are the most prominent ones, but you may find other networks depending on your country. Create an account to register your business to make it easier for people to discover your business but also to answer criticisms.
If you already have a base of loyal customers, it would be quite interesting to create a fan page on the network as it would enable you to communicate more easily with your customers. Moreover they will spread the word about your products to their friends, generating a word of mouth effect on the platform. Use it to promote special offers and to give a different perspective on your business (e.g. put pictures of your work and products).
Besides you can also organize events and invite your most loyal customers to attend it, would it be for a tasting session or the release of a new product. Do not hesitate to encourage people to upload pictures of your products/company and reward them when they do something for you (e.g. offers them a discount when they are fans).
Having an account will help you to reach potential customers and have a new form of CRM with the existing ones. If you use Twitter to search what people say about your business, industry or on any keyword related to your company, you can contact them directly to offer them something, would it be a solution to a problem or information to find you.
Moreover, you can connect with people that are experts on your field to get more information on what is happening in your industry, advice or invite them to taste your products. You can also get connected with people organizing tweet up and offer them to do it in your bar.
People are curious and would like to know more on how you make your products and how your business works. Putting pictures of an appetizing meal is a sure way to increase the curiosity of people about your products.
- Blogging
If you are an expert in your field, feeling you can bring a different view on it, do not hesitate to go for it. It is a time commitment task, but if you can make your voice heard, it will pay off as it will attract more people towards you. You could use Blogger or Wordpress to create a blog as they are straightforward tools.
It is also quite interesting if you can identify who are the authoritative bloggers in your industry (it is very likely you will find them on Twitter as well) as you can invite them for special events (workshops, tasting, etc).
Besides, if you are a bar, why not offering to have your place as a venue for meetup events such as Blogger Meetup? As you will only have tech savvy people on your bar that will tweet about the quality of the service or write something on their Facebook or blog about it, that’s a way to get free advertising.
This new social game that invites people to indicate their location in order to gain points could be a game changer for local businesses as it will enable them to identify their most loyal customers and reward them. It could also become an advertising platform based on location, so have an eye on it.
- Live broadcasting on Internet
You can use a website like Justin.TV or Ustream to stream live what is happening in your bar or restaurants. Might be bold, but it would be for sure a way to get people’s attention.
I am sure you are wondering now: why does it not mention a website? Well of course you have several tools to create a website such as Google Sites but if will be more time consuming than anything listed here. The most important point now is that people find you when they use a search engine. And with all the platforms you can find above, they certainly will.
Related Articles
Social media giving local businesses a voice: customer service in online reviews
12-Step Social Media Guide: Put your Local Business on the Map
5 Advanced Social Media Marketing Strategies for Small Businesses
0
Loading ...