If you do not have an online presence for your business, you do not truly have a business. Yeah, we said it. If you do not have an online presence for your business . . . you are not in business.
Consumers use social media, websites, and review sites to complete their buying journey. Sometimes, consumers start their buying journey online, searching for a solution to their problem. Other times, consumers may receive a recommendation from a friend or colleague. They will then go online to review the recommendations, check out the services or product galleries. Consumers are using the internet to shop for everything from doctors to shoes.
COVID-19 has created exponential growth in the online shopping market. The image above shows the increase in online page views by industry category in just one year. As we start the process of settling into our new normal, this consumer behavior shows no signs of rolling back. While people might opt to shop in-store, or dine-in instead of take-out, they will continue to use the internet to start their journey.
Even before the COVID-19 shutdowns, about 85% of Americans use the internet on a daily basis.
So what should you do?
Website, Google My Business (for businesses with physical locations), Facebook Page
Google My Business (for businesses with physical locations), Facebook Page
Google My Business (for businesses with physical locations)
Option 1
Have a Up-to-Date Website with the Social Media Fixins
You can build a website in seconds with services like Wix, Squarespace. We love using these services for clients because they are easy to maintain. You do not need to be a web developer or coder to use them and these companies now also offer vendors to help you build your site. These companies offer everything from basic website templates, to e-commerce and email marketing integrations.
If you are using Square for payments, you can build a fully integrated e-commerce website with Weebly. We have used this for many small businesses that do not want to reinvent the wheel when they decide to go online. Again, Weebly has folks you can hire to help you as well.
If you sell products online Shopify is one the best e-commerce solutions for managing shipping and creating really beautiful, functional websites.
Next to a website, the most important digital properties you need to have are Google My Business and a Facebook Page. Why? Even if you do not “own” these online properties they are active and people can submit edits, comments and reviews about your business. Capture your Google My Business listing and your Facebook Page.
Yes there are a lot of social media platforms out there, but Facebook is the most dominant and it also owns the second most dominant social media platform, Instagram.
Why Google My Business over Yahoo or Bing?
Google My Business is the most dominant online search engine. If you do not have a lot of time and/or money, just be on Google. The Google My Business listing will actually appear in search results next to or before your website.
If you’re looking to grow your business, contact Frederick Mountain Group today at 307-543-5084 or https://frederickmtngroup.com/contact-3 for a free consultation.
