So, you have set up your new business, invested in state of the art equipment and hired the best staff for the job…but you’re still not getting noticed. Why is that? Did you start your business with the ‘if you build it, they will come’ philosophy? If so, that’s your first mistake.
It’s okay, though, because all is not lost but it might take a while before your business begins to see the interest that you believe it deserves. Here, we will explore the different avenues available to help your business get the recognition it deserves.
Social Media
Has your business got a social media account at least? If so, are you using it correctly by offering engaging – not salesy – content? This is a good place to start, not only because opening a social media account is free, but because, in 2018, this is likely to be where new potential customers will be introduced to your brand.
Here, they can decide whether they feel as though they can relate to your brand and whether they like what you have to offer. For additional exposure, social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter do have the option to boost posts for a fee. Done right, you can reach a targeted audience of thousands for a nominal fee.
SEO
Wondering why no one is clicking onto your website? It’s probably because no one can find it, which is a major issue. New websites are never going to rocket directly to the top of the search rankings, but a well-planned SEO campaign can at least provide you with a fighting chance to mix it with the big boys.
Unless you are actively involved in SEO, you probably think that optimizing your website just involves using the odd keyword here and there. Wrong! In 2018, SEO is an all-encompassing skill that takes years to master, made even more difficult by the fact that SEO is constantly changing.
The best advice is to begin targeting on a local scale, so for instance, if you have an SEO campaign targeted for London, you would start by including London-specific key phrases. You might also look to acquire quality links from London-based bloggers to: 1. Increase your exposure to the local audience and 2. Ramp up the authority of your website.
PPC
While social media and good SEO will see your business perform in the long-term, if an immediate boost is what you desire then you won’t go far wrong with PPC. Whereas SEO is a range of tactics to move your website up the search results, PPC advertising – such as Google Ads (previously AdWords) – automatically places your adverts at the top of the page.
This doesn’t come cheap, depending on the level of competition for your keywords. The cost per click (CPC) can range from just a few cents to a few dollars, and there isn’t any guarantee that those clicks will convert. Done right, businesses can see a healthy ROI, with Google claiming that the average user sees $2 back for every $1 spent on the platform.
Employing the use of a PPC expert, even on a contractual basis, may be a wise decision for new and established businesses. This probably won’t come cheap, at least not for one who knows what they are doing, but the results may just speak for themselves.
These three avenues are all tried and trusted channels that businesses have been making the most of for the best part of a decade. You may find that not all three are suited to your business, or just that one avenue in particular works better than the others – the only way to know this is by experimenting.
