When it comes to small business marketing, good return on investment (ROI) is key to success. In a nutshell, good ROI is about getting the most out of your marketing budget — connecting with your customers where they spend time and making an impact.
Once you’ve got your budget, the next step is allocating it to right channels for results. Read on to discover our 5 best small business marketing platforms for ROI.
1. Google My Business
Let’s start with one of the best free marketing tools out there, Google My Business. According to Google research, businesses with complete My Business profiles are twice as likely to be considered trustworthy.
Potential customers can discover your My Business account via Google search or Google Maps. Your profile gives them a snapshot of:
- Who you are and what you do
- Your contact information
- Your business hours
- Photos of your team or work
- Customer reviews (aka social proof you’re good at what you do).
To make sure you’re getting the most out of your digital presence, spend some time optimising your profile. You can do this by checking it has the best information, images, and description to represent your company.
Tip: Good and bad reviews are an opportunity to show current and potential customers who you really are. If someone gives you a positive review, show your gratitude! Or, if someone leaves a negative (or potentially fake) review, respond thoughtfully and professionally.
2. Social media
Social media is an affordable and low-commitment way for you to connect and grow your digital presence. Unlike other platforms, it provides a unique opportunity for two-way, real-time interactions on your posts. This can help humanise your brand and build a relationship with your customers.
Some of the most popular platforms for small business include:
- Twitter.
The best one (or few) for your business depends on where your customers like to spend time, and your industry. For example, if you’re a florist or landscaper, Instagram’s image-based platform is the perfect place to showcase your artistry.
On the other hand, if you sell products to white-collar customers, LinkedIn could be the best place to show off your expertise.
Each social media channel has in-built analytics for you to track your posts. For example, it’ll tell you demographics information, best time of the day for posts, and your most popular content. These metrics can give insight into what your customers are loving, and how much traction your posts are getting.
3. Website
Your website is a go-to place for current and potential customers to find you online. That’s why it’s so important to get it right. Ensuring your website is accurate, up-to-date and captures who you are as a business is essential — it could be make or break for new customers.
On your checklist, consider if your website is:
- A good representation of your company and services
- Easy to find on search engines such as Google
- Simple to use and get information
- Informative and engaging
Helping you get more customers and keep the ones you have.
As experts in small business website copy, we know how to capture your brand and get you in front of more customers. Whether it’s writing a killer about us page, highlighting your services, or a homepage that’ll stop them in their tracks, we can help make your website a poster child for your business.
Our small business copywriting packages deliver professional content, without costing the earth.
4. Blogs
Blogging is another fantastic low-cost way to promote your small business. To make sure your website stays relevant to Google, you’ve got to update it from time to time. Blog posts are a great way to do that, and weave in relevant keywords or phrases that help you get more traffic to your site.
Having professional blog posts on topics in your industry can position you as a thought leader, which could help boost trust. Plus, you can share your blog articles across your social media channels, helping you get even more out of it.
If you’d prefer to leave the wordsmithing to the experts, our small business blog package is a surefire way to get great value for money and ROI. We’ll help you craft articles that improve your SEO (search engine optimisation), build your brand, and position you as the best in your industry.
Using Google Analytics, you can track how much traffic you’re getting on your blog posts, so you can keep on top of your results.
5. Email marketing
Having return customers is a big part of business success and growth. Email marketing can help entice your clients to make another purchase or booking with you, and keep you top-of-mind.
You can use email marketing to:
- Thank customers for their support, and ask for feedback
- Encourage them to spread the good word, for a word-of-mouth boost
- Offer exclusive deals and discounts
Share educational content about what you do or know best, through blog posts, newsletters, or more.
Want to know the icing on the cake? You can automate and review your ROI on your email marketing efforts with a free Mailchimp account. According to Mailchimp, their platform can generate up to 6 times more orders than bulk email alone.
Just make sure you don’t bombard your customers — nobody likes receiving emails from companies on the daily!
Make your dollar go further with professional web content
Helping small businesses make the most of their digital marketing efforts is our bread and butter. Get in touch with our team of Melbourne-based copywriters for quality content on a budget today.