Why Local Digital Marketing is Important and How to Get Started

Today every business must be online. Even a small local business needs to have an online presence or you will lose out on a large number of potential customers who may be looking for what the company has to offer. Local digital marketing can increase a business's customer base, increase revenue, and help the business grow. You want your business to be successful, so take some time to learn more about local digital marketing and how much it can do for your business.

Consumer behavior today

Consumers today have high expectations, they want immediate action, and when they have an incentive they are more likely to act on it. They are more likely to make immediate decisions based on what they see and are generally more loyal to what they need in the moment rather than the brands. Today the average person checks their phone 150 times a day and spends 177 minutes on their phone every day. Every time they use their phone, they spend an average of 70 seconds online.

In the past, everything depended on physical locations. Some businesses have websites, but they usually ask potential customers to find local stores and don't offer customers much. Base the decision on foot traffic in the actual location and ignore it if the company has a website.

Learn how to grow your business with Google

With all the benefits of a digital presence and local digital marketing, you'll want to start working on getting your business online today. Getting started with Google allows you to easily connect your business online and start working on the key components of a digital presence. You will get the start of a digital marketing plan so that you can focus on scaling up your marketing plan and reaching more customers.

Three basic steps can help you get started, so you'll be on your way toward building a huge online presence and promoting digital marketing so that it's as effective as possible. To get started, you'll need to create business data, build a website, and start advertising so you can find more customers for your business. It doesn't take long to do, but you'll want to focus on each step to make sure you attract more customers with your new business data, website, and ads.

Create a business list

The first step is to create a business listing using Google My Business. This is often the first thing a customer sees when searching for a local business like yours. You'll want to connect with them on Google Maps by keeping your information up to date. This includes your address, business hours, and other important business information that your customers may be looking for before they decide to try it. In fact, 40% of local business searches want to find business opening hours, so updating this ensures that your customers find the information they're looking for.

Build a great website

Creating a good website is vital to the success of local digital marketing. Many of your potential customers will want to visit your website before deciding to visit your local store. More than 40% of people comparing online businesses will search for websites to help them make a decision and the website is the most clicked item in Google business listings.

However, you don't need to spend a lot of money to build a complicated website with e-commerce options. Instead, start with a basic website designed by a professional. A basic website won't be too expensive, but it will be well built and will include everything needed to attract consumers and help them become customers. A well-built website will be able to grow with your business in the future, if necessary.

Start advertising to find more customers

To be there for a customer when they need you, start using Google Ads. It is ideal for local businesses as well as a wider reach. Be sure to create ads targeting local customers and various ads for a wider audience. Connect to Google My Business to display address information with ads and try callout extensions to highlight specials and track conversations, including phone calls.

You'll also need to take advantage of minute by minute ads targeting the ads at the customer's purchase stage. Carefully choose keywords that match the moment. Next, be sure to engage further with customers. Use the Display Network for connectivity after discovery, remarketing to target people who have visited your website, and demographics to bid on more people who match your general customer profile.

Get started with local digital marketing

Local digital marketing and building a local online presence can have a huge impact on your business, resulting in rapid growth, increased revenue and a huge customer base. Start your business digital presence using the three basic steps outlined here to start reaping all the benefits of connecting with your customers online.