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Running your own service-based business is never easy…
Seasonal fluctuations and an unpredictable economy can lead to ebbs and flows of work. It can be hard to focus on running your business when you’re worried about staying afloat. After all, bills still need to be paid and you need to make payroll. Things would feel easier if you had a steady stream of leads coming in.
Investing in a solid digital marketing plan can be an excellent way to get new leads and to grow your business. Putting time and energy into your business’ online presence can bring in new clients for a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising.
Wondering where to begin? Start with our 5 Tips For Getting Leads With Digital Marketing.
1. Show off your positive reviews with Google My Business
70% of customers read online reviews before deciding on a service provider. Why not ask your most loyal customers to give you a Google review if they haven’t already? This can increase your credibility when customers are searching for your business. Social proof matters, especially when people are looking to invite somebody into their home. They want a trustworthy individual who has proven to have done good work for others.
Who would you go and see? A business with no reviews, or one with 20-30 reviews that are in the four to five star range?
In addition to accruing reviews, it is important for any business owner to maintain a consistently updated Google My Business profile. Google favours businesses who have a Google My Business page, showing off your business in local search results and on Google maps.
It is also a good idea to have a presence on service-specific websites where homeowners and businesses might be looking for reviews. Websites like Homestars, Houzz, and Trusted Pros are all places where potential new clients go looking for reviews of potential contractors. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to have your stellar reviews seen on these sites.
2. Find your best potential leads with targeted digital advertising
There are approximately 3.5 billion Google searches every day; that equates to 40,000 searches every second. Google is an intent-based platform, which means that those searches represent that person’s intent in real time. Nobody searches for “plumber near me” if they’re looking to order pizza!
This represents so much opportunity if you’re a small service-based business because some of those searches are for you. How do you ensure that you’re there in those moments?
The answer is by implementing a thoughtful, well built out Google Ads search campaign that meets best practices. This reduces wasted ad spend and allows you to target quality leads at the exact moment that they’re looking for your business.
Digital ads are a great way to communicate to your best lead. You can also use the data collected to analyze who is clicking on your ads and adjust your targeting, and other marketing strategies, accordingly.
3. Connect with your customers on social media
Maintaining a social media presence is a great way to signify to potential leads that your business is open and available to help when they need you. Make sure that you are posting regularly and engaging with your audience. Responding to reviews and posts on social media further builds your customers’ trust in your brand.
Don’t underestimate the power of paid ads on social media. Facebook and Instagram have advanced targeting abilities, allowing you to build awareness of your brand and connect with potential leads on different social media platforms.
4. Optimize your website for search engines
Having your website rank organically on Google and other search engines is harder than you would think. It’s about more than just having a functioning website. You need to make sure that the front and back ends of your website are “crawlable” by Google and kept up to date with the ever-changing algorithms.
You also need to ensure that your website is technically sound. Google is emphasizing mobile friendliness, having a secure site, and page speed as key factors. The focus of SEO is changing and moving towards having an excellent user experience.
A simple search of “SEO” can leave your head spinning with talk of keywords and meta-tagging. Luckily, there are lots of resources out there that can teach you how to implement basic SEO on your website. We personally love how they explain SEO concepts over at Moz – check out this Beginner’s Guide to SEO to get started.
5. Hire a digital marketing agency
We know that it can seem daunting to execute a digital marketing strategy. Keeping all of this straight isn’t easy. In fact, it’s a full-time job.
Investing in digital advertising and working alongside a digital marketing agency is one of the most cost-effective ways to communicate your brand and bring in new leads. You get years of expert knowledge for less than the price of hiring a marketer. This gives you more time to devote to your own customers. Hiring an agency can mean building a partnership that will allow you to minimize downtime between jobs and keep your business afloat.
At Snaptech Marketing, we have a service package designed specifically for you. We can execute Google Ads campaigns, reputation management, and Google My Business optimizations so that you can focus on doing the work that you love to do while we focus on getting you quality leads to work with.
Interested? Give us a call at (604) 677-0742 to get started.