Local marketing is not just a buzzword.
For small businesses like yours, local marketing is a powerful marketing tool because it is designed to focus on audiences who are most likely to support and promote your business.
By putting your marketing efforts into your local community, you can create a personal connection with your customers, build a loyal following, and differentiate yourself from the competition.
In this blog, we’ll explore the benefits of local marketing and how it can help your local business succeed.
What is Local Marketing?
Local marketing is a marketing strategy that targets a specific geographical area, such as a city, town, or region.
The goal of local marketing is to connect with potential customers who are located nearby and to promote products or services that are relevant to the local community.
Local Marketing: Traditional Marketing VS Digital Marketing
Traditional and digital marketing are two distinct approaches with different advantages.
Whilst there are a few commonalities, each offers unique opportunities to reach customers in new ways.
Here’s an example of traditional marketing:
A small bakery in a neighborhood uses flyers or posters to distribute to the neighborhood as part of its brand awareness campaign.
The bakery might also offer promotions or discounts to customers who live within a certain radius of the bakery, or they can participate in local events such as street fairs or farmer’s markets.
Traditional local marketing essentially employs one of the three media (print, television, and radio) to advertise its products and services. The disadvantage of this strategy is that it is static because it mainly involves one-way communication.
Moreover, doing ads and printing flyers can be expensive, and tracking your marketing efforts is almost impossible.
On the other hand, when we say digital marketing, the strategies are implemented using the internet and online channels.
The small bakery can have an engaging website and leveraging social media posts and snackable videos are surefire ways to showcase products and services while staying within budget.
We highly recommend this kind of local marketing because if the strategy is effective, you can expect:
- High engagement
- Fast conversion
- Easy to measure your ROI
- Quick and live results
The best part?
You can track your marketing efforts and tweak them to get the best results.
With the right strategy, the small bakery can make a big impact on its online presence without breaking the bank.
But which one is for you?
Well, doing a little bit of both won’t hurt. But it will boil down to who your target market is.
Traditional marketing is popular among older generations. According to The Media Handbook by Helen Katz, traditional marketing establishes more credibility than online.
For example, physical media like print is more effective than email. This is because of the increasing digital noise and the information overload that is happening daily.
Meanwhile, younger generations are more active on social media channels and mostly rely on vloggers and influencers to know the best products and services in town.
For example, review vlogs of local destinations are gaining favorable traction because it creates a personalized experience.
The audience can get to see the happenings behind the scene of a popular restaurant or get the feels and vibes of a nearby hotel.
But for us, we highly recommend doing digital marketing with a little bit of traditional marketing to ensure that you can reach your target customers with ease.
What matters most is how creative you are with your local marketing strategies.
3 Things to watch out for when doing digital local marketing
When embarking on a local marketing campaign, it’s important to keep in mind that the landscape is constantly shifting. That said, you need to be aware of these changes to ensure that your marketing efforts are effective and not wasted.
Here are 3 things you should watch out for when doing local marketing:
Consumer behavior
One of the biggest challenges of small businesses is to keep up with consumer demands. Then the pandemic came and it ultimately altered how consumers behave in their online consumption.
For example, during the pandemic, baby boomers who were loyal brick-and-mortar shoppers were forced to purchase their goods online.
Now, they are still in it with over 60% of the older population having experienced buying online and 47% of them admitted that they increased their online spending.
The way people shop and buy products and services is always changing. Keep an eye on the latest consumer trends and behavior in your local market to stay ahead of the curve.
Competitors
Yes, competitive research is integral even in local businesses.
Local competitors can impact a business’s marketing strategies by influencing pricing, promotions, and product, or service offerings.
Therefore, small businesses need to conduct competitor research and adjust their marketing strategies accordingly.
Keep a close watch on your competitors by analyzing their marketing strategies, pricing, and promotions. This will differentiate your business.
Reviews and Reputation Management
Review and reputation management are critical for local businesses to attract and retain customers. Here’s why you should pay close attention to it:
This is where your customers share their sentiments.
In today’s digital age, customers rely heavily on online reviews to make purchasing decisions.
Positive reviews can help build trust and credibility for your business, which can lead to more customers and higher revenue.
On the other hand, negative reviews can harm your business’s reputation and deter potential customers from doing business with you.
Regularly monitoring and managing your online reviews can help you address negative feedback and build a positive reputation for your business.
This is where you can enhance customer experience
Review and reputation management can also help improve the customer experience.
By responding to customer feedback and addressing their concerns, you can demonstrate that you care about their satisfaction and are willing to go the extra mile to ensure they have a positive experience with your business.
This can lead to increased loyalty and positive word-of-mouth referrals.
This is where you can monitor your local search ranking
Reviews also play a significant role in local search ranking. Positive reviews can help your business appear higher in local search results, making it easier for potential customers to find you.
By actively managing your online reviews, you will improve your search ranking and increase visibility for your business.
Keep track of what customers are saying about your business online. Respond to reviews, both positive and negative, and take steps to address any issues that may arise.
4 Local marketing strategies you can do right now
Hopefully, by this time, we were able to establish the importance of local marketing for your business.
Of course, we won’t leave you without giving tips and strategies so you can leverage the power of local marketing.
Get a headstart on local marketing with these 4 strategies:
1. Boost online presence using Google Business Profile
Optimizing your Google Business Profile is essential for boosting your online presence and attracting more customers.
Make sure that your Google Business Profile is up-to-date with accurate information such as business hours, address, phone number, website URL, and services or products offered.
Make sure to also update any changes such as new services or temporary closures to avoid confusing customers.
A complete and accurate profile can help your business appear higher in local search results and improve your online visibility.
Another way to boost your online presence is through customer reviews.
As mentioned earlier, customer reviews also play a crucial role in online reputation management and local search ranking. Encourage your customers to leave reviews on your Google Business Profile by sending follow-up emails, including review requests on receipts, and offering incentives.
Respond to all reviews, whether positive or negative, to show that you value customer feedback and are committed to providing the best experience possible.
Lastly and most importantly, you need to post regularly.
Google Business Profile allows you to post updates such as special offers, events, and news about your business.
Take advantage of this feature by posting regularly and keeping customers informed about your business. Posts can also include photos and videos, which can help showcase your products or services and increase engagement with potential customers.
Regular posting can also help boost your search ranking and improve your online presence.
2. Get involved in the community
Getting involved in the local community can be a powerful local marketing strategy for businesses not just for small businesses but of all sizes.
By getting involved in local events, sponsorships, and partnerships, businesses can demonstrate their commitment to the community and build trust and loyalty with potential customers.
This can lead to positive word-of-mouth referrals and increased brand awareness in the local market. Customers are more likely to do business with entrepreneurs or companies that are involved and invested in the local community.
In other words, it builds trust and loyalty.
Another goal when doing local marketing is to increase your brand visibility.
Participating in local events and sponsorships can also increase brand visibility and awareness in the community.
This can help businesses reach new customers and strengthen their position in the local market. By showcasing products or services at events or offering discounts to event attendees, businesses can attract new customers and build a positive reputation in the community.
3. Leverage the power of email marketing
This may come as a surprise. Email marketing? For a local business?
Well, yes! Email marketing has been a powerful communication and marketing tool for businesses big and small.
Email marketing allows you to reach out to your customers and target customers in a personal way.
Personalized emails deliver 6x higher transactional rates, while segmented, targeted, and personalized emails generate 58% of total revenue.
Mastering the art of personalized email marketing means you can deliver targeted and relevant content to your customers, thus paving the way to build a stronger customer relationship.
Additionally, personalized email marketing can help your businesses stand out from their competitors and differentiate themselves in the market.
Customers are more likely to remember and respond to personalized messages that are tailored to their specific needs and interests. And in this case, you have a very obvious common ground: your local area.
4. Keep them updated through content marketing
Whenever we want to know something or when we need to gather information, most likely the first thing we do is Google search.
The majority of internet users interact with content. That said, for a local business like yours, local content marketing can give you a lot of advantages.
For example, by creating content that is relevant and valuable to their local audience, you can build brand awareness and establish yourself as a thought leader in their industry.
Local content marketing can also drive traffic to a small business’s website, which can lead to increased lead generation and sales.
By creating content that is optimized for local search keywords and topics, small businesses can improve their search engine rankings and attract more local customers.
When you publish content that is tailored to their local audience, small businesses can establish themselves as thought leaders and trusted advisors in their local communities.
Let your target customers find you with local marketing
With the rise of online shopping and global competition, it’s easy to feel like small businesses are being left behind. But the truth is, local marketing can be a game-changer for small businesses. By targeting your marketing efforts to your local community, you can build brand awareness, attract new customers, and increase your sales and revenue.
No time to do all of these? We can help you! Garner Group Marketing specializes in local marketing and local SEO. We also do a fantastic job with our website design!
Contact us here for more information or request an estimate here.
