Small Business Social Media Tips during Covid-19

Everything just changed.

The way you do business is different. Your customers are homebound. Shopping in a retail store is non-existent. B2B business meetings are now on video conferencing sites. Service-based businesses are struggling to figure this out.

A new normal has emerged, at least for the next several weeks, if not, months.

You’re thinking “What’s next? What should I do for my small business?”

What’s Next?

As a social media marketing consultant, High Key Impact has been on the front lines of small business marketing since Coronavirus and social distancing was uttered out of our mouths. We’re learning as we go along, and we see many instances where business success is about taking the right approach.

Our clients are living proof of some of our favorite real world examples, including:

-small retailers who have to close up shop, but then build up their website’s online store virtually, or through Facebook & Instagram shopping

-the dance studio offering video classes with a paid subscription

-a niche marketing company providing new messaging for their clients who have no idea what to say in their posts or emails to their customers

-the lawyer and real estate agent who are both staying connecting with clients electronically and are continuing to drive revenue, albeit at a fraction of what it was

Social Media Marketing Tips: Covid-19 Era

SO, What Can You Do as a small business owner to continue on, whether you are closed, open or operating in a limited capacity?

  1. Update your Google My Business listing-Google gives you the opportunity to change your hours and your status through GMB. All you need to do is login to your GMB account and go to the info tab. Your hours will be listed there. You can also set your business as ‘temporarily closed’ so that customers don’t come to your location. This will not change your SEO standing on Google.
  2. Add a note on your website-Is your current business status portrayed on your website? Many sites are using pop-ups or banners to discuss Covid-19 specific plans and best practices for their industry. For example, service-based businesses list their disinfection & sanitation practices when delivering product, and B2B businesses are stating they are available to meet clients virtually with video conferencing. They are also referring to CDC links.
    What do you want to communicate to your customers on your website?
  3. Keep your social media channels active-Continue to post on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Your posts are still relevant to your customers as they want to know you’re doing ok. Fill them in on your business status from week to week. Tell them about your employees and how they are coping. Communicate about any new operational plans you have or are implementing….You get the idea; stay in front of them as much as possible.
  4. Stay positive-While everything on social media sounds doom and gloom, try to be a voice of positivity. If you are a real estate agent, talk about how to use this extra time at home to organize and de-clutter your home. If you are a retail clothing store, offer dress down tips to be comfortable working from home. Use video, Facebook Live, and uplifting posts to show your commitment to your local community, followers, and fans. Share inspirational quotes or uplifting news.

What does your marketing communications look like during our new normal? Are you in need of new ideas, social media support or help?

Contact cheryl@highkeyimpact.com from High Key Impact to schedule a Zoom call today.

Digital Marketing Consultant Secrets Revealed

The Ultimate List for Small Business Owners.
Digital Marketing Consultant Secrets Revealed!

As a small business owner with a website, the ultimate question you should be asking is “What else should I do to get my business found by potential customers?”

What do I need in order to get my small business found on the web?

There are a plethora of tools available, both free and paid, supporting your marketing efforts online.  However, small businesses may not have the time and manpower to take advantage of these supports.

Read the following list of Google tools and supports and find a way to set these up ASAP:

Google My Business
Sign up for a business listing, add your logo, add a cover photo, fill in key business details, upload photos and get verified.
Take a look at how a Google My Business listing for my business, High Key Impact, LLC shows on a Google search. (below)
(It’s the box with my profile photo and map on the right side)

 

Google Maps
Do a run-through using directions from Google Maps to find your business location.  Map your address from a variety of locations.  The ultimate ‘map-app’ helping customers find your small business location is key!  Let’s make sure it works properly.

Google Analytics
You have a small business website presence, but how do you know it is working correctly?  Google Analytics is another free tool available from Google.  Sign up for Analytics (search “google analytics” while signed in), ask your website developer to add the code and within days you will see your website’s visitor data. While there are several key data items in Analytics, ask yourself what numbers are most important to your service or product.

Read this Beginner’s Guide to find how to read and interpret Google Analytics data.

Google Search Console
Keywords are the ultimate search tool used on websites.  Many small business owners believe their keywords are all set, however, changes in business focus drive changes in keywords.  Need help from Google with your keywords?  Ask your website developer to set up Google Search Console.  Here’s a video all about how Google Search Console works.
Keywords should evolve as your business evolves.  Schedule keywords checks every month or so to make adjustments based upon ever-changing marketing focus.  

Google Reviews
Many recent articles about Google algorithms state that Google rewards the businesses with multiple Google reviews.  Listed below are several ideas how to ask for a Google review:

-Ask your customers directly.
-Send a reviews email campaign.  Create an email with a link tied directly to your Google My Business review box. Here’s how to create that link.
-Sign up for a text review service such as www.getfivestars.com.

YouTube ChannelYou Tube
Within a Google My Business account, go ahead and create a branded YouTube account.  With the influx of video marketing becoming the ‘go-to’ reach tool for most products or services, YouTube videos are key in video marketing. Watch this video to see how to create a business YouTube Channel for improved results.

Google+
What else helps local search SEO for small businesses?  Google+!  Google+ is part of the Google My Business suite and a simple tool to share more digital posts about your industry and company information.  Check out this article all about the benefits of Google+.

Do you use these marketing tools mentioned above?  What works best for your small business?

While uncovering most of the Google suite ‘marketing secrets’ in this blog, I realize there are more items to unveil in an upcoming blog entitled “Digital Marketing Consultant Secrets Revealed Part 2.”–Stay Tuned!

Cheryl Friedenberg cheryl@highkeyimpact.com, www.highkeyimpact.com

 

6 Free Ways To Promote Your Small Business

With the opportunity growing daily for small businesses to utilize social media marketing opportunities as a sales tool, many business owners are not taking advantage of the many freebies provided.
As small business owners focus on sales, budgets, daily customer deliveries and P&L’s, social media marketing may take a back seat.
What are the lesser-known easy-to-use tools to help small businesses grow their online presence?  Here are just a few:

Facebook Slideshow
Cheryl FriedenbergGo to your Facebook Business Page, Create a new post and click Share a photo or video.  This drop down menu will show you several options with ‘Create a Slideshow’ towards the bottom.  Click the button and Facebook will walk you through the process.  You may add several photos, text and audio to your slides.  In the end, the slideshow is just as impactful as a video!
Analytics from Google, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook.
With a business account, you will have immediate access to your daily, weekly and monthly views, clicks, likes, comments and more.  Analytics are designed to inform the business owner what types of posts, ads and content works best for their pages.
Customer Video Testimonials
Have a happy customer or client?  Have a cell phone or mobile device?  It’s that easy to record their story and experiences utilizing your product or service and share it on your pages and/or platforms.
Google Tools
Sign into your Google My Business account and go to Google Optimize, where you may  now sign up for a Beta test.  From Google’s page:  “Whether it’s a custom-tailored message at checkout or a completely revamped homepage, Optimize shows you which site experiences engage and delight your customers, and gives you the solutions you need to deliver them.”
Google also is providing a Data Studio to take analytics and transform the data into reports, graphs and spreadsheets.  Click here for the Google Data Studio.
Video Marketing Tools
Vimeo, Wistia and You Tube all offer free online versions to create and market video promotions, testimonials and your business story.  If you haven’t heard the news, video is overtaking the social media market by storm and is the ultimate platform to reach the widest audience.  Make a small business video today.
 Family and Friends
Did you know that the simplest way to spread the word about your small business is through your existing network of friends and family.  Post on your personal Facebook and LinkedIn pages all about what your business offers.  Ask family members and friends to like your page and share content.  If you have 500+ friends on Facebook, think about what that means for your reach!
What tools do you already use for your small business?
Use the hashtag #highkeyimpact and tell us what you use…