As a Raleigh marketing expert, I help small businesses grow their brand and get found online. Honestly, I was reluctant to use the word expert because, in the fields of online marketing and information technology, the truth is that you never stop learning – but that’s one of the things I love most about it. Most people don’t have either the time or the technical background to learn the nuances of online marketing. Getting your business found online can be daunting for a small business that’s up against bigger companies with bigger marketing budgets, so you need to work smarter – and in some ways small business has some real advantages.
I believe in small business, and it’s my purpose to help other small businesses like mine not only survive, but thrive. People all around you are actively searching online right now, participating in conversations and socially engaging in countless online activities that all represent an opportunity for you to be seen and heard by them. Let’s position your position in front of them.
What is the small business advantage? It’s a unique market opportunity that a small local business has over big business. The reason it works has to do with neuroscience that I’m not going to get into the details of, but the bottom line is that we’re hardwired to connect with each other as real people. I’m not saying big business can’t make things more personal; some top brands have been trying to do this very thing lately, in fact. What big business can’t – and won’t – do, though, is let their employees get on FaceBook or YouTube and make ad-hoc on-the-job videos or publicly blog about work and the company. They don’t want anything going public like that, if it hasn’t been approved by their PR department, because it might misrepresent their brand. This creates a huge opportunity for you as a small business owner! The void created by big business’ policies and procedures about social media create a situation where you can jump in there and connect with people at a real personal level. Provided you’re delivering a good value and the rest of your brand messages are right, I believe small business has a real advantage – you just have to act on it.
If you aren’t sure where to start with online marketing in general, you can check out my book for some ideas on how to get started with online marketing in general. There are some things you can do to help get things moving for your business that don’t have to take a lot of time, and I cover a number of those, including:
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Pay Per Click (PPC)
- Local Online Directories
- Social Media Marketing
- Mobile Marketing
- Blogging
- Email Marketing
If you want to take your business to the next level, contact me here on my website. My mission is to help new and and small businesses get online with affordable solutions.
Thanks for stopping by!
