The other afternoon a gigantic YellowBook was delivered to our company. One of our employees set it on the front table and there it stayed for two days before it hit the bottom of the recycling bin. Never opened, never used. A poor tree sacrificed for nothing.
With today’s easy access to information, searching through a thousand-page book to find the best local hardware store is no longer the most appealing or convenient option. My iPhone has a great app that, with a simple touch, gives me a list of all the hardware stores within any distance I choose — and I can access this information from anywhere. The YellowBook can’t do that. Therefore, in the recycling bin it goes. Chances are you feel the very same way.
*According to a recent research study conducted by Pew Research Center, 91%
of adult internet users use a search engine to find information and 78% look for information online about a service or product they are thinking of buying.
So the question is—when these adults are searching for this information, are they finding your brand or your competitor’s? And once they find your brand, what happens next?
The following are five steps your business can take to be sure your brand is being found and engaged when your customers come calling for products and services such as yours.
1) Build an online presence on your own “land”
In a recent study conducted by Ad-ology, 46% of small businesses surveyed said they did not have a website. Another survey of more than 700 client-side and agency digital marketers in association with RedEye found that two-thirds of companies have yet to optimize their website for mobile applications.
We often hear from businesses that they do not need to invest in a website because they have a thriving Facebook page that has great customer interaction. Although Facebook is a great customer engagement and communication platform, any social media platform should be used as an “in addition to” rather than an “instead of.”
There is a simple reason for our thought on this. Many companies are under the impression that they “own” their company Facebook page, but in reality, companies are simply renting that space; that space can be taken from them at any moment (read your Facebook terms). Facebook is constantly changing the way their pages function, look and how visitors can interact with them. You are not in control of that – which means if your Facebook page is your only source of online communication with your customers, you are not in control of that either.
Would you build your home on rented land? No.
I would say the same goes for building a business.
Don’t place your sole web presence on a platform that you do not own nor completely control.
Visit our Resources Page to read the rest of this article.f
