Don’t Panic! You Started a New Business.

Congratulations! You’ve started your own company! Now what?

After you set up all of the legal, logistical and day-to-day elements of your new business, it is time to consider some marketing. How are customers supposed to find you? You can always fall back on traditional methods such as print ads and flyers, but those are one-trick ponies. A website and digital marketing are the most efficient marketing methods you can use for your business. A website and social media platforms give you a central source for the latest information regarding your company which can be accessed by any customer anywhere and anytime. Take a look at some guidelines for SEO and other digital marketing.

The Golden Rule

Your main goal for your website is to provide your website visitors with high-quality, relevant information. You want to become the go-to authority on your industry and product. Your website should not be all about self-promotion. It should educate and engage your potential customers.

Content is King

Fill your site with quality content (information) and make sure it is kept up to date and relevant. Blogs within your site are great ways to do this. You can write a series of blogs to inform and to entertain. Keep in mind that information isn’t always words. Videos, podcasts, and webinars are great methods to teach. You want to create a quality experience for your visitor. Your visitor is your future customer.

Don’t Ignore Social Media

Social media is like a cocktail party. You want to keep mingling and talking about yourself and your business. Just remember to not be “that guy.” A party is not the place for the hard sell. Yes, do talk about your business but remember to crack a few jokes and make people laugh. But for the love of all that is holy, do NOT talk religion or politics unless that is your business.

Keywords are Great, If They Make Sense

In the past, SEO was all about keywords. You still see this thinking on older sites that go out of their way to mention their target keyword as many times as possible. The end product is content that sounds ridiculous. Always remember that when you write, you are writing for people, not for a search engine. Keyword research is important, but your customers need to understand that yours is an intelligent company that can communicate ideas, suggestions, and solutions.

Stow Your Narcissistic Tendencies 

People are busy. They don’t have the time nor the inclination to comb through pages and pages of self-adulation and narcissistic garbage. Too many times, companies fill their sites with lots of information that attempts to make them look good, but makes no sense or is too awkward to digest. Organize your information so it is easy to visually scan. Headings and subheadings make information easier to read AND if you use keywords, works great for SEO as well. If it looks bloated, it is. Edit it.

Two Frogs Walk Into A Bar…

There is a very good reason that The Repair Manual For The 1979 Ford Pinto isn’t on the NY Times Bestseller List. Ok, there are several reasons. But the big one is it is really, really dull. When you write for your business, let your sense of humor show! Humor engages people, keeps them reading and humanizes you and your company. The more approachable you seem, the higher probability a customer will call you.