The internet is a worldwide phenomenon. But just because your business is focused on the local scene right here in Orlando, Florida doesn’t mean that you can afford to ignore the world wide web.
On the contrary, your business’ local reputation, customer base, and high-tech solutions will all be both online and local. Here are some things local business owners need to know about the internet and digital marketing.
Your local reputation lives online
Small businesses have long relied on their reputations with customers to keep business booming. When you’re a local operation, you know that people are going to know who you are and talk about you — for good or for ill.
Customers expect that you’ll do things right. They expect that, if and when you do things wrong, you’ll go out of your way to make it right. They expect a personal touch, superior customer service, and a commitment to the local market. Otherwise, why would they choose you over one of the cheap online giants that are upending local businesses all over the country?
But while your reputation is local, the conversation around that reputation is happening online. Word of mouth still matters, but a lot of that word of mouth is now word of keyboard. Your customers opinions can now be found on online review websites like Yelp.
And when you’re having a good or bad customer interaction, that’s likely to be happening online, too. Customers like to bring their questions and complaints to online social media platforms like Facebook.
If you want to preserve your business’ reputation, you need to be online. You need to be answering customers when they talk to you on Facebook, and you need to be reading and reacting to reviews.
Your search priorities are local to Orlando
Your business is in the Orlando area. So when you think about people using search engines to query terms related to your business, you may wonder if it really matters to you. After all, people put more than 40,000 queries to Google every single second, and the vast majority of those people are accessing the internet from somewhere that is nowhere near Orlando.
But here’s the thing: Google and the rest of the search engine gang have gotten very, very good at serving up search results that are relevant to a person’s location. And with the rise in smartphone ownership and use, we’re seeing much more mobile traffic than ever before. When Google gets queries from mobile devices or through its Google Maps app, it knows to answer with local options.
All of this makes search engines and navigation apps extremely important to local businesses. These are the new window shopping, the new phone books, the new word-of-mouth — they’re absolutely crucial for taking customers from the roads or their homes and getting them to walk through your front door.
Your resources are local to Orlando, too
Your business is local, but it needs to tackle tasks related to Google — a massive company that is way out in California. But you don’t have to go on a nationwide search to find help for your web presence and your search engine rankings. You’ll find that local pros are more than up to the task.
Turn to a web design company in Orlando for a new website that looks as great to search engine algorithms as it does to your customers. Work with digital marketing experts to make sure that you’re combining SEO strategies with effective online advertising, sales lead generation, and other business essentials. And have them help you manage review sites, feedback, and social media posts and interactions.
The internet has connected the whole world, but local connections still matter. Your business is local and dedicated to helping people right here in Orlando. Turn to nearby experts who feel the same way to help you complete your mission in our modern, connected world.
