Congratulations! You have an awesome business with products and services that serve your community well. That’s fantastic, and we applaud your efforts! But… you’re not done yet. Just having a great product or service is magnificent, but if nobody knows about you, your return on investment is obviously less than stellar.
There are a few “must-haves” that Optimum Systems Online shares with every new business that crosses our path. If you are missing any of the things below, you are missing the opportunity to reach new clients and gain even more profit:
- A Website. Yes, this seems obvious, but it can often be an after-thought for business owners that have spent so much time and energy producing their product or service. A great website may seem like an overwhelming task to produce, but in reality, there are tons of services that can help you create a great website. If you want to do it yourself, you can utilize existing templates and drop-and-drag technology, you can have a beautiful website that speaks to your customers and says what you need to say to them. If you want to present a more professional, customized option, you can hire a company like Optimum Systems Online to bring your business to life online. And sure, there are places in the online marketplace where you can sell your stuff and ideas via third party platforms, but you hardly have the flexibility to show your creative side when you’re restricted by someone else’s ideas of the perfect website. Ideally, you’ll have a spot in cyberspace to call your very own.
- Social Profiles. Your consumers are on social media, so you most certainly don’t want to put your foot down in the name of fighting the social media fab. The fact of the matter is that social media is here to stay, so it’s time for you to give your business the ability to embrace the tools that can help take you to the next level. Ideally, you’ll have such a great product and website that you’ll have new consumers visiting your site every single day. That said, if consumers don’t know you exist, they’re not likely to go looking for you, right? By building social profiles on the big sites like Facebook and Twitter as well as others like Google+, LinkedIn, and Instagram, you’re giving your consumers (and potential consumers) the ability to learn about you on a platform where they’re most likely to see you. Your social profiles will help you learn more about your customers, spread word of mouth advertisement about how amazing you are, and advertise can’t-live-without deals and news.
- A Phone Number. Yes, in the world of online retailing, you’re much more likely to have virtual interactions than real-time phone calls and client visits. That said, neither of these is an impossibility. Additionally, people want to know you’re real, and when you have a phone number that they can call to ask you questions or get help (even if they have no intention of ever actually utilizing it), it puts some trust into your business. Let’s put your business next to another business that offers the exact same products or services. Your sites are completely identical, you’re companies are equally as fantastic, the online ratings and reviews are 100% across the board. So what makes a consumer choose one of you over the other? Chances are if your competitor in this example has a phone number, but you’ve avoided the idea of having ten digits for your business, you probably just lost that customer. It’s always better to be safer than sorry, right?
- Email Marketing. Everybody likes getting mail, right? (Particularly when it’s not junk mail, in either the physical or virtual sense of the phrase). Constructing great email marketing campaigns can be a little tricky, but it’s also a virtual necessity to getting people through your cyber door. If you’re not great at writing (or if you’re okay at it, but it’s the last thing that you want to do with your day), there are tons of freelance writers out there that are happy to play with words while you take care of the rest of your business. Third party marketing companies can also help you create drip campaigns, which are intended to hit your customers’ inboxes at strategically determined times, helping you to optimize the opportunities for getting your emails opened and having people learn more about whatever you have to say to them. You can use email marketing for many things, so don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you’re just spamming your mailing list. You can utilize this type of tool to tell people stories about your company or staff members, highlight special products or services, advertise deals, and offer suggestions on how to use your products or services that people may not otherwise have thought about.
- An Ability to be Searched for and Found. Search engine optimization (SEO) is a big deal these days. SEO tactics are, in short, comprised of algorithms whereby search engines like Google crawl around in cyberspace looking for websites that are filled with a combination of keywords and excellent content. As technology changes, so, too, do the requirements of search engines. Companies at stay on top of the latest SEO requirements (and adjust their content as needed, of course) are much more likely to reap the rewards of being seen on the first or second page of an applicable web search. One thing is certain: you can’t stay stagnant in today’s search engine optimization world. If you want to be found today and tomorrow, you’ll need to construct an ability to be searched for and found, and you’ll need to be flexible enough to know that these requirements are ever-changing. Remember, your competitors are likely staying abreast of these changes, so you don’t want to fall behind on the learning curve.
- A Mobile Solution. Whether this means a mobile app, which will allow your customers to download your technology and get to you at the simple click of a button, or you’re just making sure that your site can be seen by whichever device your customer chooses to view you from, making sure that you have a mobile solution is pretty necessary in today’s world. A mobile app is always an awesome item to have on a company’s wish list, but if you’re not quite there with your business, there are still certain parts of mobile solutions that any online company will want to pay close attention to. For example, having a responsive theme is important because your customers may be accessing your site from a phone, a tablet, a laptop, or a desktop. With so many ways from which your site can be viewed these days, the mobile solution of utilizing a responsive theme means that your site is built with the ability for your people to find, view, and buy on your site, regardless of which technological device they’ve used
If you have other “must haves” that any online business needs to make sure it crosses off of the to-do list, share them with us in the ‘Comments’ section below!
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