Are you the owner of a local business in the UK? Does your business have a physical store? Are you running a delivery service? No matter the answer, improving your marketing strategy is the key to attracting more customers. Here are our top 10 tips to help you promote your local business in the UK.

1. Optimise your website

 

Nothing says serious business like a well-made website. It’s the front page of your brand in the digital space and you shouldn’t ignore how it looks. Creating a website today is easier than ever before with plenty of free and paid tools that allow you to customise it to your liking. Even if you lack any know-how, you can always hire an agency to create and support your website. Just make sure your website contains all the necessary information about your business, relevant keywords, and appropriate visuals.

2. Think about mobile

 

Speaking of your website, browsing the internet is no longer limited to computers. In fact, many of the visitors to your website will be mobile users. Do your best to enhance the mobile experience on the website of your business and focus on making it as fast and responsive as possible. If done right, nobody would bat an eye but if your website is slow or poorly optimised for mobile, the returning users won’t be many.

3. Create a Google Business Profile 

 

Okay, you’ve got your website up and running and it’s smooth as butter on mobile. Your other business card on the internet will be your Google Business Profile. Getting listed on Google is a basic requirement for any locals to visit your business. Once you have created an account, fill in all the contact details such as an exact address, email, phone, and website, and add a brief description of your business. This profile will often be how many clients discover your business so you want the info in there to always be up to date. Consider also adding your business on UK platforms such as Yell, Free Index, and Thomson Local.

4. Manage Google Reviews

 

Your Google Business Profile is also where clients will be leaving direct feedback based on their experience with your business. Whether you like it or not, Google Reviews will be the main source of information for many of your potential clients. It’s just a fact, nowadays everyone does a quick local search and reads the reviews. Customers can leave a rating between 1 and 5 stars with their review and you want your overall rating to be on the upper end. Be as active and responsive as you can and try to handle customer issues in a professional manner.

5. Find your relevant keywords

 

As we’ve mentioned, Google searches are the main source of information for any business, no matter the size. To beat the competition, you’ll have to earn the favor of Google’s algorithm. Achieving that is not that challenging, all you have to do is find the relevant keywords (with free or paid tools)  for your business and incorporate them as much as you can. Use them on your website, use them in any descriptions (such as your Google Business profile), and on your social profiles.

6. Establish a social media presence

 

Do you know what’s even more popular than Google? Social media! Websites and apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter gather billions of users. Adding your business to the right platform can allow you to reach a much wider audience, not to mention boost your brand in the digital space. Your business profile on social platforms can also be used to directly engage with your audience and run different campaigns.

7. Run ads on social platforms

 

Since social platforms are so widely popular, you can run targeted ads on them to attract the exact audience you need. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter offer businesses ways to run customised ads and the pricing can be easily adjusted to your needs. Just make sure you’re sending the right message to the right people. Give your past and future customers an offer they can’t refuse and grab their interest. Running ads on these platforms can drastically enhance your digital presence and make you stand out above the competition.

8. Participate in the local community

 

If your business is truly local, then there’s no better way to prove it than growing your community. There are numerous ways to participate in community events, from sponsoring a local sports team to donating to a charity. By supporting your local community, you’re not just spending funds on a marketing campaign, you’re getting your name out in the open and building the vital trust between your business and your future clients. Make enough of an impact and your business might make it to the local news or newspaper.

9. Share useful content online

 

We’ve underlined the importance of keywords in local searches and putting those words on your website. But you can do more than that! To really get the attention of Google’s algorithm you can focus on creating SEO content. This might seem complicated at first but it’s all about finding the right business-related topic that you know users will search for and adding the answer to your website/blog. Are you running a spa salon? Write an article on the health benefits of a sauna and share it on your social channels.

10. Use SMS Marketing

 

Running paid ads on social platforms can get you results but SMS Marketing can be a great way to establish that special connection with your clients and build trust. Texting is the preferred method of communication for most millennials and Gen Z, two demographics that will soon be the majority of adults. SMS Marketing allows you to send personalised messages to your clients, offer customised discounts, get direct feedback, and much more. Just don’t forget to ask your customers to opt-in for your SMS Marketing first.

Conclusion

 

Promoting your local business can be done in various ways and depending on the area you’re in, some might be more successful than others. Before launching any major marketing campaigns you should make sure that your website and business profiles are all up to date. Only then can you experiment with different approaches and new ways to connect with your clients.

 

About Magic

 

Magic helps local businesses grow. Thousands of local businesses use Magic to get more online reviews, win new customers, easily manage customer conversations and grow sales. Magic offers these features:

• Reviews: Get more reviews with easy review requests for popular review sites like Google, Facebook, Yelp, TrustPilot, and more. Rank high on local search and enhance your visibility on Google. 
• Inbox: Keep track of customer conversations across channels in one inbox, including SMS, Facebook, Instagram, and Gmail. Manage conversations better as a team and do more with industry specific templates. 
• Text Marketing: Drive more sales with instant text campaigns and reach your customers at the right moment with automation. Use prebuilt templates to send out text campaigns in minutes. 
• Webchat: Turn website visitors into customers with SMS powered Webchat. Chat to website visitors directly through SMS so you won’t miss a lead, even when they leave your website. 

Looking to grow your local business? Book in a demo call now. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook