It used to be that local businesses could grow by reputation and word of mouth alone. But whilst both of these elements are still important, modern local businesses are more dependent on the internet, and online advertising, than ever before. Online advertising can not only increase leads and sales, it can also help to increase all-important brand awareness. Put simply, local residents won’t be able to visit your business if they don’t know you’re there! You can either use an online advertising network such as ZeroPark to find other businesses that could help to network your business, or you can undertake advertising your business online, and growing your own ad network, yourself. Whichever option you choose, here is everything you need to know about utilizing online advertising to help you grow a successful local business:
Choosing the Right Audience
When it comes to choosing the right place to advertise your local business, there are a myriad of options. The two most popular amongst local businesses are Google and Facebook, and each has their own unique benefits:
- Google offers the world’s largest advertising network, and globally there are an incredible 3.5 billion Google searches in any given day. Many people local to you will be using Google to search for businesses just like yours; it’s faster and easier than hunting for flyers or searching for an ad in the local paper. Google adverts are flexible, and you only pay for an ad that receives a click, meaning that you don’t have to pay for advertising on Google unless it drives traffic to your website.
- Facebook is another great source of advertising for local businesses, because it is so easy to target your adverts towards an audience that lives in the same area as you. Facebook currently has 2.38 billion monthly active users, and the average person spends around 20 minutes a day interacting with the social network. This gives you plenty of opportunity to display your ads and make a big impression!
Both options are paid advertising models, meaning that you need to set a budget that is both realistic and affordable before you start your campaign. You should also have a clear idea of what you want your advertising campaign to achieve (for example more customers, more website traffic or more brand awareness) so that you can set targets that you can track.
Find a Relevant Ad Network
The internet may well be a global marketplace, but at its core it is all about building relationships and making connections. Utilizing an ad network is a great way to broker these relationships, and harness the power of larger websites and organizations who have an audience similar to the one you’re looking for. An online advertising network is a website or software model that connects businesses looking to advertise their services to websites that want to host those advertisements. This is a much more targeted way to advertise your local business than by using google or facebook ads, and should be considered if you want to secure advertising at a low cost and watch your audience grow quickly as a result.
