Answering to local business owners.
E-mail questions on Social Media, E-mails, Search Engines, Blogs or whatever you feel we could help with to bill@gorithmic.com
I'm looking at my Facebook post and it says 35 people saw it. I have a few hundred followers. Why isn't everybody seeing my post? Does this mean they don't know about my donuts are free before 9 tomorrow?
Facebook, the company, does everything in its power to make sure every time somebody logs into their account they see only the posts that they would be excited about. People only scroll through Facebook for a certain amount of time. Say, 5 minutes. Facebook wants to make sure you enjoy all 5 minutes. Now, most people don't scroll long enough to see every post from every friend, family member and interest on their page. So what Facebook does is prioritize the post based on how often that person has interacted with the page or person in the past. The say, "Well, he liked the donut shop a year ago, but has never actually clicked on one of their posts, so we'd better show him his girlfriend's post." The amount of people that see your post is called reach, and it's a really big issue with big businesses who say they earned their fans' attention.
What can I do to reach more people on Facebook?
Many would say 'humanize', 'build trust', 'be interesting' or just 'have great content'. That's not very helpful. Each business is unique, and the best plan is to think about what it is about your business that locals really love. Keep in mind that on Facebook people decide if they see your business or not (for the most part). When they signed up for Facebook they didn't say, 'oh wow, another way to connect with businesses!' They did it because friends were on, family were on, peers were on. At its very best, a great post on Facebook is a conversation starter. Your conversation, as a local business, takes place between members of a community you yourself know well. It's an advantage big businesses don't have, and leads them to spend money on reach. For a local business to increase reach on Facebook it should act local. It's not about professional graphics on the profile or great cover photos. Do what you are comfortable with and post to contribute to your community. YOU are part of their community, and contribute to their lives in a serious way. Act like it, and you'll have a leg up on all other interests in their feeds. Below are some examples from my own community.
 |
| Notice the Collaboration on the left post? The Fusco family eats Black Lab Bread, and knows their customers love it too. Everyone does in my community! |
Google+
How can Google+ help me?
Google's Social Network is tied into Google's other products, specifically - search. Reviews, images and information on Google+ pages are used when someone searches your business on Google Search.
 |
| Notice the 'Google+ page'? |
How do I get more followers on Twitter?
Much like building a following on Pinterest and LinkedIn, developing a following of even a few hundred people can be a real problem for local business. The issue is that people don't know about your page. I think at this point people expect a small business to be on Facebook. They don't fully expect them to be on Twitter. For this reason, I suggest you use a paid Twitter campaign to promote your account. On Twitter you can use what's called geo-targeting to have your account pop up in the feeds of people in your town or city! Let's make sure everyone at least knows that you're tweeting.
Pinterest
What even is Pinterest? Photo Albums, right?
Pinterest is a clean way to keep your favorite images of your favorite place and share them with friends. On Pinterest you create themed boards and 'pin' pictures relevant to that board from all over the internet.
I use Pinterest myself, but not for my Business.
It's easy to be discouraged by Pinterest as a business owner. Followers are hard to come by and few followers means less motivation to keep up with the page. We reccomend putting your customers in complete control of your page. You can do this through Group Boards. Ask customers for board ideas and their e-mail address in your shop. Create the board and invite them to contribute. Your business is a beacon for something: home service, donuts, peanut butter or fun. Pinterest should really be fun. Share things with customers you both care about. As a business owner you have a unique set of skills and knowledge that may be welcomed to Pinterest by loyal customers. But again, if you're not having a little fun with Pinterest and it's all work, don't bother. See our post on collaborating with other local businesses on Pinterest.
LinkedIn
Some of the local owners around here are on LinkedIn. What's that site for?
LinkedIn is a way to connect in a more professional setting. Instead of adding interests, hobbies, and more laid back information on your profile you add work experience, skills and education. It's a good way to connect with people you want to meet but don't yet know. By visiting their LinkedIn profile you can see if they share any connections with you. If they do you can ask for an introduction. From my experience small business owners tend to leave the profile alone once they create it. Creating the profile let's you make a Company Page for your small business. In the experience section you can then link to your Company Page for people to learn more about your business. Good idea for service companies and organizations with a lot of B2B sales.
Yelp
So...about these bad reviews..
Bad reviews can be tough on Yelp, especially when you're only getting a few reviews and just has a big impact on your overall rating. Your best weapon against these is the reply feature. As an owner, after you claim your business on Yelp, you have the opportunity to publicly respond to any criticism. Reviewers are able to delete their poor review. Of course we never want to expect bad reviews, but the option to respond is there for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment