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How Do I Promote My Local Business on Instagram?

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

Local Business on Instagram

How can I promote my local business on Instagram? 

If you’ve found yourself asking the above question, chances are, you are a local business owner who is looking for a way to promote his/her local business online. 

 

In this article, you’ll discover 6 effective ways to promote your local business on Instagram.

The truth is, as a local business owner you should always look for effective ways to increase their visibility.

 

This article reveals eleven different successfully ways you can use to promote your local business on Instagram. Before we dive into how you can use Instagram to promote your local business. 

Let’s answer a very important question.

 

Can You Advertise Locally on Instagram?

Yes, you can. local businesses can advertise on Instagram.

For any local business owner who wants to drive more local traffic, Instagram ads are a great way to drive more traffic, leads and sales.

 

Instagram targeting options provide everything you need to reach your target audience. 

Now that you know that you can advertise locally on Instagram. 

Let’s dive into the 6 effective ways you can use to promote your local business on Instagram.

 

 

6 Effective Ways to Promote Your Local Business on Instagram

 

1 Participate in The Community

 

Like every social media platform, Instagram is a community. 

In the same way that your business is a valuable part of your local community, so also you want to show that you are a reputable and valuable member of the Instagram community.

What this does is that it gives you followers who are enthusiastic about your content and want to engage with it.

Just posting images and videos is not enough.

 

To build your reputation as a valuable member of the Instagram community, you will need to follow influencers and other brands (including direct competitors), participate in the conversations they are initiating and interact with their content. 

For you to get engagement on Instagram, you need to spend your engagement.

In addition, when your followers start a conversation in the comments section of your post, be proactive in participating in those conversations and respond to their questions, concerns, praises, and other emotions.

 

2 Start Reposting Local Content 

 

To strengthen your local business reputation on the Instagram community, you can do that by regularly reposting content published by your local followers, other businesses in your area, and local celebrities.

The people you repost their content to will not only feel great that you repost their content, but other followers will also take notice of your business. 

 

The people you repost their content may mention you on their Instagram page, and this will help you reach their followers and even more people in your local community. This is a win, win for you both.

Sharing content created by real people makes your brand look more friendly and humane and as a valuable contribution to the community.

 

In other words, your company begins to feel like a friendly neighbour, not just a business that is after sales and not more. 

 

Not only is this strategy effective in creating a stronger reputation in the Instagram community

but it also saves you a lot of time and energy in creating your own original and unique content. Be sure to ask the question first before you tag the user’s Instagram account.

 

3 Stick to Your Brand Identity 

 

When you get your local business on Instagram you create another extension for your brand.

Instagram is a unique platform that you can use to achieve different objectives. But you should maintain brand tone and personality on all your social media platforms

Most if not all, customers follow their brands on different social media platforms. 

If your Instagram persona is different from the tone set by your website, Facebook page, or in-store employee, then you are at risk of confusing your customers.

Therefore, how you interact with your customers on Instagram and the tones you set in your post captions should match the feeling they get when they actually visit your business in person.

Otherwise, customers may step in, anticipating the cheerful and upbeat business they meet on Instagram, only to be underwhelmed. 

This can cause confusion in their customers’ journeys and they may be disappointed altogether.

4 Avoid Blanket Posting

While the tone and personality behind your posts need to remain consistent across all platforms, too much similarity can have a negative impact on your brand. 

You need to carefully navigate the space between being consistent and posting your own content that doesn’t feel inclusive on all platforms.

What we mean by blanket post is using exactly the same messages and content across different social media channels.

The danger of doing this is that customers who follow you on multiple social media channels will see the exact same message over and over again.

Therefore, it ceases to be engaging and begins to be destructive. Remember that all channels are different and should be treated that way.

That said, blanket posts may be accepted, such as when your business is hosting a local event or releasing a new product.

Ask as many people as possible about this news/event/product. 

However, you need to make sure that you are responsible for cross-promotion.

Responsible cross-promotion is not just copying and pasting efforts from one platform to the next, but using each channel appropriately to promote the same purpose.

 

5 Follow The Trend

 

Holidays are a trending topic most of the time, and companies have long used these days to attract customers with holiday-themed messages. 

But you can take advantage of other popular topics when creating compelling Instagram content. 

This is a great way to get local attention, as it ensures that you are posting content that is relevant and interesting to your followers.

If you are wondering how you can find trending hashtags in your local community, all you need to do is pay attention to the news, local events, and even community-specific holidays. 

Therefore, it is wise to follow ideological leaders from other businesses, local celebrities, and other communities. 

You can look at their Instagram to get inspiration for the trends and local keywords you are using.

 

6 Use Localized Hashtags

You need to focus on localized hashtags if you want to optimize the local reach of your Instagram page.  

Doing this will allow people in your local community to find your post or your business via region-specific hashtags. Use hashtags that include your location instead of the usual hashtags for outdoor photo captions.  

We also recommend that you include hashtags that include your area and type of business.

If people are searching for hairstylists in Chicago on Instagram (and if you are a hairstylist in Chicago), you want your content to show in that search.

 

Bottom Line

Success on Instagram is becoming more and more essential for local businesses trying to compete in the digital age. 

With 800 million users and 63% of them active daily, this social media hub is a treasure trove of potential sales that cannot be ignored.

While it’s easy to understand these numbers and the potential for Instagram sales, true success on this platform is achieved by highlighting the people behind these numbers.

Instagram is a community that asks you to move away from it. The more value you can create and serve followers, the greater your engagement and reach.

 

Click here to read how to promote your local business on Facebook

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

How Do I Promote My Local Business on WhatsApp

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

Local Business on WhatsApp

Are you looking for strategies on to promote your local business on Whatsapp so you’ll be able to make more sales and grow your business?

 

If your answer to the above question is yes, then this article is for you. 

Whatsapp is the fastest growing social media networking app globally?

 

As the fastest growing social media application, WhatsApp has more than 1.3 billion active users worldwide, surpassing 1 billion MAU in February 2016. 

 

Enterprises are also using it as part of their communications channels.

The platform has modernised itself with a huge difference related to business communication.

It provides direct communication between you and your customers through concise and helpful messages.

 

When you include WhatsApp in your local business marketing plan, it gives you the advantage of responding to all necessary business inquiries quickly without wasting time.

 

As the number of smartphone users grows significantly, you have a chance to connect with your target customers and generate significant leads for your business.

 

WhatsApp is a free messaging platform that can provide effective business as well as marketing for every local business if used wisely.

 

But unfortunately… 

 

The messaging platform has proven to be a tough nut to crack for online marketers.

No ads, no media to buy, and users who don’t like curious, spam-like messages. 

This means that you have to work harder to grab consumers’ attention.

 

To worsen the case, you CAN NOT send messages to consumers with whom you do not have a mutual affiliation. 

You need to get an invitation from customers to be on their contact list before you can send them messages.

With over 1.3 billion active users worldwide every business owner who wants to use WhatsApp to promote his/her must master the 8 proven WhatsApp marketing strategies shared in this article. 

Continue reading to discover these 8 proven WhatsApp marketing strategies.  

 

Does WhatsApp allow promotional messages? 

 

WhatsApp recently allowed businesses to send WhatsApp promotional messages to customers who signed up to receive their updates. With this feature, businesses can send recommendations, new product release alerts, cart abandonment reminders, and more.

 

How do you send a promotional message on WhatsApp?

WhatsApp calls these message templates ‘non-transactional message templates’. You can send promotional messages to your contact list using WATI.

WATI has a self-service dashboard that allows you to send template messages for approval.

When you create an account on WATI, you can use the broadcast module to send these promotional messages.

 

4 Simple Steps on How to Send a Promotional Message on WhatsApp

 

Step 1: In the WATI Dashboard, go to the ‘Broadcast’ tab.

 

Step 2: Click the “New Broadcast” button in the upper right. 

 

Step3 Add a broadcast title, select a WhatsApp message template, and select the time you want to send the message. Click next

 

Step 4. From your contact list, choose or upload the contacts you want to send a message to, then click on add broadcast.

 

How do I Send an Introduction to WhatsApp? 

 

There is no universal answer to this question.

The best way to introduce yourself on WhatsApp depends on your personal preferences and the nature of your relationship with the person you are texting.

 

However, a few general tips will help you write a strong introduction.

Be friendly and polite.

Start with a brief introduction of yourself, including your name and any other relevant information.

 

How To Promote Your Local Business on WhatsApp? 

 

1 Switch over to WhatsApp business App 

 

They just released a new application called the WhatsApp business 

This is an android app which is free to download and it was built with the interest of local business owners in mind. 

 

With WhatsApp Business, you can now easily interact with customers using tools to automate, sort, and quickly respond to messages.

It comes with many amazing benefits and features for small-medium and large businesses.

Below are some of the benefits of using WhatsApp Business 

 

1 Business Profile: Create a business profile with useful information for your customers such as your address, company description, email address and website.

 

2 Quick Replies: This helps you to save and reuse messages you send frequently to quickly answer common questions.

 

3 Automated Messages: Set an absent message when you can’t answer so your customers know when to expect a reply. 

You can also create a welcome message to introduce your business to your customers.

 

4 Messaging Statistics: You can get access to important metrics like how many of your messages have been successfully sent, delivered and read.

 

 

2 Create an Attractive Brand Image for WhatsApp 

 

 

Whatsapp is a messaging app that helps people connect with families and friends. 

The second strategy for using Whatsapp to promote your local business is to customize and create an attractive brand image.

 

Since you are going to use WhatsApp as a customer communication tool, your customers need to be able to quickly identify your brand.

 

You have to create a compelling brand identity or persona that represents your brand with a WhatsApp number. 

Because people don’t like to chat with impersonal company names.

 

Suppose your brand has a customer section that handles customer complaints and inquiries, you can create a dedicated number for this purpose. 

This number can be run by a real person, so there is a human feeling.

 

Often busy business people easily chat with this person on WhatsApp, sharing photos of products they are interested in, asking questions, and even agreeing on payments, shipping terms and more.

 

Your brand persona is something you need to figure out if you want your strategy to be right.

 

 

3 Build Database

 

 

Now that we’ve all figured out our brand image.

The next step is…

 

You need as many customer numbers as possible to make a list of people to contact.

As I mentioned earlier, you CAN NOT send messages to consumers with whom you do not have a mutual relationship.

 

You need to get an invitation from customers to be their contact before you can send them messages.

To build a user contact database, you need to offer them something of value in exchange for their phone number.

 

It can be a promotion, a freebie, a free service or valuable information.

After you add them on WhatsApp send them a promo/offer which they can then use and then their relationship with you will start.

 

 

4 Offer Relevant Content to Customers 

 

Whatsapp has a higher engagement rate than Facebook.

it’s the only widely used app we’ve ever seen that has more engagement and a higher percentage of people using it daily than Facebook itself,” Zuckerberg said.

 

 (According to CNET, WhatsApp’s daily monthly user engagement is 70%, while Facebook’s is about 61%).

What this means is that you need to offer users great content on relevant topics to keep them interested in you.

 

5 Maximize Status Feature 

 

With this feature, you can see what’s going on with the people in your contact list 

You can share your feelings, and state of mind.

 

It’s also a way to let your friends know where you are if you’re on a trip, vacation or adventure.

You can also post funny one-liners, jokes, poetry, etc. 

 

This shows your area of ​​interest and tells about your personality.

But how does all of this status feature help your local business?

 

Here’s how to help your local business. 

In addition to sharing photos and events around you, it can be used as a “flash advertisement” for your business.

 

Because this status is available to viewers for 24 hours, it’s a useful tool for highlighting your work or the product you’re currently working on.

Combined with the ability to share links, you can use this feature to grow your business and loyal customers.

 

 

6 Provide Fast Customer Support

 

Providing real-time customer service is a luxury that you can’t afford as a small business owner. 

But with WhatsApp, you and your staff can quickly answer any questions your customers may have.

 

And because the app supports multimedia, you can use text, audio, or video to personalize your customer experience.

 

Whatsapp has an open rate of 70%, which means that you are almost guaranteed to have your message read if your customer is online. 

 

 

7 Consumer Research and Feedback

 

Although the App has not yet been widely used for research it offers an easy-to-use, low-cost, and fast platform for doing quick research. 

 

And as well as getting customer feedback.

You can ask consumers about the things they like and don’t like about your brand.

 

 

 In addition, WhatsApp is very convenient for having quick discussions within your company.

Also, instead of calling customers for feedback, you can create questions for your group that will bring up answers that are relevant to your business.

 

 This is marketing research at its best, and it’s free.

 

Through the feedback you receive from your customers, you can respond to their demands and promote the products and services you provide. 

 

And their contributions can go a long way, which can be rewarded with special offers and coupons to incentivize future engagement, brand loyalty, and long-term customer retention.

 

8 Give Freebie (Giveaway) 

 

Nowadays giveaways are one of the most effective lead generation tactics that companies use to generate leads.

You can run weekly, monthly or even daily giveaways to get visitors to your store or visitors to your site.

 

Since WhatsApp Status are free, the only costs for such promotions are the promotional products or services you give away. 

This greatly reduces the overhead of any marketing venture.

 

This WhatsApp marketing strategy works best if you want to drive new customers and loyal customers to your website.

 

Bottom Line 

 

WhatsApp as a means of communication continues to evolve and add new features such as status more likely in the future.

It is a one-stop platform that allows you to submit files, images, and short video clips about your products and services.

 

But the principle behind using WhatsApp effectively is to not abuse the relationship you build with your audience.

 

Here’s a pro tip for you;

Measure your interactions so that every message you send has value. Don’t make every conversation about making a sale.

Remember that other users can delete your post with just one click.

 

With the new Status feature, WhatsApp is now more valuable to businesses than ever.

Leverage existing features to provide valuable interaction with your audience to talk about your brand and learn more about your customers’ needs.

 

Click here to read 5 sure ways to grow your local business using digital marketing

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

How to Promote My Local Business Using Facebook

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

Local Business Using Facebook

Have you found yourself asking the question how can I promote my local business using Facebook? if YES

Then, this is going to be the most concise and helpful article you’ll ever read on how to promote your local business using Facebook…

You’ll find out why in a moment…

But before we take a deep dive into the tips and strategies on how you can promote your local business using Facebook. 

Let’s answer the most common questions in the minds of local business owners 

 

Why Should You Take Facebook Serious as a Local Business Owner?  

 

With over 2.91 billion active users Social media has now taken over traditional marketing platforms.

Gone are the days, when print and electronic media were the only channels of reaching potential buyers.

We are currently in the technology-driven age, where customers are currently spending more time on their phones. 

The Facebook platform gives you the advantage of reaching your potential buyers easily. 

The power of Facebook also resonates in showing detailed information about your business to a large group of people and at the same time engaging them.

This could be impossible to execute in person. 

Now that you know why should take facebook seriously. 

Let’s dive deep into how you can promote your local business using Facebook

 

How do I Promote my Local Business on Facebook?  

 

Below are simple steps you can follow to promote your local business on Facebook. 

 

Step 1: Create a Business Page

 

The first step to promoting your local business on Facebook is to create a business page for your local business. 

While you might already be promoting your brand on your profile, it just isn’t enough. 

Not only will a Facebook business page make your brand look more credible, but it will also come in handy when your customers are trying to search for your business online. 

Your Facebook page should have all the necessary contact information like website URL, phone number and office address.

 

Step 2:  Use a professional cover photo 

 

Use the cover photo to highlight your business. 

You can change images quite often so use this space to your advantage.

Don’t forget to follow facebook’s policies when doing so.

 

Step 3: Invite people to like your Facebook Page 

 

The next step is to invite people to like your page.

While you won’t be able to get your customers to like your page immediately, you can invite your Facebook friends to like and share your page.

 

 

Step 3: Post regularly

 

After creating a business page and inviting people to like and share your page the next step is to start posting on your Facebook page at least once every day

to connect with your audience and let them know you are active on the social media platform. 

While it is essential to post regularly, quality content is crucial. 

You need to post content that your followers find interesting and engaging.

If most of your followers don’t engage with your posts, Facebook will show less and less of your posts to users, even if they like and follow your page. That is how the Facebook algorithm works. 

 

Step 4:  Share interesting content 

 

It never hurts to sprinkle in a little humour when appropriate 

 

Step 5: Always reply to comment 

 

Make sure you always reply to comments posted on your page, good or bad, and do so promptly. 

This signals to current and potential clients that you are paying attention.

 

Step 6: Try Facebook Ads 

 

Facebook ad is something you’ll love to try out if you want to expand your reach. 

With paid Ads, Facebook puts your posts in front of your target audience, potential customers interested in the kind of products or services that you offer but may have never heard about your brand before. 

The platform is an incredible, and effective tool for finding and targeting a specific audience. 

With Facebook, you can target users based on their location, gender, age, interests, and behaviour. 

It’s also possible to directly target people who already follow your competitor’s page. 

You can use Facebook ads to get more likes, increase sales, improve brand awareness, capture leads, and much more. 

 

Step 7: Join Facebook Groups 

 

Facebook groups are also effective when it comes to networking and promoting your local business.

Facebook group is a great way to connect with prospective customers and leads. 

There are numerous groups on Facebook which are dedicated to various interests, hobbies, professions, and industries. 

You can use your account to join these groups and draw attention to your business.

 

Step 8: Share your content in groups

 

Share the most important posts on your page in these groups. 

These could be links to your latest blog or a very attention-grabbing aspect of your business,

 

Step 9:  Join the conversation

 

Like and share other people’s posts. If you do, they will most likely return the favour.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article containing 9 ways to promote your local business using Facebook? 

 

Don’t be overwhelmed. Take it one step at a time

You can also read: How to Promote Your Business Online.  

 

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

How to use Tik Tok to Market Your Local Business

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

use Tik Tok to Market Your Local Business

Are you thinking about how to use Tik Tok to market your local business, but you don’t know how? 

 

 

Then this article shows you how you can market your local business on TikTok. Keep reading to discover the tips and strategies you can use.

 

 

At the surface, it might seem like TikTok is simply a platform for comedy sketches and dancing moms, but that’s not all there’s to TikTok. 

 

 

The business opportunities on TikTok are juicy.

 

 

After all, the platform has 1 billion monthly active users. It’s the place to see and be seen, this means a great opportunity for brands to engage with audiences in a whole new way.

 

 

Follow the lead of the big brands who are already optimizing the potential of TikTok, tap into trending topics and hashtag challenges, experiment with TikTok live streams, or play around with editing tools and trending sounds to create high-energy short-form videos that represent your local business.

 

 

It can feel overwhelming, though, especially if you’re new to the TikTok. 

 

 

If you are new to TikTok, consider this article your one-stop shop for all you need to know to get your marketing right on TikTok as a local business owner.

 

 

Read on to learn how to use TikTok to market your local business. Before we delve deep into how to use TikTok to market your local business, let’s answer some important questions that beg for answers.  

 

 

Can You Market your Business on TikTok? 

 

Like other social media platforms, businesses can now advertise their products or services on TikTok. That’s an excellent way to get your brand seen by new users and prospects

 

 

Is TikTok good for Small Businesses?

 

TikTok has over 500 million daily active users, with this number of daily active users the platform can be a goldmine of engagement for local business owners. 

 

 

The platform mainly focuses on content creation rather than pushing on monetization making it a viable option for better reach.

 

 

Benefits of TikTok for Small Business

 

TikTok can be very beneficial to your business if you use it strategically. It gives you the opportunity to create diverse, engaging content that comes across as genuine to your consumers. Below are the benefits of using TikTok to market your local business.

 

1   Audience reach:

TikTok is one of the most used social media platforms, joining the ranks of heavy-hitters like Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. It has 1 billion active monthly users in 141 countries. More eyes on the app mean more potential for those eyes to land on one of your branded ads. This makes it an attractive marketing platform for businesses that want to reach a large audience.

 

 

2   Consumer engagement:

 

Users aren’t just downloading the app; they are actively engaging with content on TikTok, resulting in a high engagement level.

 

The average user spends 858 minutes per month on the app, and this number has been increasing dramatically year over year. This, accompanied by TikTok’s unique delivery algorithms, gives you the ability to see high brand engagement.

 

 

3  Creative opportunities:

 

Brands on TikTok thrive with content that is whimsical and entertaining. This allows you to explore different aspects of your business, such as what makes you fun and interesting, and TikTok provides a platform where those fun aspects will be welcomed (and can even make you money).

 

 

Why you Should Join TikTok Now  

TikTok is relatively new, especially to the business world, and, as such, is not quite as saturated as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

 

 

It’s also much cheaper to advertise on because there isn’t a strong influencer community yet; there are far fewer users competing for sponsorship and ad placements.

 

 

Furthermore, it helps you take the crucial first step into marketing to Gen Z, the notoriously difficult-to-market-to generational group, which is becoming more important as they gain a stronger foothold in the economy.

 

 

Marketing to younger generations doesn’t have to be impossible – just meet them where they are, play by their rules, and have a little fun doing it. 

 

 

 

How to use Tik Tok to Market Your Local Business

 

TikTok is a valuable social media marketing tool and can be easily adopted by virtually any business.

 

 

When using TikTok for your business, follow these tips for higher engagement. 

 

 

1. Examine prevalent trends amongst users in your target audience. 

 

This strategy can be used on any social media platform, but it is especially useful for TikTok. The platform sees high volume around specific topics like entertainment, dance, pranks, DIY, travel and learning.

 

 

Research your target audience to see which type of content they are engaging with most, and use that knowledge to influence which type of TikToks you make.

 

 

For example, if you notice your target audience is highly engaged with prank videos, you can post videos of your employees playing good-hearted pranks around the office.

 

2. Use a laid-back, less commercial approach. 

 

Unlike Instagram, TikTok largely rejects polished, high-quality content. As such, it has earned a reputation as a casual platform where users feel comfortable expressing themselves.

 

 

“The beauty of TikTok is that it’s an accessible creative space, That means it thrives on a touch of quirkiness and avoids heavily commercial-style productions.

 

 

Let engagement be your guide and delve into what is fun about your business.

 

 

Make sure you clearly understand your brand culture, values and identity so that what you create is genuine and true to your brand, and avoids typical corporate guidelines.

 

 

TikTok is a hub of creative, fun, and sometimes crazy ideas, so try to soften the brand tone and join the playful community, Avoid being overly formal and stiff.” 

 

3. Participate in TikTok challenges. 

 

An easy way to increase engagement and visibility is to participate in TikTok challenges.

 

 

Find out which songs or activities are trending, and create your own branded version of one to post on your TikTok. This can not only increase your visibility but also make you seem more relatable and down to earth.

 

 

Younger generations like supporting brands they connect to. Participating in challenges can help you connect to your audience on a real level, especially if your target demographic is teens or young adults.

 

 

Remember, when you post a challenge video, be sure to include the relevant hashtags to increase your likelihood of ending up on peoples’ ForYou pages. 

 

4. Post about your location. 

 

 

Location can be a key driver for brand awareness, especially for small local businesses. Talk about your location in your videos, and include the location in your caption and hashtag.

 

 

This will help people in your area find your business.

 

 

It can also be helpful to create videos that are unique to your local area. This will make your product or service appear more relatable to locals.

 

 

5. Use Songs 

 

The San Diego Zoo knows how to combine cute animal videos and funky songs together into one effective video.

 

 

If your brand is fun and upbeat, you can incorporate music to add that ambience to your videos.

 

 

Let’s say you’re a pastry shop and you like to find more customers on TikTok. You can try to add lively music while recording a video of you creating a customised cupcake.

 

 

This is also good to help local bands find a wider audience. Cross-promoting over industries on TikTok helps brands gain more interest from other business accounts that they otherwise would not directly target.

 

 

6. Partner with TikTok 

 

 

If your marketing budget allows, partnering with TikTok itself is a good way to get your brand the reach it needs. For instance, you’re an eco-friendly clothing brand whose main target market is young adults (17-25-year-olds) who are conscious of the environment and are looking for alternatives to their style.

 

 

Knowing that TikTok is the place to be to engage with your market, you can create a hashtag challenge campaign to promote your brand and advocacy. 

  

 

7. Keep it Fun 

 

 

TikTok is an app that brings together content creators who want to share funny and cute videos, and you can use this to your advantage.

 

Let’s say you’re a gym that wants to spread the word that working out isn’t always as serious as it looks.

 

 

Why not post (planned) bloopers, before-and-after videos, lighthearted gym humour, quick tutorials, or inspiring bench press videos to hype up how great working out it is, and how better it is to work out in your gym?

 

 

This can take away the hesitations about going to a gym and staying fit as well as showing a different side of your business.

 

 

Do you know what account keeps it fun? ESPN is dominating TikTok like the platform was meant for them.

 

 

They have 2.6 million followers and their posts are diverse, from recaps, and athletes’ training, to even some meme-worthy videos like the one below that their followers would just love to share.

 

 

TikTok is one of the newest platforms out there that won’t disappear into obscurity anytime soon. With a large user count and millions of content published every day, viewers will have so many videos to watch.

 

 

Make your videos one of their most-viewed and most-shared posts. Keep it creative and entertaining, embrace a more personal tone to approach your followers and always engage with them through challenges and cross-promotions.

 

 

Make the fun and entertaining world of TikTok work for you and your marketing plan.

 

 

If you have any questions on marketing you can drop them in the comment section below and we’ll be glad to help you out.

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

Five Ways To Grow Your Local Business Using Digital Marketing 

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

Grow Local Business Using Digital Marketing

Marketing plays a vital role in growing when it comes to growing any business. 

When you want to increase your sales, revenue, and overall growth, digital marketing helps you convert your audience into customers and generate extra income by selling your products or services.

Whether you are a big enterprise company or a local company, everyone could use a fantastic digital marketing strategy.

Digital marketing for local businesses focuses on several levers which don’t cost a lot of money but need time and persistence.

First, you need to understand your target market and what they need. Posting too many dull and irrelevant updates is not going to get you far. If you generate superficial content and pay for fake engagement, your business is going to suffer.

No matter the size of your business, the successes you have achieved so far are the result of your hard work and perseverance. 

Trying to bring out your local business into the world through digital marketing can be intimidating.

The internet market is vast, and your product, service or brand must get to the right place so that your business grows. This is why the first step to introducing your brand or product on the web should be firm and informed. 

Don’t worry, you’ll discover the essential concepts of how digital marketing helps local businesses. Just keep reading the article until the end.

 

What is digital marketing?

 

Digital marketing is any form of marketing that uses or relies on electronic devices. 

 

Why You Should Start Using Digital Marketing to Grow Your Local Business 

 

1 It is Cheap 

 

One of the ways digital marketing can help you grow your business is that it is cheap compared to traditional marketing. Instead of spending a huge amount of money on advertising, which most people will probably not pay attention to, digital marketing helps you target a specific demographic and saves you from wasting money.  

 

2 Provides an Equal Opportunity for Local Businesses

 

Digital marketing provides equal opportunities for every business, regardless of its size.

 It is not something that multinational billion-dollar companies can only reach.

A local business like yours, that provides useful content and effective communication can compete on social media platforms by engaging different clients through different strategies.

3 You Can Target the Right Audience

Digital marketing has long left behind the days when ads would appear to as many internet users as technology allowed it. It helps you target only your potential customers. This saves resources since you don’t have to budget for a massive audience expecting minimal returns.

4. Builds brand recognition

Online marketing helps people to become familiar with your products or services and develop a preference for them.

This makes it easier for your business to become the first concept to pop up in users’ minds when searching for a specific product or service in your industry.

Brand recognition can also help people connect emotionally with your brand since its objective is to associate it with their everyday experiences. The more they see or use your brand, the more personal connections they create with it.  

 

5. Digital Marketing Gives You a Fair Chance of Exposure

Online visibility is significant, especially at a time when the markets get more competitive. Small businesses can create their own exposure space on their platforms and focus on potential customers online.

 

6. It Helps You Know Your Competition

Your competition also uses digital marketing, this allows you to learn from them. 

How do they communicate the uniqueness of their business? 

What are their strategies when it comes to engaging with their audience?

 Is there anything you can improve? You learn and implement. 

 

 Five Ways To Grow your Local Business using Digital Marketing  

 

 

Invest In Local SEO

 

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and involves all activities related to gaining better rankings in search results for specified search keywords. 

 

Nowadays, search engine algorithms are pretty complex, so achieving top ranking can be challenging. However, with the right strategy and plenty of patience, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t get there.

 

Local SEO is a popular approach to SEO. It involves optimizing your site to achieve higher rankings in search results that include specific keywords related to your locality or physical location.

 

Creating A Website For Your Business

The importance of having a well-designed website cannot be overstated. It is the best way to establish an online presence, communicate with customers, and promote your brand. A website can be accessed from anywhere in the world, at any time and as often as desired. 

 

You can also easily keep it up-to-date, giving your customers the latest information and news about your product or service.

 

The best part is that establishing and maintaining a website is not expensive. There are many affordable web hosting providers on the Internet, and you can get a basic website for under $10 per month.

 

 

Consider Content Marketing

 

Content marketing is another crucial aspect of digital marketing for your local business. It involves creating and sharing valuable content, e.g., articles, and videos, that will engage your audience. 

 

However, it’s not only about promoting your brand but also solving your potential customers’ problems that are linked to what your company has to offer.

 

Through content marketing, you can position yourself as an expert in your niche, which helps attract more prospective buyers and referrals from happy customers. 

 

Don’t Forget Social Media Marketing

When it comes to the use of digital marketing for your local business, one of the most powerful tools is social media. You can use platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube to share valuable content with your audience and promote your products or services.

 

There is no denying that social media marketing has become very popular recently, but it is also very easy to implement and can bring you outstanding results. 

 

No need to hire an agency or developer; you can create an account on relevant social media sites and start building your audience!

 

All major social media sites offer free accounts, but you will need to upgrade them to unlock premium advertising features. Stay consistent, post content regularly, and engage with your audience, and you will see stunning effects with time.

 

The bottom line

 

Although digital marketing is a broad subject, you can use it in your local business and immediately start seeing results. Start by building your website, then create high-quality content, and use social media to your advantage.

 

Remember that as a small, local business owner, you have an advantage over larger companies. You already have a stronger connection with potential customers, and you can use this to your advantage.

 

Some of the biggest corporations and brands are now turning their attention to local marketing. In their quest for greater success, they have realized that the best way to achieve this is by focusing on their local communities. Now is the time for you to do the same thing!

 

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

How to Increase SMS Marketing List

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

Increase SMS marketing list

Have you been thinking about how to increase your SMS marketing list? well, the truth is that everything good in life takes time

 

So also building an organic SMS marketing list from the ground up takes time and hard work. 

 

Many marketers bypass this process and buy text lists, only to find unengaged (and now disgruntled) recipients. For the record, purchasing a list is a big no-no.

 

There are no shortcuts to growing your SMS marketing list 

 

Your list is the lifeblood of your SMS marketing channel. Without a high-quality homegrown list, it doesn’t matter how good your offers are or how clever your copy is—your texts won’t convert.

 

If you want to grow your SMS list, you’ll need to put in the effort. The good news is that in this article, you’ll discover a few strategies to help accelerate your way to success. 

 

But before we delve into the strategies, let’s answer two important questions. Does SMS marketing works and why should you grow your SMS marketing list?

 

Does SMS marketing work? 

 

Online marketing channels are on the rise, and choosing the most profitable channel to use to promote your business has become more difficult. 

 

Traditional platforms such as TV and print remain highly expensive and make it hard for small businesses to use. 

 

Using SMS marketing has become one of the most effective marketing channels for businesses due to its high open rates, high conversion and its ability to boost other marketing channels. 

 

The number of mobile phone users has tripled over the past decade, with over 5 billion people using a mobile phone. 

 

With mobile devices in hand, the effectiveness of SMS marketing is on the rise every day. 

 

Consumers spend twice as much time on their phones as they think they are. ask yourself, how many times have you checked your mobile phone today? You can’t count, right? 

 

Now that you know that SMS marketing works, let us answer the second question

 

Why Should You Grow Your SMS Marketing List? 

 

SMS is a very powerful marketing channel because it allows for business to consumer interactions. 

 

Anyone with a phone has texting capabilities, what this means is that all phones in the world are ready to receive this form of communication. 

 

That’s more than the number of active social media users or people with an email address.

 

Below are a few reasons why you should grow your email marketing list.  

 

1  The list is yours forever: 

 

as an email list, SMS is an owned channel, not a borrowed channel. 

 

Your account can be blocked on Twitter, and Facebook and Google can decide to change up their algorithms overnight, effectively destroying your reach or organic traffic. 

 

However, once you’ve built an engaged SMS list, no algorithm change or social media platform can delete your list.  

 

2  SMS has a high open-rate: 

 

Text messages have nearly a 98% open rate. If you want to ensure a customer sees your message, SMS is the way to go.

 

 

3  Sending unsolicited marketing text messages is illegal: 

 

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) prohibits brands from sending marketing text messages to consumers without consent. You need the customer’s permission first.

How to Increase Your SMS Marketing List 

 

1. Offer exclusive SMS deals and discounts

 

Give your SMS subscribers deals they can’t find anywhere else not even on your website or even your email list. You could use this for a one-off holiday promotion or do it ongoing.

 

For example, you may run a holiday campaign offering free shipping to all SMS subscribers.

 

Keep these deals tied to specific channels to encourage your customers to subscribe to all of them. 

 

2. Add a sign-up form to your website

 

Let all your website visitors know how to join your SMS list. Experiment with embedding a sign-up form in blog posts or even directly on your homepage.

 

Consider sending your new subscribers free content, such as a brand-related guide or checklist. This might be all your subscribers need to enter their phone numbers.

 

You can also try adding an SMS sign-up form to your footer, sidebar, or nonintrusive website pop-ups.

 

Measure each sign-up form’s success to see where you’re getting the most conversions—remove forms that don’t perform well. 

 

3. Convert your existing email subscribers 

 

Let your email subscribers know that they can receive SMS marketing messages, too. Offer a different value proposition to your email list to encourage them to sign up for both.

 

For example, your email marketing list might receive holiday discounts, while your SMS list receives last-minute surprise deals. 

 

This will entice customers who want to purchase your products at the lowest price to sign up for both lists.

 

 

4. Provide checkout bonuses 

 

Offer an in-person (or online) checkout bonus for customers who subscribe to your SMS list. Consider offering a 10% discount or gift item in exchange for their phone number.

 

Doing this at checkout helps your customers see an instant benefit. 

 

Yes, 10% off coupon codes can be enticing, too, but not quite as effective as a customer seeing a 50% discount before they swipe their credit card. 

 

5. Require SMS numbers for contest entrance 

 

Build your SMS list at conferences and industry events with a contest. Tell your audience to text a keyword (such as “Join” or “Enter”) to a shortcode to be eligible to win prizes or discounts. 

 

6. Entice your social media following to subscribe 

 

Ask your social media followers to subscribe to your SMS list. 

 

These followers have already chosen to like and follow your brand—an SMS channel might be the icing on the cake for them.

 

You could promote your SMS list on typical feed posts or your stories. 

 

If you’re engaged on social media, you could even do it during a live stream. 

 

Consider adding your SMS shortcode (and enticing offer) to your company description or bio to serve as an evergreen promotion.

 

 

7 Use Business Cards and Flyers  

 

If you use business cards or in-store flyers, then you should encourage your customers and clients to stay informed by signing up for your SMS notifications. If you use flyers to showcase your discounts then you can encourage customers to sign up to your SMS marketing list to receive further discounts

 

8  Presentation  

 

 

If you frequently give presentations at events, then you can use this as a unique way to build your SMS marketing list.

 

Once you have finished your speech, you can include a slide that includes a keyword and shortcode that your audience can text to receive the slides.

 

Then, once you send the slides, you can ask the receipt if they want to remain opted in to receive valuable content from you.

 

 

9 Provide an opt-out 

 

 Let your customers know how to stop receiving your messages. For instance, you might let them text “STOP”  to remove themselves from your list. 

 

If a subscriber can’t get off your list, they might block your number instead, and that can hurt your SMS deliverability in the long run.

 

10 Send messages at the right time:

 

You have to respect your subscriber’s time. Don’t send marketing messages at 1 a.m or 2 a.m.  

 

There you have it, ten ways to increase your SMS marketing list. If you implement all the strategies shared you’ll see a significant increase on your SMS marketing list 

 

 If you enjoy reading this article drop a comment below and share it on social media 

Related Post: E-commerce SMS Marketing Strategies

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

E-commerce SMS Marketing Strategy

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

 

Text messages are personal, immediate, and always read–it’s why SMS marketing is the perfect way to diversify your E-commerce marketing channels. 

 

As the battle for customer attention intensifies, texting allows you to connect directly with customers in a way that requires little effort to manage and maintain. 

 

This article covers everything you need to know about e-commerce SMS marketing strategy.

Let dive in

 

What is an SMS marketing strategy? 

 

For those unfamiliar with SMS marketing, let’s break it down: 

 

What is SMS marketing? 

 

Short message service(SMS) marketing is the process of sending short promotional campaigns or transactional messages for marketing purposes using simple text messages. 

 

These messages are mostly meant to communicate time-sensitive offers, updates, and alerts to people who have signed up to receive these messages from you. 

 

While strategy is a plan of action designed to achieve a long-term or overall aim.

 

Therefore, the SMS marketing strategy is the process of sending out a short promotional campaign for marketing purposes using SMS. These messages are meant to communicate your offer to your subscribers.

 

Now that you know what SMS marketing strategy is let’s answer the big question: Does SMS marketing work for E-commerce businesses?

 

Does SMS Marketing Work for E-commerce Business? 

 

Online marketing channels are on the rise, and choosing the most profitable channel to use to promote your business has become more difficult. 

 

Traditional platforms such as TV and print remain highly expensive and make it hard for small businesses to use. 

 

SMS marketing has become one of the most effective marketing channels for businesses due to its high open rates, high conversion and its ability to boost other marketing channels. 

 

The number of mobile phone users has tripled over the past decade, with over 5 billion people using a mobile phone. 

 

With mobile devices in hand, the effectiveness of SMS marketing is on the rise every day. 

 

In today’s world, consumers spend twice as much time on their phones as they think they are. 

 

Ask yourself, how many times have you checked your mobile phone today? You can’t count, right? 

 

Now that you know that SMS marketing works, let us look at different types of SMS marketing 

 

What are the types of SMS marketing? 

 

There are different types of SMS marketing, but in this article, we will look at the most common ones. 

 

1 Promotional deal and Discounts 

 

These are messages you send directly to your customers on deals, discounts, clearances, and special sales on products and/or services. 

 

In most instances, these promotions create a high-level sense of urgency since they are time-sensitive.

 

This is one of the most commonly used SMS marketing techniques in today’s world.

 

2 SMS Coupons 

 

These are messages that are often sent in Multimedia Messaging Service or “MMS”, for short. SMS Coupons are quite similar to promotional deals and discount messages.

 

They include a discount on either a product or a service that is offered by the business that they signed up to receive SMS marketing messages.

 

3 Text-to-Win Competitions 

 

This is a type of SMS campaign where customers have the capability of entering a contest – simply by responding to a text message your business sends. Once the contest deadline occurs, a winner is then selected by a random generator.

 

4 Flash Sales

 

This is the type of SMS marketing you use when having a limited quantity of a service or a product that is offered by your business. This type of SMS marketing holds its activity for only a short amount of time. 

 

5 Loyalty Programs

 

These programs are designed to encourage your customers to make a purchase or to engage in recommending referrals for the purpose and intent of obtaining free products or an assortment of discounts when certain “milestones” are reached.

 

What are the benefits of SMS Marketing for E-commerce? 

 

1 It is Affordable 

 

If just started your E-commerce business or you already own one but you can’t afford to spend a lot on marketing right now, SMS is perfect for you.

 

E-commerce SMS marketing is cheaper than most other types of marketing, including printed flyers or ads.

 

2 You help you reach more people. 

 

For people to receive an SMS, they just need a phone, not even a smartphone, and not one that has internet access. 

 

This makes it easier for you to widen the reach of your marketing efforts.  

 

If you limit yourself to, let’s say, email marketing, you won’t be reaching as many people as you could with an effective text message marketing strategy. 

 

That’s because email marketing is dependent on circumstances like internet access, relatively new devices, a data plan on mobile phones, etc.

 

3 Results are available instantly. 

 

Over 90% of text message marketing texts are read in the first 3 minutes of being sent.  Let’s say you send an offer with a 20% discount code to your online menu and a link that people can click to place an order. Someone might open it and place an order in less than 10 minutes.  

 

  1. It increases customer loyalty.

 

Craft attractive messages featuring exclusive deals regularly and send them as SMS. They will tempt people to visit your E-commerce over and over again to redeem the offers. It’s as simple as that!   

 

  1. It’s versatile

One of the advantages of text message marketing is its flexibility. When devising an SMS marketing strategy, pick and choose what you want to communicate: a discount, a promo code, or even news about your business.

 

SMS Marketing Strategy for E-commerce 

 

Below is an SMS marketing strategy use can start using for your e-commerce business: 

 

1 Add value to your customers 

 

When you reach out to your customers, make sure you have something valuable to valuable to offer like: 

 

A unique or special offer

 

Time-sensitive deals 

 

Information that’s necessary to customers who might want to participate in an event 

 

Introduction of new products or services, especially if you’re giving your SMS list a discount.

 

  1. Only Send out Messages When You Have Something Important 

 

No one wants to get notifications from brands more often than they get texts from their friends.

Avoid the temptation of bombarding your customers with text messages, because that is an instant turn-off for them.

 

For messages that aren’t time-sensitive or are longer, use email instead and save SMS for more “urgent” matters like a “one-time” offer.

 

  1. Get the Permission of your Customers Before Sending Them Text Messages. 

 

This point can’t be overemphasized, please don’t send customers promotional messages if they haven’t opted-in to receive them.

 

Moreover, pay close attention to how you phrase the kind of messages they will receive.

 

  1. Always keep your messages short. 

 

When you sit down to write a promotional text message, don’t go over the 160 characters per SMS limit. 

Even if newer phones can support longer messages, your customers are not looking to read a story when receiving an SMS from a brand. 

 

Always keep it simple, sweet, and straight to the point. Your message will convert more when you keep it short. 

 

  1. Personalize your messages. 

 

Just because it’s bulk SMS marketing, it doesn’t mean you can’t add a bit of customization. 

Adding a bit of customization can go a long way to making your customers feel special. 

Even something as simple as addressing them by their first name would do. 

 

  1. Give Your Subscribers The Option to Opt-out  

 

This may not sound well to your ears, because no business wants to lose customers. 

But doing this will make the customers feel that you are not desperate, and needy.

Wherever you place your opt-in CTA, you also need to include an opt-out option with clear instructions on how to do it. Additionally, when people receive their first text from you after opting in, also include an opt-out link.

 

Conclusion

 

SMS marketing is a simple, affordable, and highly effective way of surprising your customers with unique offers and discounts which will turn them into regular and paying customers.

If you pay attention to the above SMS marketing strategy for E-commerce and don’t overwhelm subscribers with daily messages, your sales and brand recognition will increase. 

You Can Also Read: How To Make More Sales Using Email Marketing.

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

SMS Marketing Strategy for Restaurant 

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

SMS marketing strategy

If you are looking for the best SMS marketing strategy for a restaurant business then,

 

this is going to be the most concise and valuable article you’ll read on the internet today

 

but before then, let’s answer the question ”what is SMS marketing strategy?

 

What is an SMS marketing strategy? 

 

 

Short message service(SMS) marketing is the process of sending short promotional campaigns for marketing purposes using simple text messages. 

 

These messages are mostly meant to communicate time-sensitive offers, updates, and alerts to your subscribers.

 

While strategy is a plan of action designed to achieve a long-term or overall aim.

 

Therefore, the SMS marketing strategy is the process of sending out a short promotional campaign for marketing purposes using SMS.

 

These messages are meant to communicate your offer to your subscribers.

 

Now that you know what SMS marketing strategy is let’s answer the big question. Does SMS marketing work?

 

Does SMS marketing work? 

 

Online marketing channels are on the rise, and choosing the most profitable channel to use to promote your business has become more difficult. 

 

Traditional platforms such as TV and print remain highly expensive and make it hard for small businesses to use. 

 

Using SMS marketing has become one of the most effective marketing channels for businesses due to its high open rates, high conversion and its ability to boost other marketing channels. 

 

The number of mobile phone users has tripled over the past decade, with over 5 billion people using a mobile phone. 

 

With mobile devices in hand, the effectiveness of SMS marketing is on the rise every day. 

 

Consumers spend twice as much time on their phones as they think they are. ask yourself, how many times have you checked your mobile phone today?

 

You can’t count, right? 

 

Now that you know that SMS marketing works, let us look at different types of SMS marketing 

 

What are the types of SMS marketing? 

 

There are different types of SMS marketing, but in this article, we will look at the most common ones. 

 

1 promotional deal and Discounts 

 

This is one of the most commonly used SMS marketing techniques in today’s world.

 

These are messages you send directly to your customers on deals, discounts, clearances, and special sales on products and/or services.

 

In most instances, these promotions create a high-level sense of urgency since they are time-sensitive.

 

2 SMS Coupons 

 

These are messages that are often sent in Multimedia Messaging Service or “MMS”, for short. SMS Coupons are quite similar to promotional deals and discount messages.

 

They include a discount on either a product or a service that is offered by the business that they signed up to receive SMS marketing messages.

 

3 Text-to-Win Competitions 

 

This is a type of SMS campaign where customers have the capability of entering a contest – simply by responding to a text message your business sends.

 

Once the contest deadline occurs, a winner is then selected by a random generator.

 

4 Flash Sales

 

This is the type of SMS marketing you use when having a limited quantity of a service or a product that is offered by your business.

 

This type of SMS marketing holds its activity for only a short amount of time. 

 

5 Loyalty Programs

 

These programs are designed to encourage your customers to make a purchase or to engage in recommending referrals for the purpose and intent of obtaining free products or discounts.

 

What are the benefits of SMS Marketing for restaurants? 

1 It is affordable 

 

If you’ve just opened your restaurant or you already own a restaurant but you can’t afford to spend a lot on marketing right now, SMS is perfect for you.

 

Restaurant SMS marketing is cheaper than most other types of marketing, including printed flyers or ads.

 

2 You help you reach more people. 

 

For people to receive an SMS, they just need a phone, not even a smartphone, and not one that has internet access. 

 

This makes it easier for you to widen the reach of your marketing efforts.  

 

If you limit yourself to, let’s say, email marketing, you won’t be reaching as many people as you could with an effective text message marketing strategy. 

 

That’s because email marketing is dependent on circumstances like internet access, relatively new devices, a data plan on mobile phones, etc.

 

3 Results are available instantly. 

 

Over 90% of text message marketing texts are read in the first 3 minutes of being sent. 

 

Let’s say you send an offer with a 20% discount code to your online menu and a link that people can click to place an order. Someone might open it and place an order in less than 10 minutes.  

 

4 It increases customer loyalty.

 

Craft attractive messages featuring exclusive deals regularly and send them as SMS. They will tempt people to visit your restaurant over and over again to redeem the offers. It’s as simple as that!

   

5 It’s versatile

 

One of the advantages of text message marketing is its flexibility.

 

When devising an SMS marketing strategy, pick and choose what you want to communicate: an exclusive menu item, a discount, a promo code, or even news about your restaurant.

 

Sms Marketing Strategy for Restaurant 

 

  1. Only send out messages when you have something important 

 

Avoid the temptation of bombarding your customers with text messages, because that is an instant turn-off for them.

No one wants to get notifications from brands more often than they get texts from their friends.

For messages that aren’t time-sensitive or are longer, use email instead and save SMS for more “urgent” matters like a “get it while it’s hot” offer.

 

  1. Get the permission of your customers before sending them text messages. 

 

This point can’t be overemphasised, please don’t send customers promotional messages if they haven’t opted-in to receive them.

 

Moreover, pay close attention to how you phrase the kind of messages they will receive.

 

For example, suppose you say they will receive messages related to special offers.

 

In that case, you’re painting yourself in a corner because you won’t be able to send other types of messages like news or menu announcements. 

 

  1. Always keep your messages short. 

 

When you sit down to write a promotional text message, don’t go over the 160 characters per SMS limit. 

 

Even if newer phones can support longer messages, your customers are not looking to read a story when receiving an SMS from a brand. 

 

Always keep it simple, sweet, and straight to the point. Your message will convert more when you keep it short. 

 

  1. Personalize your messages. 

 

Just because it’s bulk SMS marketing, it doesn’t mean you can add a bit of customization. 

 

Adding a bit of customization can go a long way to making your customers feel special. 

 

Even something as simple as addressing them by their first name would do. 

 

  1. Give Your Subscribers The Option to Opt-out  

 

This may not sound well to your ears, because no business wants to lose customers. 

 

But doing this will make the customers feel that you are not desperate, and needy.

 

Wherever you place your opt-in CTA, you also need to include an opt-out option with clear instructions on how to do it.

 

Additionally, when people receive their first text from you after opting in, also include an opt-out link.

 

Conclusion

 

SMS marketing for restaurants is a simple, affordable, and highly effective way of surprising your customers with unique offers and discounts which will turn them into regular and paying customers.

 

If you pay attention to the SMS marketing strategy for restaurants above and don’t overwhelm subscribers with daily messages, your sales and brand recognition will increase.

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

How to Use Facebook ads to Promote My Catering Business

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

promote my catering business

If you are a caterer, chances are you’ve been asking yourself the question “how can I use Facebook ads to promote my catering business?  

 

In this article, you’ll discover the answer to your question and how you can beat your competitors using Facebook ads. 

 

But before we take a deep dive, let us answer some fundamental questions that you may be having in mind.

 

 

Why should I use Facebook ads to promote my catering business?

 

The platform is now one of the most popular marketing platforms currently. Facebook has grown to more than 2.7 billion active users, it also expanded its advertising network to suit a wide range of businesses.

 

There are a lot of benefits of advertising on Facebook. But it’s also important to understand what the platform has to offer you as a business owner.

 

In this article, you will understand how the Facebook advertising platform works and how you can take advantage of the platform’s benefits to promote your catering business. 

 

Facebook’s market share for digital advertising is close to 20%, making it one of the single largest options for advertising, behind only Google.

 

As the world adjusts to decreased store traffic and lower brick-and-mortar results it only makes sense to consider the benefits of Facebook advertising for your business.

 

Facebook’s advertising model functions on the “pay-per-click” model which has become the single biggest system for internet advertising. 

 

The reasons why PPC is important are also the same benefits of Facebook advertising: it’s affordable, effective, and fast.

 

 

How is Facebook Ad good for my catering business? 

 

Most catering businesses struggle to take their business beyond their local market.

 

If you’re also facing this challenge, then, running an optimized Facebook ad to promote your catering business can help you reach a broader audience base.

 

Here are some things that Facebook can help you achieve:

 

Fine-Tuned Targeting

Large-Mobile Audience

Market Data Analytics

Brand Awareness

Improved Click-Through Rates

 

However, driving ROI from Facebook isn’t as easy as you might perceive, and may end up losing money.

 

But you don’t have to beat yourself up because, in this article, we’ll share some powerful tactics you use to promote your catering business on Facebook.

So, let’s dive in: 

 

 How to use Facebook ads to promote my catering business

 

1 Interest-Based Targeting 

 

When it comes to targeting versatility, Facebook is the champion.

 

As a business, you can set your ad to target people based on different factors. These include gender, age, interest, relationship status, etc.

 

For example, during the 2010 FIFA World cup, Adidas launched a sales campaign. They used Facebook to reach out to the growing social media interest in the game. 

 

They reached over one million Facebook users, and their brand awareness soared by 13% around the globe. You can do the same for your catering business 

 

As a catering business owner, you can target people who organize events such as engagements, birthdays, retirement, baby showers, etc. 

 

With Facebook, you’ve got the potential to achieve conversion rates of your wildest dreams — the market is enormous.

 

2 Select Campaign Objectives

Facebook gives you a variety of objectives to pick from. Here are some of the objectives to choose from:-

Lead generation

Messages

Store visits

Catalogue sales

Conversions

Brand awareness

Engagement

Reach

App installs

Video views

By selecting the best campaign objectives, you can attract a growing number of people to your catering business  

 

3 Build Convertible Landing Pages

 

Generating leads for your catering business is just a half of the puzzle, converting those leads into sales is a real daunting task. For that, you require high-converting landing pages for your Facebook pages.

 

Your landing page needs to tick all the right boxes to achieve a higher conversion rate. Here are some of the boxes that your landing page must tick:

 

 A gripping title that impresses your visitor; 

Your subheadings need to be attractive 

The subheadings must be straightforward for your readers to digest.

Place the Call-to-action[CTA] appropriately on the landing page. 

Avoid it too early or too late in the content, the position matters.

Use an appealing colour for your call to action.

it has been seen this has a significant impact on the overall conversion.

 

Most importantly, your landing page must focus on providing value to your readers; otherwise, all your Facebook ads spending will go in vain.

 

4 Power of Videos

In recent years, video metrics have dramatically increased. Studies have shown that 54% of Internet users want more video content from the business or brand they support.

 

People are happy to pause for a few seconds to watch the video while scrolling through their account’s timeline.

 

Creating a Facebook Ad Funnel with your business video can drive higher revenue. Run a video campaign that appeals to cold traffic or lookalike audiences.

 

Your  Video must be focused on your brand story. For example, use a video illustrating the journey of your catering business and what it offers to the customers.

 

5 Promote Your Chef Special Dishes with Facebook Carousel Ads

The carousel ads are perfect for displaying all your exquisite dishes in a single, swipe-able Ad.

 

With this type of Facebook Ad, you can display up to ten videos or images — with ten different CTAs — links to dedicated landing pages from each panel of Facebook carousel ads.

 

The ads should be perfect for mobile and desktop views this will help all your marketing objectives.

Whether you want to shoot up your local bookings or create brand awareness nationwide, carousel ads got you covered.

 

Conclusion

 

Creating a Facebook Ad campaign is just the beginning. You are required to have an effective mechanism to review the performance and make the necessary tweaks.

 

This is how you can quickly narrow down on what works best for your brand. On the other way round, you’ll end up driving the wrong people to your landing page and wasting money.

If you find this article helpful, drop a comment in the comment section below

 

You can also read: how to make more sales using email marketing 

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

How to Generate More Leads with Facebook for Realtors 

by Auta Thank God Leave a Comment

more leads with Facebook

 

Have you been hearing stories of how real estate agents have been generating more leads with Facebook

 

And you are wondering how you can start generating leads for your real estate business using Facebook? If your answer to either of those questions is “yes” 

 

Then, keep reading… 

 

Because today you are going to discover some simple, but powerful ways to generate more leads as a realtor estate agent using Facebook. 

 

But before we go deep into how to generate more leads with Facebook as a realtor let’s answer some important questions.  

 

Why should I take facebook lead generation serious as a realtor? 

 

Today, Facebook is one of the cheapest and most effective platforms to generate leads as a realtor.

 

Some years back, multiple listing services played a dominant role in connecting you as a realtor to your potential clients. 

 

Today, social media platforms have changed things in the real estate market. 

Facebook has nearly 2.8 billion monthly active users worldwide. An average user of Facebook spends 38 minutes per day. 

 

This gives you enough time to show your real estate business to the right audience.

 

This means that using Facebook to generate leads for Realtors is no longer an option but a necessity.

Also Read: How to Promote Your Real Estate Business Online

What is lead generation for real realtors? 

 

In marketing, lead generation simply means the process of attracting and converting a prospect into someone interested in your products or using services using a lead magnet (aka bait) in exchange for their contact. 

 

The leads magnet can be a free ebook, free training, free checklist, template etc. 

 

For a realtor, lead generation is the process of attracting a potential client through a lead magnet and later converting that prospect into someone interested in using your services to rent, buy or sell their house.

 

 

Are Facebook ads good for realtors?

 

No doubt that Facebook is a powerful tool for any realtor. Facebook allows you to build awareness, drive traffic to your website, and, n the end, find new potential clients. 

 

With Facebook ads, you’ll be able to target the exact people you want to reach. You can choose to show your ads to people based on their age, gender etc.

 

Ways to generate leads with Facebook for realtors

 

1 Create a Facebook business page 

If you want to generate more leads as a realtor with Facebook then, the first step is creating a business page. 

 

Your Facebook business page will serve as your home base. With this, you can establish your brand presence, and share vital information about your real estate.

 

To make your profile more findable, use keywords in your profile’s descriptive sections. 

 

This includes referencing the city or region where you provide services and any niche audiences you serve, such as military or veterans, executives, move-up buyers, empty nesters, and so on.

 

Simple steps to creating a Facebook business page

 

Choose your page category

Upload your headshot and cover photo

Enter basic information

Add a call to action

Create an introductory post

Invite your Facebook friends to like your page

 

2 Create engaging content 

 

After creating a Facebook realtor business page, the next step is to start sharing and creating engaging content. 

 

Facebook has many features to help you establish your brand, increase your reach, and market your services for Facebook lead generation, start using those features to increase your reach on Facebook.

 

The major way to increase your reach on Facebook is by posting content that engages your target audience. 

 

This is likely to cover a wide range of potential content topics and types of posts including text (such as a few

sentences) as well as images and videos.

 

 

Simples Ways to Create Engaging Content that will help you generate more leads with Facebook

 

Speak to your ideal audience (aka customer persona)

 

 

“Content that speaks to everyone, speaks to no one” 

 

Figuring out exactly who you want to reach with your content is the first step to effectively reaching your audience, building relationships, and ultimately selling your product or service.

 

If you want to create content that speaks directly to your target audience, you have to be where they are, you have to know them, and you have to be part of the conversation that they’re having, and get to know what their questions are, what their issues are, what problems do they have and then try to solve those problems with your content.

 

That’s the only way, you’ve got to build relationships with them, that’s the only way you get to know people because your target audience is people.

 

 

Use video content

 

A video can help to capture the personality of your brand. You may not be aware, but your target audience can buy a property from you simply because they have been impressed with your brand personality.

 

Posting a real estate video can build trust, like and confidence around your business and lead to more traffic to your website and then turn into generating more leads for you. 

 

Chose your tone

You have to choose your voice when creating and planning your Facebook content. 

 

This will make every content you share on Facebook memorable, friendly and approachable and it will make readers feel something- whether its’s laughing, learning something new, or provoking their thoughts. 

 

Ultimately, content that evokes emotions like these increases familiarity with and truth in you and your business.

 

Informative content  

Human beings (me and you) love to feel that we are gaining insider information. So, instead of just talking about your skills. Start sharing informative and helpful tips that solve specific problems of your target audience. This will help them more fully grasp your expertise. 

 

People may believe you when you say you’re a real estate expert, but they won’t necessarily remember or want to work with you. On the other hand, if you share examples of how your expertise can help them get a better house or make more money, they’ll reach out to you at the first opportunity.

 

 

3  Join relevant Facebook group  

Facebook groups are a vital element for any realtor who wants to generate more leads using Facebook.

 

The good part of Facebook groups is that it’s a free tool and they are often full of highly targeted groups of people, such as people who live in specific neighbourhoods or work in a certain city or region. There are most likely many fantastic and relevant Facebook groups in your area. 

 

Look for local groups tied to specific cities or neighbourhoods, or niche interests and join.

 

Local Facebook groups are a great place to share listings with a targeted audience. Even when you aren’t sharing listings, you can benefit from being a part of groups.

 

 For example, many people post asking for recommendations for local real estate agents, creating the perfect opening to introduce yourself. You can also ask friends and former clients to tag you in Facebook group posts and comment threads.

 

 

4 Use Paid ads to generate more leads with Facebook 

When setting up a lead generation ad on Facebook, you will usually create it from scratch. You need to allow some time to find your footing.

 

Successful Facebook lead generation advertising requires that you determine a strategy, identify an objective, and optimize your target audience by location, interests, behaviours, age, job types, and other demographics.

 

It has been proven that Facebook lead generation is a revolutionary in real estate marketing. 

 

The extremely comprehensive targeting capabilities can completely transform your Facebook lead generation and audience-building efforts.

 

There are very few, if any, advertising strategies that compare to Facebook ads for real estate. Almost 89% of real estate agent and broker media spend goes to online ads.

The power of using Facebook ads is, however, limited by your budget, expertise, and available time to learn and use it.

 

 

5 Follow up your leads using CRM  

 

Generating leads as a realtor doesn’t guarantee real estate success, you will have to follow up on those leads and convert them into buying customers through follow-ups using a customer relationship management tool (CRM)  Don’t leave that money on the table—stay organized and on top of all your leads using a (CRM) tool.

 

CONCLUSION   

As a realtor, using Facebook to generate more leads for your real estate business is a wise decision because Facebook is a great channel for finding and connecting with potential clients. 

 

For you to optimize your ability to generate more leads on Facebook, first create a professional real estate business page that conveys important details in search-friendly content and appeals to your desired client types.

 

Then, consistently post engaging content, join relevant Facebook groups, use paid ads, and track and convert your generated leads using a CRM.

Filed Under: Starting a Business in Nigeria

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