You can use many marketing techniques to market a local business that has customers within 75 miles of your location. But, there is one thing you should pay attention to. Attracting prospects must be easy. This requires special methods called “local marketing“.
These are 10 strategies to help you get customers in your area.
1. Local marketing strategies: Manage your Listing on Search Engines
Today’s customers search online or on their smartphones first. They then go to the business and use Google or Bing.
Google My Business accounts are free and allow you to manage many of the details that appear in Google’s business listings. This includes address, hours, photos, and phone number. Do it immediately if you haven’t yet claimed your listing. Bing also offers a similar place for listing.
2. Targeting nearby social media users is the best strategy for local marketing
If you are able to make social media work for your area, it can help.
Facebook has a feature that allows you to promote your business (“promote”) to local Facebook users. Small businesses should start small with $100 to test the waters and then increase their budget.
Advertisement is not necessary. You can encourage local customers to join your social media channels. Your followers will find your content interesting and may share it with their local family members.
3. To develop local marketing strategies, join the Online Professional Groups
LinkedIn and other social media platforms like LinkedIn allow you to join groups that enable you to share your expertise and build your network. This is particularly useful for B2B local businesses.
A Southern California business, for example, that sells advertising materials such as t-shirts or other printed goods, could benefit from being part of a group with local SoCal companies.
4. Marketing strategy for local businesses: Sponsor local events
It’s a great way to increase brand awareness by sponsoring local charitable events
You should ensure that the cause or event you support is something your customers will be interested in. Sponsoring an event at your local nightclub might be a bad idea for a toy shop. It would be much more effective to sponsor a children’s sports team.
5. To make your local marketing campaign a success, follow up with customers
To encourage testimonials, send a thank you email after a sale. For a positive review, you should never offer any compensation. However, a thank you email informing them that they are open to feedback is becoming more popular.
6. Register with local business directories
Local customers often turn to directory listings to locate professionals or businesses in a specific niche. Check that your company is included in the relevant directories and update any incorrect information.
Do not forget to include your local chambers of commerce, Better Business Bureau, Yellowpages, and niche directories. Home professionals, for example, can list their services at sites such as Angie’s List and HomeAdvisor.
7. What can you do to help local markets by cross-promoting with other local businesses?
You won’t reach customers if you don’t offer specials or promotions to them. Customers from both your business and another one will likely hear about the promotion if they are offered together.
For example, a local restaurant could team up with a nearby cinema to offer a special “dinner-and-a-movie” experience.
8. To boost the local business strategy, start a referral program
Referral programs can be as easy as handing satisfied customers a few more business cards and inviting them to recommend their friends.
You could also offer a bonus (discount, award) to both the referrer as well as the customer. Say you’re an interior designer. Refer friends to get $200 off and a discount of equal value to them.
9. Present Yourself to Local Media
Editors and journalists should be able to access your knowledge on topics relevant to your business. An HVAC company may be able to offer some estimates to a newspaper on how to reduce heating costs during winter.
Sending out press releases can be a great way to get article ideas. You should be persistent but not pushy.
10. A local shop can benefit from hosting an experienced event.
Make it more than a “sales” event. On Friday evenings, host a sale with drinks and live music. It makes shopping a pleasurable experience. Reach out to your local media and invite your social media friends to join the conversation about this event.
Examples and advantages of local marketing strategies
These are some great examples of local marketing you might find inspiring:
| Strategy | Description | Benefits | Examples |
| LOCAL ONLINE ADDS | Online advertising is designed to reach individuals who live in the target area. Google and Facebook are two examples of platforms that may offer ads alongside app downloads from other sites.
How can local sponsorship be used to promote marketing strategies? Online local ads are very effective because they can reach the right audience quickly. Online advertising is great for events and sales. Your ads will be displayed online as long as there is an active campaign. |
You should target specific geographic areas when creating an online advertisement.
countries. State Counties cities. The radius that surrounds a place or point of interest. |
Let’s take, for example, a downtown Springfield bicycle shop. If she advertises in Springfield, MA and someone is looking for bicycle repair shops online they might click the link to become customers. |
| LOCAL SPONSORSHIPS | They are great for the community as they reach a wide range of people. Local sports sponsors are recommended by parents. Events like Mud Runs appeal to those who want to be fit and local music lovers flock to them. | Sponsorships that are local often benefit the entire community. This is particularly important for those who live in the area. Local consumers will trust your brand when you sponsor them. | Sponsorship of local events, teams and activities is another form of local marketing. Nearly all local communities need to find business partners in order to finance local soccer leagues.
Contact your city hall or chamber of commerce to find sponsorship opportunities. |
