Promoting A Local Business Online

The internet has been available to the public for two decades now

. It is something everyone is familiar with yet so many small local businesses are still oblivious to the benefits it could offer.

Granted the use of internet differs from one industry to another. The benefits might be obvious in some industries but not so much in others but the fact is any business regardless of sector can benefit from the internet. For some businesses, internet can directly produce transactions, real money that boost the bottom line while for others it provides leads and brand awareness that can translate into real money if the businesses care to utilize them.

It is surprising how many small local businesses are still choosing to ignore the internet. Whats stopping a lot of these small local businesses is a false idea that creating and maintaining an online presence is very expensive, something they do not have the budget for and even if they do, the benefits wont justify the costs.

Hiring a web development company to create your own website can be expensive depending on the level of complexity and visual appeal you desire. However, what most people dont realize is that you can create a powerful web presence without even having your own website!

Online presence without your own website

The most fundamental aspect of online marketing is about putting your information on the internet so your customers can find you. It doesnt matter whether it is on your own website, your blog, a social networking site or a local directory. Once your information is online, people will be able to find it using search engines like Google. Lets face it, as long as we find the information we are looking for, in most cases, we dont really care where we find it. Except your own website, the other 3 alternatives are all completely free. All you need is a valid email address to create a free blog, register on a social networking site or create a business page on a local directory. You can register an email account completely free with many major providers like gmail or ymail.

Ok, at this point you are probably thinking: I dont know anything about the internet so I am really quite intimidated by the idea of creating my own blog or social network account or local business page. Well dont be. The way these services are set up, you dont need much computing knowledge and you just need to follow the steps they have clearly laid out and fill out the forms. Once you have filled out your information, the blog website/social network/local directory will automatically set everything up for you. Once the pages are ready, you will be able to easily upload photos, price lists and maybe even videos.

On average, it should take just about 10 30 minutes to create a blog, social network page or local business page. Why not give these free online services a try? They are completely free so you have absolutely nothing to lose. In just a few hours you will be visible to millions of potential customers.

It is very important that small business owners realize there is more than one way to get online. It is not necessary to spend thousands of dollars to create a dedicated website. The free online services can get all your information online without costing you a penny. In addition, social networks and local directories already have a large user base so you will be tapping into a large audience directly. The level of visibility your local business page on some of these established directories has would be equivalent to thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars of investment in your own website. Every business should get online.

by: Dawson

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