subject: A Glimpse At Local Search Marketing [print this page] Most entrepreneurs dream of making their small businesses a global conglomerate someday. More often than not, in order to achieve this International dream, a small business, particularly a home-based entity, needs to ensure success in the locality where it is located. Before a start-up brand becomes nationally or globally recognized, a company must first prove its worth by thriving successfully in its neighborhood or surroundings.
One of the hottest and inexpensive ways to advertise a product or service is through the Internet. Probably, majority of small to medium enterprises have already tried marketing or advertising their brands, goods and services by setting up their own website. Having your own website will surely help make your business grow.
However, since you do not have control of the scope of your website, there is also a big chance that you may not be effectively reaching your local target markets. Many people might be visiting your website, but the question is whether your visitors are your target clientele. Local market is crucial to many businesses, particularly restaurants, floral shops, meat shops, carwash, and bakeries.
Many popular search engines and innovative Internet companies have come up with various solutions to remedy this problem. With the help of such groups, you will now be able to reach your precious local market via the Internet. Read on and you will learn how local search marketing could help improve your sales and increase your local customer base.
Strategies of major search engines
Major search engine companies use the IP address in order to determine what region or locality a person who posted a query using their search tools. Thus, if your Internet Protocol address reflects that you are from New York City, the search engine will display advertisements of relevant service or product providers that are within your vicinity.
Thus, if you want people in New York City to know about your company, products and services, you should ask such search engines for local advertising rates. You may be paying a little extra for such geographically-driven advertising; however, you are assured that your sales pitch will reach the people that matter.
Aside from IP addresses, some search engines have street address information of their members. Thus, such companies can more efficiently place your ads to people that live or work in your neighborhood. If you get the services of such search engines, your company or restaurant or shop will even be placed on their online map. Thus, your potential customers, even if they are not searching for a business related to your company, will be able to see and know you when they access streets and places near you using such online maps.
The advantages of advertising with foremost search engines include quick and easy process of making your online business or company listing, inclusion of your products and services in their sponsored auction sites, and availability of satellite images, three dimensional maps and even driving instructions to your place or shop. If you are not an Internet savvy person, or none of your staff knows how to make websites, you do not have to worry. Such popular search engines would provide you with easy to follow instruction on how to go about your listing, offer you different ways of paying for the advertising services, and even ensure that your business is properly and accurately listed.
Online yellow pages and city searches
Aside from the more popular search engines, you could also advertise with smaller websites that provide local information, such as web-based city searches and yellow pages. These websites usually do not only help supply customers the list of local companies, but also provide local news and information.
Many companies that have tried advertising in locally-focused websites have seen an increase in their sales and revenues by as much as 20%. Including your company in the online local yellow pages will not only attract local residents, but also visitors and tourists to your site. Businessmen who are only in your locality for conferences or training or even foreign tourists would surely look for good restaurants, dentists or doctors, or even souvenir shops that are located in the place where they are going to.
There are also many small city search websites that provide web-based maps, local information, weather, local news, and even upcoming events. You can surely benefit a lot if you advertise your sale, opening or other promotional activities in such websites.
