Web marketing through the Covid pandemic

So many businesses have struggled over the past twelve months due to the restrictions in place because of the Covid pandemic. It may be that the business has not been able to open at all such as many in the leisure industry or that the business has had to change to trade online. For this who are still able to sell products or services in some way, it is important to continue marketing.

If you have recently moved to selling products online then you need to ensure that people can find your products. Most people use a search engine such as Google or Bing to find products they want m. In order to get your site found you may need to enlist the help of a marketing expert. They will be able to advise you where’s best to invest your money. It may be that you also decide to do a Pay per Click campaign to get your site found. Google have their own one called Google AdWords which allows you to get traffic to your site almost instantly. You pay per click through to your website in hoping that these visitors will then purchase from you. The amount you pay will depend on the competition for the keyword and the quality of your site in relation to that phrase.

Has your social media presence taken a dive?

Social media marketing is a great way to promote your business. Unless you are doing paid for ads, it is all free to use and you can build up an online following very quickly. Sometimes what can happen with on the social media site, Facebook for example, is that you will do something which gains you a massive number of followers but then over time they start to dwindle off and before you know it you have a fraction of people following you that you did before. This often happens if you have run a competition and asked people to follow you to be put into the draw. After the competition a large percentage of this people will then leave unless you give them a reason to stay. Ideally you should try and run competitions often to keep people interested. You could do one small one every couple of weeks and then a bigger one every couple of months. Holding on to your followers is vital but you have to keep them engaged in order to do so. Also with many of the social media sites, if you do not interact with a profile that much you often will not see all their posts in your feed.

Social Media marketing during lockdown

With the UK now in a second national lockdown many businesses are worrying how they are going to survive. Unless you are lucky enough to be working in an industry that is still able to trade as normal such as a super market, then you are most likely losing out on customers which in turn means your profits start to drop. It is vital that you find a way to continue trading as much as possibly whilst adhering to the lockdown rules.

Many shops and businesses are looking to promote their business more online. If you do not previously have much of an online presence then this can be quite daunting. You may not have the money to invest in a website at the moment in which case social media sites may be the answer for you. Even if you do have a website then you should not dismiss the importance social media marketing can have on your site. Often much of the marketing that you can do on these types of sites is free so you do not have to worry about investing a lot of money in to them, it is mostly just your time. It can also be done from the comfort of your home.

How can you use social media to launch a new business?

Launching a new business can be tricky as you may be starting from a completely blank canvas. It may be that you are launching a new product or service that is not known so you will have to make people aware of who you are and what you are offering. Having a website is a great place to start, but if none knows you exist then they may not search for you or your products. Social media is a fantastic way to get your brand and products recognised. You can opt for the paid for advertising or you can choose to build up a following organically. If you decide to go down the organic route then you need to think about how you care going to get your posts seen. You may be able to advertise on some local groups but be aware as sometimes these groups have restrictions regarding advertising. You can also ask all your friends to share posts and links to your social media pages.

The best way to build up a following quickly is to offer a prize draw. Some many companies quickly gain hundreds of followers by running a giveaway competition in exchange for a share and like of their page / posts.

Social media as a platform to advertise community events

A popular way to communicate with the local community is through the medium of social media as it is a good way to publicise community events, dispense information and safety advice. Although the idea of using a physical noticeboard situated in a prominent position has been used for years this is becoming a less common way of communication largely due to the fact that fewer people are walking to shops than previously and therefore they are not seeing the notices posted there.

A social media community page where two or three members act as administrators on the page and monitor the posts and comments is becoming a regular sight. Members can request to join the group and, in some groups, have to wait to be accepted before they can begin posting. This method of communication is useful as it can convey new information quickly for instance in the case of a cancelled event. Local businesses can advertise their services and any special events that they are holding such as open days.

A disadvantage with this type of community noticeboard is that there are people who do not use social media so they will not be aware of posts that may concern them.