3C Digital

Digital Marketing for Small Business

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Why you need digital marketing for your small business

Small business owners ask all the time why they need to go into the digital marketing world. Can’t you just do what you were doing and leave it that way? Unfortunately, not because the old ways are not working anymore. We’ve met with small business owners who admitted that they barely got a reply to the 10,000 flyers they left in people’s mailboxes. All that money wasted. In this post, we will tell you why your small business needs digital marketing.

It’s a digital world

You can bury your head in the sand but the truth of the matter is that we are in a digital era. Although there are still some things that are the same (advertising messages still need to be compelling), the avenue has changed. And it’s changing constantly. But even though you are overwhelmed by the digital marketing world, you still need to be there. If you can’t do them all, just start small. Read up on our digital marketing for beginners tips to get you going. We make sure we lessen the jargon so that you understand what we’re talking about.

You need to be competitive

One thing to remember is that your competition is online. They are doing the digital marketing stuff. They are on social media and they are not afraid to use it. If you want to be competitive, you need to have a digital space, too. These days, when customers hear about your brand they check out your website and your Facebook page first. Then they look at your reviews online and the different ways they can contact you. Aside from that, they also look at what your posts have been on social media. If you’re not online, or your customers are having a hard time finding things out about your small business, you will miss out.

It’s not changing anytime soon

We’re sorry to say that the digital world isn’t budging. No matter how many times you hear issues surrounding social media platforms, it is still going strong. In fact, users for platforms like Facebook and Instagram are in the billions and increasing. If you don’t ride the tide now, it’ll be even more difficult to catch up later on. But if you don’t know what you’re doing, don’t hesitate to hire a digital marketing agency. Read our tips on what to look for when looking for a digital marketing agency for your small business. Whether you are going to DIY digital marketing or hire an agency, it is best to start ASAP.

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Create great social media photos and videos for your small business

Create great social media photos and videos for your small business

  1. Use photo apps
  2. Try out the free apps first
  3. Invest in some props
  4. Try out flat lays
  5. Get a photo box

In this post, we will show you how to create great social media photos and videos for your small business. Small businesses using social media these days know they need good photos and videos to stand out. One that looks professional and well done. But we also know it can be super expensive. The budget is already tight enough as it is, right? So what can you do to ensure that your social media videos and photos look amazing and also affordable? 

Photo apps

We are lucky that we live in an age when mobile phone cameras are getting better and better. Did you know that there are professional ads and mini-movies out there being shot on phones these days? You can do the same, too! You can then enhance those photos using various free and paid phone apps. Use apps like Afterlight, Pro HDR, ProCamera and LittleMoments to edit your photos and use preset filters. Also, try using stop-motion apps like iMotion to create engaging videos that showcase your products and services in a fun way. Some of these apps are free but even if they’re paid, they aren’t that expensive. Before you buy the paid ones, use their free trial period first.

Invest in some props

Don’t underestimate the value of tasteful props for your photography and videos. Flatlays are a great way to showcase your products. What’s a flatlay exactly? It’s an arrangement of things on a flat surface and taking the photo from above. Search for the hashtag ‘flatlay’ on Instagram and you’ll see great examples online. You don’t need expensive props for a great flat lay photo. All you need is good lighting and a well-set arrangement. Don’t be afraid to experiment but also remember your brand colours when you start photographing. Natural lighting is your friend. You don’t need to buy expensive lighting, just a window.

Create great social media photos and videos for your small business

Get yourself a photo box

Invest in a portable softbox/lightbox for those amazing well-lit photos. If you search for ‘portable lightbox’ online, you’ll find heaps of sellers. Check out the reviews before you buy one, and the final photos of those who have used it. Be careful you don’t pick the dodgy and cheaply made ones out there that will disintegrate after three uses. Get something that is easy to set up so it doesn’t take up a lot of your time when you use it. Do a couple of test shots and see which lighting is best for what you’re trying to do. Keep the lightbox clean and stash it away in a safe place that’s easy to access. We suggest you do a shoot for several hours at a time instead of a few minutes each day. That way it takes less time and doesn’t intrude with your daily operations.

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What to look for in a digital marketing agency for your small business

We are writing over at Inside Small Business this week. It’s all about small businesses and how to pick the right digital marketing agency. We know it can be confusing to decide so we hope this helps. Click below to read the post.

digital marketing agency

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Small business SEO checklist

Small Business SEO Checklist

  1. Know your keywords
  2. Know your target audience
  3. Make a list of your long tail and short tail keywords
  4. List your small business in local directories
  5. List your small business in online directories
  6. Set up a blog on your site
  7. Update your blog with content relevant to your small business

Try not to yawn or drift off to a daydream just for a second as we talk about SEO for your small business. Yes, we know, it’s not the sexiest of topics — nor is it the easiest to understand. But if you want search engines like Google to find your small business, you need to have a strategy for SEO. In this post, we will break things down for you as much as possible. We’ve compiled an easy-to-understand checklist for you to read and follow. Don’t worry if you haven’t done all of them. It’s good to have a starting point for these things.

Know your keywords

Keywords are important for your small business. Yes, you’ve been told to find out what they are but it’s always too hard. Basically, you just need to answer this question: What will potential customers type into Google to find your small business? These words or phrases are the keywords you can use for your small business. Of course, you won’t know these words if you don’t know your own business or your target audience so you need to sort that one out first. It’s best if you know your short tail keywords and your long tail keywords, too. To give you an example, our keywords would be ‘digital marketing small business’ or ‘small business content creation’ or ‘small business SEO’. List down what your keywords are before hiring someone to optimise your site. It’ll make the whole process easier.

SEO guide for small business

Join local directories

Don’t underestimate the importance of adding your small business to local directories in your area. Each local directory you list your small business in helps to push your ranking online. You don’t have to be on all of them, because there are hundreds out there. Just pick around five to start with. We recommend you start with the free local business directories in your area. Then add to sites like My Google Business, Yelp, Pure Local, Yellow Pages, Star Local, and True Local to start with. Make sure you have things like pictures of your small business shop front as well as your products/services. Add your address, phone number, website and office hours. It’s a lot of work but it is worth doing.

Add fresh content

Now for some bad news. SEO is not a set and forget kind of thing. When you hire someone to ‘do your SEO’ it doesn’t mean the job is finished when they’ve added all the keywords you want to add. Google loves fresh content and because of this, you’ll need to keep updating your site with relevant information about your industry. How do you do this? A blog is a good place to start. Don’t be overwhelmed, you don’t have to post every day. As we mentioned on our post about why your small business needs a blog, it’ll give you street cred aside from improving your SEO. If you don’t know what to post, find professional content creators like 3C Digital who can help with keywords, choosing topics and writing them for you. Delegate this task if it’s not your strong suit. That way you can focus on what you do best – running your small business.

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3 Ways to get followers for your small business Facebook page

Ways to get followers for your small business Facebook page

  1. Invite people you know
  2. Ask your friends to share your page
  3. Share good content
  4. Speak your target audience’s language
  5. Create an awareness campaign

A common question we get about using Facebook for small business is how to gain a following. It’s a legitimate question, too because if you’re going to be posting there you’d like people to read it. The problem here is that there are so many services out there claiming to be able to give you thousands of followers that quickly. It is a tempting offer and if you didn’t know any better, you’d probably say yes, too. But that kind of following is nothing but vanity metrics. They are not your people. In this post, we will show you three ways to find those true followers for your Facebook page.

Invite people you know

Why shouldn’t you? The people you know would know how hard you’ve worked to plan and set up your small business. After all the posts on your personal page about the hardships of setting up a business, it’s good to update them that yes, your small business is finally off the ground. They want to support your endeavour in any way they can so why not start by Liking your Facebook page? After you’ve set up your small business Facebook page, click on your friends on Facebook and start inviting them to Like it. Ask them to share it with their friends, too if they want to show you even more love. It is okay to ask them and they will understand if you do. When you get those couple of followers on Facebook, post a ‘Thank you’ note in there to thank them for their support.

Social media for small business

Share good content

What kind of content exactly? Clients get really stressed about what kind of posts they should be putting up on Facebook. It can be overwhelming if you have no idea what to do exactly. There are things you can do to figure this out yourself. For one, check your competitor’s Facebook page and check out what they’re doing. You don’t need to copy them. Just get some ideas on what kind of things are being posted. Here at 3C Digital, we’ve created a content calendar that our clients can use to schedule their posts on Facebook. If you want a free copy of it, sign up to your newsletter to get updates in your inbox. The calendar has tips on the types of content that will be useful to their audience and how to present them (i.e., videos, graphics, gifs etc). By posting tips, useful information and user-generated content, you will get your target audience’s attention and get them to Like your page.

Create an awareness campaign

This one requires you to put aside a budget for your Facebook awareness campaign. Basically, you want to reach your target audience — the ones who don’t know you exist yet. In order to run a successful awareness campaign, you need to figure out first what message you want to put out there. Find your tone (are you bubbly? Serious? Chatty?) and craft a message around that tone. Then you need to really figure out who your target audience is, down to the last detail. Figure out things like where they live, their age, their profession, their home life, their hobbies and so on. By knowing your audience down to the granular level, you can ensure that your campaign will reach the type of people who will want to follow your Facebook page.

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Community question: How do I use Facebook for my small business?

How do I use Facebook for my small business?

  1. Create a Facebook page for your small business
  2. Add details about your small business on your page
  3. Post regularly
  4. Share something of value
  5. Schedule your posts
  6. Interact with your audience

How do I use Facebook for my small business?

Last month, we asked our community what their biggest pain points are when using Facebook for their small business. We received an overwhelming response from you guys and we thank you for taking the time to send those answers through. Like we said in the email, we aim to answer all your questions on our site so we can help you with your social media efforts. In this post, we answer the top three most common questions we got.

How do I direct people from my Facebook page to my website?

There are several ways you can direct your Facebook visitors to your website. Here we’ve listed the most common ways you can do this:

  • Add your website URL on your Facebook About section
  • Post information about your service/products with links to your site’s services/products page
  • Post an excerpt of your blog post with a link to your website for people who wants to read more
  • Use the carousel feature to showcase your products and add the links to your website.
Social media for small business

What do I post on Facebook?

This is one of the most common questions we get when we talk to our clients. Sometimes, small business owners forget that they are subject matter experts. There are so many things you can talk about. So many things. Let’s list some of the topics you can use on your Facebook page:

  • Why you started your small business
  • What inspires you
  • What makes you different
  • Tips that help your customers
  • Information that your customers will find useful
  • News articles related to your industry
  • A stellar review from a client
  • Answering a commonly asked question (like what we’re doing here).

We are currently in the process of preparing our eBook on what to post + content calendar for Facebook. Stay tuned because we will be sending it out to our subscribers in the coming weeks.

How much time should I spend on Facebook?

This question has different levels of answers. It depends what you’re trying to do on Facebook. Is it just for posting? To engage with your people? Is it to run an advertising campaign? When you decide what you are going to do, then you will know how many hours you need to be on the platform. Creating a content calendar for a month or two and scheduling your post means that you don’t spend as much time on Facebook as other businesses do.

Having said that, you also can’t just post and forget because if your customers engage with your post then you have to respond. Responding to comments increases your community engagement, which is what small businesses want to happen. On the other hand, if you want to start an advertising campaign on Facebook then expect to spend a relatively longer time on the platform than when just adding posts.