Your New Year’s Resolution: Shop Local

Save Local Now is here to help YOU encourage your consumers to shop local in the New Year. Instead of the traditional resolutions, promote shopping local this upcoming year! At the most basic level, buying local ensures that more money is staying in your community. Now more than ever we recognize that when consumers buy local, they’re keeping their communities unique and thriving, and assisting in the creation and retention of local jobs.

As with any New Year’s resolution, there’s no better time to start than now!


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Instagram for Small Business

So you've got Facebook down, you’ve started the "Twitter" thing, and you've dabbled in the world of Google+ and Linkedin. With all of these social media sites already on your tool belt, why bother tackling Instagram? Well, if this interactive and creative platform doesn’t hook you like it already has so many other small businesses, maybe the following figures will:

1. 200 Million Users

Instagram is one of the hottest social sharing apps right now. With over 200 million users, their popularity (and most importantly influence) is unlikely to diminish in any foreseeable future. Getting an Instagram account and becoming familiar with the platform sooner rather than later is only going to be vital for your business as this number continues to rise. After all, 200 million users offers a lot of possibilities for you to introduce your business to new customers and solidify your presence within that customer base.

2. Daily Use

It’s estimated that 70% of Instagram users log in to their Instagram accounts at least once a day (38% of which are logging in multiple times per day).  With all this daily use, you can easily keep your followers up-to-date on what you’re doing, any new products coming through the door, upcoming events, and promotional deals. (Instagram)
Consistency and frequency are key when it comes to promoting your business on social media, so make sure you are keeping your material fresh and new so your followers always have something to like!

3. SEO

A solid range of outlets is crucial to creating a stable online reputation, and solidifying your company’s SEO. Being on sites like Facebook and Twitter is vital, but in order to further increase your SEO, you need to make sure you are active and visible on more than just a handful of sites. Instagram is another great site that can help bump up your SEO without requiring the time associated with traditional methods.

4. Even the Playing field

Instagram levels the playing field and allows you to show what your company has to offer. How is this possible? Well for one, it’s free. On Instagram, businesses don’t need to shell out hundreds of dollars on third-party marketing help in order to create custom content.

Instagram is also quick. Snap a picture of a new product, throw a filter on it, add some hastags, toss in a fun comment and you’re done. It’s that easy.

5. Interaction

There are 8,500 likes per second on Instagram and 1,000 comments are made per second. With all of this customer engagement you can create lasting impressions on your followers. Developing relationships through personal interactions is a fantastic way to create loyal, repeat customers. Follow our Instragram page

First Published at http://blog.savelocalnow.com/instagram_for_smallbusiness/

Why Small Businesses Should Maintain a Digital Marketing Presence

Small business is a special niche of our society and economy. Offering the public local choices, local options and the chance to keep the flow of money within the community is growing in popularity as the global economy becomes more and more aware of it’s importance. Most small businesses have a small budget and base most of their reputation on word of mouth. It is for this reason that small businesses should be most concerned with digital marketing over print or more traditional forms of advertising.

Chances are, whether a business is concerned with digital marketing or not, it is more than likely some information already exists online about that business. A recent study by Dimensional Research shows that 2/3 of all people research small business marketing strategies and products online. So if a small business is not able to be found online, chances are they are missing out on 2/3 of their customers! With platforms such as Yelp, Angie’s List, and Urban Spoon among others, information about businesses can be found online whether they are correct or not. Looking into what information is on these sites, as well as reviews that might be published by customers, is crucial. If there is incorrect information on the web this could negatively impact a potential customers decision as to whether they will use that business or not.

Luckily, today there are many options for maintaining a presence in the digital world and controlling what information might be found online. A small business might create a basic website or even a blog, use social media platforms like Facebook or Google Plus, or use their free Save Local Now account. These platforms can be used to create up-to-date information which will then be picked up by other sites such as the previously mentioned Yelp, Angie’s List, etc. Better yet, they will create an opportunity for customers to interact with the business. Most customers are already using social media as a personal platform and can easily share the information on a businesses Facebook, Twitter, or Save Local Now account to recommend it to friends. Also, if a customer has a negative experience they might be more likely to leave a comment or message on a Facebook page or blog where a business can reply directly than to post a review on Yelp where it is less likely to be compensated for.

The best part about platforms, such as blogs, social media, and Save Local Now, is they are generally free and therefore put all businesses on an equal playing field. As previously stated, small businesses base their marketing on Low budgets and word of mouth so with both of those in mind, they really can’t afford to miss out on platforms that are free and easily sharable.

View Original article here.

About Alicia

Alicia is one of the member engagement managers for Save Local Now. She hails from Northeast Ohio but loves to travel and immerse herself in new cultures. Alicia is the free spirit of the $LN team. Her most important task is to keep the office lively and relaxed. alicia.busa@savelocalnow.com

Newsflash: The best CMO is a loyal customer base

In today’s digitally charged consumer market, the best marketers are your consumers. Many new customers are driven to businesses through word-of-mouth (WOM) reviews, and many loyal customers choose to abandon or stick with a company based on continued experiences. With social media and consumer review sites everywhere, it is vital that customers are happy with your goods or services.

This applies to audiences new and old. Companies often focus their marketing efforts entirely on gaining a new customer base. While this is obviously essential to growing a business, it also essential not to overlook those customers who have been on the bandwagon for a while. Pleasing both groups and maintaining positive relationships with customers is the most effective marketing tool you can have.

Financial and resource constraints also make it difficult for many small businesses to push out big marketing campaigns. This is yet another reason why building a loyal following and maintaing positive word-of-mouth reviews is crucial. It is a cost-effective way to get new faces in the door and new clicks on your website.

But how do you make sure that your word-of-mouth reviews will help and not hurt your business? It’s easy. Allow the customers into the company, and make them feel valued. This can be done by:

• Actively responding to comments and posts on social media. Engage thoroughly with customers who take the time to communicate with you.
• Immediately respond to any complaints or issues raised as these can quickly grow out of control when not addressed.
• Make sure the content you are posting to your accounts is effective, well-planned, and not overwhelming.
• Maintain your manners. Create a notification system that will allow you to thank new customers who make an account, sign up for a newsletter, or join your community. They will appreciate a personal acknowledgment of their engagement.

A 2013 study by Nielsen found that 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family more than all other forms of marketing. However, the study also found that 72% of marketers are still not harnessing the power of customer referrals (Lowitz, view source: http://blog.getambassador.com/6-amazing-stats-that-prove-word-of-mouth-marketing-is-here-to-stay/). For small businesses with limited marketing budgets, focusing power on social media and customer loyalty is a sure way to make the most of WOM and bring more success to your business.

These are simple ways to begin and maintain a good relationship with new customers. Building a loyal base will be vital to the future of your business. Once people start talking about your wonderful customer service and personal touch, more will come.

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Get Ready for This Holiday Season

The holiday season is among us! I know, hard to believe right? So, how are you going to get crowds to deck the halls at your business this year? Don’t worry if you don’t have an answer to that just yet, we’ve got a few tips to help you out!

Host an Event

Hosting events is a great way to promote yourself and get people going through the door. Think about it, are you more likely to go to a mall with smelly food courts and pretentious stores or, go to that really cute store around the corner that’s hosting an event that gives you free cupcakes with purchase? I vote cupcake. If your feeling really creative, get that local cupcake store to work with you. Cross promotion is the best way to get the local community involved and it’s a win win for both of you! Be creative and festive also by hanging up decorations and playing seasonal music to get people in the holiday spirit. You can also take to social media. Hold Facebook competitions where winners receive prizes that encourage them to come to the store. You’ll not only build your following, but you’ll also get more shoppers in your store.

Sell Small

Everyone’s looking for a great way to save. Selling products that make good gifts makes everyone happy. Put together a small gift package like roll on perfumes, travel sized hair products, lotions, and packets of tea and voila you’ve got a great product you’re customers will love and appreciate. These items can be marketed as great stocking stuffer too! It’s also a great way to get shoppers to sample your products as well, which will encourage them to come back again and again which brings us to our final tip…

Encourage Loyal Customers

Everyone wants to feel like they matter, and you should be treating your loyal customers like VIP. These loyalty programs can be super effective during the holiday season. It can be as simple as sending them a holiday card or giving them a free ornament with purchase. These little things mean a lot to the customer and makes them feel like they get something special when they shop with you. Your employees also deserve a little appreciation. Host a Christmas party or have an employee appreciation night and allow them to bring their friends. Show them how grateful you are for their hard work and maybe they’ll be encouraged to work even harder.

Of course we’ll always be here to provide more ideas but these quick tips should help get you started! What are you waiting for? GO!

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About Grace

Grace is our Production Manager. She received her degree in video production and communications from Ohio University. She is part of the production team which helps to make $LN “fun and cool”. grace.roulston@savelocalnow.com