Black Friday in America seems to get bigger every year. Even when violence erupted at certain stores and a reputation for mayhem emerged associated with the experience, lines continued to form around the sides of buildings to get the most incredible deals of the year. Amazon had to act because they didn’t have brick and mortar locations to lure in customers, so they joined in on Cyber Monday, and before you know it, online sales eclipsed even the once untouchable Black Friday numbers. Retail was booming for major brands we all know and love.
It sounded great for everyone… except for small business owners.
“Where does a small business owner fit in between these massive pillars of retail?” The answer emerged in the form of one more holiday: Small Business Saturday. Nestled in-between the madness of Black Friday and the thunderous clicks of a million mouses on Cyber Monday sat a brand new entry into the post-Thanksgiving sales fray. American Express started the movement in 2010, largely to bring attention to its small business cards and credit lines, but also to boost spending on their consumer cards as well. In 2018, the phenomenon drove $18 BILLION in retail spending. The day is clearly a staple in the holiday retail drive and small business owners are thriving.
What makes the day unique is the fact that both brick and mortar retailers can thrive, but so can online stores. Small business doesn’t have rules. There is nothing against having a brick and mortar presence as well as a smart online store to laud your wares. That’s why digital marketing is so key to small businesses. You can use digital marketing to promote your Black Friday sale, your Small Business Saturday sale and then drive sales on your website for Cyber Monday. What an opportunity.
And what a headache.
For the small business owner, it can be overwhelming to think of using digital marketing to your advantage. That means getting a website or updating one. That means getting a Facebook page and posting. It means using systems like Google Ads to promote. It means being creative. And all of that means taking time away from other areas of your business. But if that means more business and sales – it’s all worth it.
Strategy is the biggest piece to think about. Getting started is often the biggest obstacle. Once you know how to set time aside for maintenance and you have a focused strategy to work on, digital marketing doesn’t need to be intimidating. So Company 119 wanted to offer you this Small Business Saturday gift: 5 Digital Marketing Tips for Small Business Saturday.
You don’t need to have Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Linkedin, etc. all at once. Start with one and build. Do some research and see which one makes the most sense for you. If you sell artwork, Instagram might be the best platform because it’s more visual. If you are a B2B business, LinkedIn might put you in touch with the right people. Not every business needs every social platform at once. Each platform has a clear demographic and audience. Build slowly and get proficient with one before you add another.
For a little while, people were proclaiming the death of email, so retailers stopped collecting email addresses of clients with the same vigor with which they had pursued the information prior. Have you heard the “can we add you to our mailing list for great offers” pitch more recently? That’s because, as much as folks wanted to announce the fall of email, it just doesn’t go away. Why? According to WordStream, 86% of business professionals use email, and for every $1 spent on email marketing, the average retailer makes $44 back. It’s a direct way to work with customers and with the tools out there that are available to assist you in creating email journeys, you can personalize the message to catch people at the right point in their journey to deliver the perfect message for conversion! Email is not a dinosaur – it’s more like Godzilla or a dragon. Same species, just way more impact.
When it comes to a website, nothing kills its effectiveness like a poor presentation. Think about it: the worst parts of Disney World are the lines, the crowds, and the inability to do it all in one day. So, Disney is constantly trying to provide things like the FastPass bracelets and Park Hopper passes to make the experience more enjoyable. That’s what makes it worth it. If your website is slow, doesn’t load properly on cell phones, doesn’t have easy to find calls-to-action or contact information, etc., the user can get frustrated. That frustration doesn’t get allocated to just the site, it gets transferred to your business. Now you’ve lost a customer because you didn’t deliver a positive experience. Work with an experienced pro or team to make sure that you are providing the right services and layout to provide an easy and seamless visit for your online users.
Building a website and not including some basic SEO strategy is like putting a luxury hotel in the middle of the ocean and then not telling people how to get there. No matter how great it looks, if no one knows how to get there, it isn’t very effective. SEO basically ensures that if someone wants the goods or services you provide, they’ll be able to find them. Learning about things like keywords, title tags, meta descriptions, backlinks, and page optimization can benefit you because they will create the “map” to get people to your site!
“What could I get done if there were two of me?” we always think to ourselves. Now, there can be two of you! With AI technology, your social media accounts and website can answer questions 24 hours a day and buy you some time to get back to people. AI technology is smart enough to answer the basics – things like store hours, return policies, etc. If a customer needs to talk about more personal situations or has more complex questions then you can always ask for an alert to let you know that the message is waiting, but for those mundane questions that don’t require intense follow-up, you can let the virtual you handle it. This is like hiring a customer service team without the overhead. If you aren’t using AI like chatbots, you are really missing out on a golden opportunity!
Company 119 is proud to celebrate Small Business Saturday! We started out as two friends in the basement of another company’s building with a dream of making digital marketing services accessible to companies of all sizes. We know the stress and the outright fear that you will have along the way on your journey to establish your business. That’s why we are a great choice to help you take your company’s online presence to the next level! We know where you’ve been, and we want to help you get where you are going to be! Contact Company 119 today to talk about digital marketing for your small business.
