Is your online presence working for your business?

by Kelly Weaver, Small Business Development Center Regional Director; published with permission

Much like a physical storefront, we tend to lose sight of our online presence when we are always entering from the ‘back door’.  It’s important to take a customer facing, objective look at the online footprint of your business.  Here’s a few tips for ‘auditing’ your online presence.

Create a consistent look across all platforms. Use the same logos, color schemes, font styles, and ‘voice’.  Create a professional look consistent with your brand.  Use quality pictures of products, people and places that are appropriate.  Be sure all business information is accurate (phone, email, address, website, hours).  Protect your online reputation.  Actively request customer reviews and respond to all (good and bad) with timely, professional responses.  Strive for overall customer ratings (on individual and combined channels) of 4 or more-stars.

Your website is your virtual store for online prospects. Items to review include:

• Your navigation menu, linked text, and buttons make relevant content easy to find.
• Navigation options and contact information are on every page.
• Your product/service offerings are clear and easy to understand and Call to Actions (CTA’s) make it clear what you want visitors to do.
• Social media buttons are included, easy to access, and working.
• Pages look good on mobile devices.
• If applicable, email sign up is available and easy to access.
• Google Analytics is installed.

Social media can be a goldmine for prospecting, lead generation, and referrals.  Check your social media listing/pages for:

• Your profiles “match” – bio and about language is consistent across all social channels.
• Profile and banner images are up-to- date and reflect your brand.
• Call to Actions are visible (“contact us”, “view menu”, etc.)
• All active social channels are linked to your website and vice versa.
• Your top-performing posts are identified and referenced as a guide for future posts.

Google Business Profile is a free advertising tool for any location-based business. It’s important to check the following aspects of your Google Business listing:

• Does your business have more than one listing? (If so, remove the duplicate.)
• Is your business category accurate?
• Are photos current? Do they show exterior and interior of the business? Products/services?
• Does your business description give consumers an idea about your product or service?
• Does your listing include a link to your website and/or online menu?
• Is your business address/service area accurate and precise (is the pin in the right location?)
• Are you adjusting your hours for particular days, like holidays as needed?

Conducting a basic audit of these areas will help you gain a clear idea of which content, feature, or activity to improve on.  Review competitors’ sites for additional insight.  You might be surprised how simple changes can help you better reach and engage your target audience.

Kelly Weaver is the Regional Director of the Small Business Development Center in Aberdeen which offers free, confidential business consulting to start up and existing businesses.  She can be reached at (605) 698-7654 x 144 or kelly@growsd.org.  The Center is hosted by GROW South Dakota.