Happy June!

Hopefully everyone is enjoying the transition of seasons like I am.  It's been awhile since I have been able to sit and write an entire (cohesive) blog post, but I'm back and ready to keep at it.

This month, the focus is ensuring your branding and web presence is up to date and concise. 

First up, your business growth checklist,

1.  Do you have strong brand identity?

Your website needs to look like your business.  Brand colors, tag lines, and a professional brand logo are all elements to create a strong brand identity.  Your business needs to be clear or customers will just move on to the next.  These days, customers are looking for polished brands that align with their likes and identity.  Stay uniform!

2. Is your website current?

Take some time to go through every page of your website.  Is all the information up to date? Make all necessary changes.  Updating your website also helps with your Google search presence. Google loves a website update, so do often to keep your listing towards the top! 

3. Are you asking your customers for reviews? 

If you don't ask, they most likely won't leave them, and what's the harm of asking?  If someone had a great experience, ask for a review!  Bonus points for making it easy for your customer, like QR code cards to scan or even a simple text to their phone with a link.

4. Are you promoting your social media?

Ensure your customers know that you have social media and encourage them to interact with you there.

5. Do you have a blog?

Blogging is a great way to not only keep your website updated, but can also bring in potential customers for conversation.  Blog posts are a great place to share your expertise ensuring customers that you are up to the job!

Need help with maintaining a updating your branding or maintaining web presence? Click on my contact form and send me a message!  I would love to hear how I can help you, and your small business!

Why?

Why would you want to show off your 5 star reviews for your business? Because it can help convert possible customers into new customers!  Reviews don't just belong on your Google or Facebook page, they should make an appearance on your website too!  Below are a few quick tips to get the most out of your 5 star reviews!

Where should I put reviews on my website?

Most people are not going to click through your entire website, so having a dedicated page of reviews is probably not the most effective option.  Placing reviews on each page is a great way to show potential customers that your business is highly rated.  Do you have a great review that mentions your incredible customer service? Place it on your "About Us" page!  A good review about money well spent? Place that on your "Investment" or "Prices" page to show that your business is worth the pricing you have spent so much time perfecting.  Placing reviews strategically makes them more effective at attracting the right customers than if they are all placed on a "Testimonials" page.

Clean them up!

No one wants to read a rambling review paragraph, so if you need to, pare down the words to only the most important parts.  Then the review will make more of a statement on your website.

Bonus tip

Video marketing is an effective tool.  If you have a customer that doesn't mind saying a few great things about your business on camera, make a short video!  

Looking for more reviews for your business? Check out my blog post Increasing your Reviews 

This month's post is all about how to increase your Google and Facebook reviews.

First, let's start with "Why do I need Google & Facebook reviews?"  Reviews are incredibly important in this day and age with the many, many choices potential customers are faced with online.  A good review can influence one, or many people to try your business over another.  But, a negative review can be a way for your business to showcase it's customer service, always respond to negative reviews in a clear, concise way, and do what you can to make it right.

Businesses with more reviews perform better on searches.  The more consistent reviews you have, the higher up in search results you will land.

How to increase the number of reviews

• Ensure customers can leave a review.  Do you have a Google my Business page? Do you have a Facebook business page? You should claim these pages if you haven't and brand them to match your business.  This is also a great opportunity to update your business pages if you have them, but haven't done anything with them in awhile. Upload new photos, new graphics, and other information to invite more reviews.

• Have lots of Google reviews? Expand your reviewability!  Ask customers to review you on other sites such as Facebook, Yelp, Rate A Biz, or any other review site.  This also will help with SEO.

• Use QR codes to get to review pages quickly.  Place marketing throughout your business and even give out cards with QR codes to encourage customers to write a review.  The easier it is for them to access, the more likely they are to leave a review.

• Offer a review worthy service.  All the marketing in the world cannot replace offering great service that your customers want to talk about.  So take care of your customer, and they will take care of you!

What steps are you going to take to increase your business reviews?  Let me know what's worked for you in the comments below!

Instagram reels are a new-ish feature for Instagram that can be used to grow your social media brand.

What is a Reel?

Reels are a new way for Instagram users to create short, informative or funny videos.  Many users add music or sound clips overtop, to get across the purpose of the video.  Users can also browse relevant Reels via a tab on their Instagram app.  With the success of Tik Tok, Instagram has created its own version, which is how Reels was born!

Why use Reels as a business owner?

Video marketing is a very powerful tool for business owners, and now with Reels, you can easily create your own!  

Reel ideas for the small business owner

1. Share Educational Content

You are an expert in your field, why not take the time to make a quick 15 second video to share something informative for your audience?

2. Share Inspirational Content

Do you have a client that has found success with your business? Share their story!  Remember to focus on the after, this is where your business shines.

3. Showcase your Product

Share some of your products, how to use them, and what they do.

4. Showcase your Personality

There are tons of silly ideas on Reels, how can you relate something popular or funny to your business?  This kind of Reel can show that your business is fun and personable!

And there you have it, using Reels to grow your business can be fun and effective!