If you are tired of expensive Yellow Pages ads, and believe that the internet is the way to go, you’re not alone. For years, and for hundreds of thousands of businesses, Yellow Pages was the place to advertise. Unfortunately, those days are gone. Savvy consumers can get much more information from a website than they ever could from bullet-lists in an ad. Consumers are more careful about who they pick and choose to do business with, and they want to see testimonials, read reviews, and evaluate your expertise. Smart business people know this!
But how do you make the advertising leap from the Yellow Pages to the internet?
1. Optimize Your Website – Organic search results are the #1 best way to get traffic to your site. You might think that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is too expensive. But it can be far less expensive than the Yellow Pages, and the return on your investment will far outweigh your Yellow Pages ad. If you’re not ready to commit, there are some basic things you can do to dramatically improve a site’s effectiveness, like adding meta tags, alt tags, and sitemaps. You can add these yourself using our content manager, SiteMechanic or call us at 619-546-0253 and we’ll do it for you.
2. Get a Pay Per Click Campaign – PPC campaigns can boost traffic to your site immediately without the wait often associated with traditional SEO methods.
3. Get Social and Make Connections – Set up shop on some social networking sites like LinkedIn.com, Facebook.com, Merchant Circle.com and Kudzu.com. Network your social profile with others. Start with friends, family, colleagues, and current customers. These sites are usually free and put you in front of potential clients with very little work.
4. Start a Blog – A blog is important because it’s search engine food and it gives visitors a reason to keep coming back. Be sure to update your blog at least once a week. Link your blog to your social networks so all your friends get notified of your news. This helps you keep in touch, and can start a viral effect so your friends will forward your information to their network.
With a little planning, you can quit advertising the the Yellow Pages and still be confident that potential clients will still find you. Contact us to help you setup an internet marketing plan that’s right for you and your budget.
About the author: Jeune Ortiz is VP of Marketing and Creative Director at future-ink. With more than 20 years of experience in graphic design and marketing, Jeune brings extensive knowledge and creativity to each website and internet marketing solution to grow your business.
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