Old City Web Services

Social Media Do’s and Don’ts

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Do have good habbits when you’re a business on social media.

Social media has turned into a major marketing asset for small businesses, but that doesn’t mean that each business is getting the most out of it. In fact, businesses with bad social media habits may be losing more followers than they realize.

Examples of bad social media etiquette.

Imagine that you are scrolling through Instagram and notice the business profile for your doctor’s office. You go to their page to follow them but notice that many of their posts are written in slang and promote conflicting personal beliefs. Would you still choose to see this physician?

Or, imagine you’re on Facebook searching for a new seafood restaurant to try and you come across one named The Seafood Place. You check out a few of their posts and browse the photos of their entrees and think you’ve hit the jackpot. You then decide to read a few Facebook reviews. After reading the review in Figure 1,  you may decide not to dine there.

So, what do these two examples have in common? They give clients and potential clients interesting insight into the beliefs of the company – and not in the positive way that a Mission Statement or About Us Page does.

In today’s day in age, typing a message over a social media platform is sometimes more meaningful than saying it in person. That’s why it’s so important to have the very best social media habits when you’re representing your business. It’s like the new saying goes, “Say it forget it, write it regret it.”

Image contains a screen shot of a bad review on Facebook.

Figure 1

Here are a few more tips for businesses on social media:

  • Use free content writing tools to format your posts to perfection and avoid mispellings or pixelated images.
  • Never ask too much of your followers. For example, if every post includes a task (“Go here”, “Click this link”, or “Tell us in the comments”) your followers will become exhausted.
  • Use the statistics provided by each social media platform to find out what time of day your followers are on it the most. Then, be sure to post during those times.
  • Prioritize your platforms. Put more energy into the platforms you get the most from.
  • Don’t post for everyone, instead post for your ideal customer.

Check out our Social Media Info Graphic

We hope you’ve enjoyed this blog. If your interesting in learning more about the do’s and don’ts for businesses on social media, download our infographic by clicking the button below.

Do’s and Don’ts >>>

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Free Tools for Content Writing

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Wait a minute… What is content?

Content is the text, images, video, graphics, as well as every additional element that isn’t part of a design. So, if you have a website, brochure, business card, social media platform, etc., then content writing should be important to you. After all, websites, pamphlets, and other marketing materials tend to have more written content than the other types of content.

We offer content writing services and can help you cross off tasks on your to-do list by creating your social media posts, weekly blogs, marketing emails, or the content for your site. Don’t hesitate to ask us if you have questions about our content writing services or the free tools for content writing below! Schedule a free consultation by clicking the button below or call us at 904-867-4112.

Schedule A Free Consultation

Free Tools for Content Writing on A Budget

We understand that small businesses have a long list of expenses. While one year, written content might be at the forefront of your mind, the next year your budget may not permit it. Therefore, we’ve comprised a list of free tools for content writing. This way your content won’t suffer if you can’t hire a professional just yet.

content-writing

You really should hire a professional.

The whole idea of marketing materials is to persuade a consumer to do business with your company. So, your content should be persuasive and convey a message. The best way to guarantee this is to hire a firm like Old City Web Services to create your website, social media posts, online blogs, etc.

A content writer ensures your content speaks to your business’ audience. The writer will make sure your content is purposeful, relevant, and structurally sound so that your reader easily flows through the text. You know how your business functions and may just not be able to put it into words.

When we design websites we encourage our clients to hire us for content writing as well. The last thing we want is for our clients to be stressed about misspellings or if their writing sounds good. In fact, sometimes when clients write their own content it delays the launch of their website because they don’t have enough time to write it or they have a difficult time putting the words on paper. Since we want our clients to have a stress-free experience with their new website, we figure it’s easier for us to write their content for them! After all, we’re sure you’d rather be running your business and doing what you love than writing content.

You really should hire a professional.

If you aren’t ready to hire a content writer, the tools above will help you write your best content yet! But when you are ready, we can help you! We use tools like these and others to write and format content for our clients. You can get in touch with us by clicking the button below or calling us at 904-867-4112.

Schedule A Free Consultation

Mission Statement

The mission at Old City Web Services is to navigate the world of web design, web development, and advertising for our clients so that they can focus on what they do best – running their business! Our business intentions go beyond the metrics of graphics, coding, and SEO. Located on Florida’s First Coast, we run a personable home front service and consider our relationship with our clients as a partnership in their success.

Please share and re-post this blog. Disclaimer: Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information on Old City Web Services Blog.

Grow Your Business: Get the Message Out

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There are many ways to grow your business but one of the most effective ways is by getting your message out. If you’re having a sale, changing your business hours, or have a new product, how will your customers find out if you don’t inform them? Who else will let them know? Having the line of communication open between you and customers is vital when growing your business. An image of text that reads "How will you get the message out to customers?"

Contrary to popular belief, a complicated marketing strategy or time-consuming plan isn’t necessary to stay in touch with existing or potential customers. In fact, advertisements, emails, site updates, and social media posts are straight-forward cost-effective methods of communication. Better yet, we can ensure the process stays simple by doing the work for you. You provide the content and we’ll get your message out!

Advertising

Just think. If online ads weren’t a fantastic way to convey a message, would renowned brands like Hershey’s and Marriott still do it?

Since many online advertising contracts last for months or even years, they are a popular approach for businesses that want to stay in touch with customers on a long-term basis. Additionally, most ads on OldCity.com allow for a few lines of text as well as images, unlike the standard image-only ads. This allows for ample opportunity for you to share information with your customers.

Read: FAQ About Advertising on OldCity.com

What We Do

  • Design and optimize your advertisement with your message
  • Optimize the placement of your advertisement
  • Send you monthly statistics

Your message will reach:

  • Potential Customers
  • Users browsing that Page

Email Marketing

Sending an email to a customer is like knocking on their door and saying, “Hello, we thought it was important that you know…”

Get your message out in a timely fashion and make a statement by sending the message right to their inbox. Similar to advertising, emails allow you to share a few lines of text along with images without overwhelming customers.  All in all, a friendly email is a positive experience for both the sender and the receiver – especially if it contains critical information. However, if you’re looking to relay a more complicated message like describing a product, a site update is a better option.

Read: 6 Quick Tips About Emails

What We Do

  • Design and optimize your message
  • Manage your campaigns and contacts
  • Send you statistics

Your message will reach:

  • Existing Customers
  • People who have signed up to receive emails

Site Updates

Customers are going to your site to find out more about your business. Get the message out and update it with news.

Site updates are one of the most effective ways to get your message out especially for businesses that already have a strong customer base. Repeat customers and even ideal customers are more likely to travel to your website than to come across an advertisement by chance, signup to receive emails, or follow you on social media.

In reality, your site should be updated with any message you share through a different outlet. Most of the time, an advertisement, email, or social media post is created with the intention of funneling the customer back to the website; in these cases, the business’ website is often linked to the marketing piece.

Read: 5 Seasonal Updates Your Website Needs

What We Do

  • Quickly and efficiently add your message to your website

Your message will reach:

  • Existing Customers
  • Potential Customers
  • Users browsing your site

Social Media

The cool thing about social media? Millions of your potential customers use it every day.

Social media posts are great for sending frequent updates. Sharing blogs via a link, talking about products, and even a simple brand awareness message is great content for social media. However, similar to advertisements and emails, complicated messages aren’t great for this outlet. Long and in-depth posts might get ignored since most people on social media scroll down the page and only stop when they see a post of interest.

Read: Free Social Media Tips

What We Do

  • Optimize an appealing post with your message
  • Add searchable keywords
  • Optional: define the audience for maximum exposure
  • Send you statistics

Your message will reach:

  • Existing Customers
  • Hundreds of Potential Customers

Advertisements, emails, site updates, and social media posts are easy and cost-effective ways to get your message out! It’s never too late to initiate effective communication between you and your customers. Let’s schedule a time to get your message out, call us at 904-867-4112 or fill out the form below.

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Mission Statement

Our mission at Old City Web Services is to navigate the world of web design, web development, and advertising for our clients so that they can focus on what they do best – running their business! Our business intentions go beyond the metrics of graphics, coding, and SEO. Located on Florida’s First Coast, we run a personable homefront service and consider our relationship with our clients as a partnership in their success.

Please share and re-post this blog. Disclaimer: Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information on Old City Web Services Blog.

3 Cool Tips for Facebook Business Pages

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Facebook for businesses is a proven way to get your brand noticed by an array of audiences! From CTA (call to action) buttons to advertising options, the tools and resources provided by the social media platform are endless! But, to really optimize your presence and spice up your strategy, consider these three cool tips for Facebook - that you may not know about!

Keep track of your competitor’s activity with “Pages to Watch”.

Arguably so, Pages to Watch is one of Facebook's top analytic tools. If your Page has 100 to 10,000 followers, it allows you to track the progress of up to 100 pages. With information like the number of engagements a Page received in a week and what percentage their likes are up by, the Pages to Watch tool allows you to compare your Page to other Pages even if you don't follow them!

A screenshot of Facebook insight tool, Pages to Watch.

A screenshot of Facebook's Insight tool, Pages to Watch.

This can be extremely useful when you're thinking about your Facebook strategy. You can follow Pages in your industry and measure their success week by week. If they prove to be successful, it may be worth checking out their page to see what they're doing right! In the same respect, you can see which Pages are doing poorly and check out their Page as an example of what not to do.

To add to and find your Pages to Watch section, click the Insights tab on the top of your Page and scroll to the bottom.

Turn your cover photo into a slideshow.

Most businesses get traffic coming from their posts' in the News Feed and not from their actual Facebook Page. However, you still need to optimize your Page for the users who are visiting it. One sure way to do this is by adding a slideshow to your cover photo. It allows you the opportunity to show your audience several aspects of your business. For example, sightseeing tours and charters might find it useful to showcase several tours here; a restaurant may find it a great place to show off their specials of the week or a few well-known dishes; boutiques and gift shops may find this as a great space to promote several sales or campaigns they are running; realtors could find displaying several properties here as beneficial! With a recommended image size of 851 pixels wide by 315 pixels tall, this is the most prominent area on your Facebook Page and is sure to draw the eye of visitors!

Why not give them more to look at?

News Feed Targeting can help you target your ideal customers.


Facebook Business Page options allow you to target specific audiences for each of your posts! Similar to Ads Manager, Facebook allows you to narrow down an audience by their interests, language, age, gender, and even their relationship status and education level! By segmenting individual page posts with these criteria, you can concentrate on the audience you think will benefit most from your post.

Create unique audiences by going to the options at the bottom of each post. Click on the Public tab and three options will appear under it: Public, Restricted Audience, and News Feed Targeting. If News Feed Targeting doesn’t appear, you need to activate this setting for your page. Click the Settings tab in the top right corner of your Page; next, click the General tab; click the Edit tab next to Audience Optimization for Posts; check the box that says, “Allow preferred audience selection and the ability to restrict the audience for your post.”; click the Save Changes tab.

A screen shot of Facebook settings.

A screenshot of General Facebook settings.

We hope you've found these three tips for Facebook useful! If you want more tips or have a follow-up question, send us an email!

Mission Statement

Our mission at Old City Web Services is to navigate the world of web design, web development, and advertising for our clients so that they can focus on what they do best – running their business! Our business intentions go beyond the metrics of graphics, coding, and SEO. Located on Florida’s First Coast, we run a personable home front service and consider our relationship with our clients as a partnership in their success. If you are looking to increase your business’ visibility give us a call at 904-867-4112 or contact us today.

Sharing and re-posting this blog is encouraged. Please credit Old City Web Services when sharing. Photo credits: OldCityWebServices, Canva. Disclaimer: Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information on Old City Web Services Blog.

5 Small Business Tools To Use In 2018

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New Year’s Eve is a little over two weeks away, prompting small businesses to take a look at their business strategy. This year, make a New Year resolution for your business that is accomplishable and important! Commit to planning ahead with these small business tools.

Sale and Promotion Tools

In a city like St. Augustine, small businesses don’t necessarily need to create sales or promotions because of the large number of tourists, snowbirds, and travelers constantly passing through. However, who doesn't aim to enhance their business each year? Hypothesis: If a (small) business has few promotions and sales, then a customer will shop where there are more promotions and sales (corporation.)

Promotions and sales are important, but so are promoting your sales and promotions. Use these small business tools to plan your future promotions.

  1. Use a Customer Information Sheet. Gathering customer information is crucial. Currently, email marketing is a huge part of many business strategies. In fact, here are 10 eye-opening statistics by Constant Contact to back that up. One shocking statistic is that 61 percent of consumers enjoy receiving promotional emails weekly. However, text messaging (SMS) marketing is becoming increasingly popular as well, because it is easy, fast, and reliable. Download and print our PDF file, Customer Information Sheet, located at the beginning of this paragraph. Place it by your register and have employees ask customers for their information.
  2. Canva is a free graphic design tool that is used by professional designers and everyday people. They have numerous easy-to-use templates including a Sale Flyer template. Use Canva to create compelling flyers, coupons, and point of purchase material.

Social Media Tools

A few of St. Augustine’s small businesses have a strong social media presence like The St. Augustine Distillery, The Surf Station, The Hyppo, and Old City Web Services very own OldCity. Social media is a fickle thing, but the St. Augustine community is loyal to their small businesses. Therefore, with a little dedication and extra planning, you too can benefit from utilizing social media platforms.

  1. HootSuite is a social media management tool. They offer a free plan which allows you to schedule up to 30 posts in advance and manage up to three social media accounts.
  2. Trends Map is free and tells you what is trending on Twitter, in a specific area at that moment.
  3. Google Trends will give you insight into what is trending in your area and nationwide. Type in your topic of choice, and Google will tell you how many times that phrase or word was entered into the search engine. Use the most popular search-terms in planning your social media posts. Google Trends is free to use.

Check out these unbelievable social media facts.

Google Trends

In the photo above, Google compares the search terms "Jacksonville" and "Orlando." Google scales the terms based on the highest amount of times they were ever searched. For example, if during Biketoberfest people searched the word Orlando more times than ever before, that is what the results for search term Orlando will be compared to.

Big Box Stores vs. Small Businesses

Luckily, St. Augustine’s community of residents and visitors are predominantly loyal to small businesses. However, with many more large companies moving into St. Augustine in 2018 and the years to come, will loyalty bring home the bacon? Let’s not find out.

A major difference between the marketing strategy of a large corporation and that of a small business is that corporations have entire teams dedicated to each segment of their business plan. Behind the scenes of a corporation are crews focused on enhancing sales and promotions and a social media strategy. But with the small business tools we share in this article, you won't need dozens of teams to beat out the large corporations.

Old City Web ServicesSocial media can scale businesses of all sizes. Therefore, it is important you put in effort towards learning how to manipulate your platforms for your business. Although each outlet has essentially the same purpose, different people (depending on their age, hobby, income, sex) use different platforms. Achieve a better social media presence by altering your strategy for each outlet.

Mission Statement

Our mission at Old City Web Services is to navigate the world of web design, web development, and advertising for our clients so that they can focus on what they do best – running their business! Our business intentions go beyond the metrics of graphics, coding, and SEO. Located on Florida’s First Coast, we run a personable home front service and consider our relationship with our clients as a partnership in their success. If you are looking to increase your business’ visibility give us a call at 904-867-4112 or contact us today.

Sharing and re-posting this blog is encouraged. Please credit Old City Web Services when sharing.
Disclaimer: Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information on Old City Web Services Blog.

Use Social Media for your Holiday Campaign

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Holiday Social Media Campaign

Plan your Holiday Social Media Campaign for Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday.

Kick-start Your Holiday Social Media Campaign on Facebook

A Facebook event is the perfect way to spread the word about your campaign.

First, create an event for your Black Friday sale, Cyber Monday sale and Small Business Saturday. The event feature in Facebook provides every tool you need to spread accurate information to your audience; time, location, and description of the promotion. Whether you are a historic bed and breakfast or trendy boutique you should create a catchy title.

Holiday Social Media Campaign

Attract attention with a Facebook contest.

Get your Facebook page exposure by getting it more likes, views, and interaction with a Facebook contest. Although they don't necessarily enhance a social media campaign they do, in fact, reinforce your campaign efforts because they bring your company to the attention of the public.

Small businesses rarely participate in Facebook contests. However, contrary to popular belief, they are straightforward and easy to manage. Click here, to learn more about contests.

Follow-Up with Twitter

Hashtags

Promote your Facebook event on Twitter and decide which hashtags to use throughout your holiday social media campaign. It is important that hashtags stay the same during campaign tweets. Also, keep in mind, "tweets with one hashtag are 69% more likely to be retweeted than those with two" according to Taylor Webster, of Postcron.

Poll on Twitter

Polls are easy for followers to participate in and encourage engagement. But remember to gear your query towards your social media campaign. Example: "What will you buy your Uncle for Christmas? A) Our Rabbit foot, B) Our Custom Salt/Pepper shakers, C) Our Brand Steering wheel cover."

Mentions and Memes

Obviously, the mention of a fellow business doubles your audience because their followers see the tweet as well. But, don't overdo it and be sure it is a business you have a relationship with.

On the other hand, memes can't be overdone. In fact, you can take comfort in the fact your audience appreciates the entertainment - unless you are posting dozens of memes daily. Who makes up the majority of your clientele? Use that as a guideline for humor.

Post on Instagram

Use Stories to entice shoppers during your campaign

Since your campaign information is out on Facebook and Twitter, use stories to grab the attention of your audience because it will further focus your audiences' attention. Whether your campaign is for a Black Friday sale, or Small Business Saturday shopping, Stories offer a sneak peek at the venue and goodies they have to look forward to.

Add a Poll

We talked about the 3 new social media updates to know about a few weeks ago and the Instagram poll feature, added to the Stories section, is one of those new updates. Every call-to-action method is just as important as the next. Therefore each available method should be utilized to maximize your campaign success and even though the poll is limited to a two-answer query, it is necessary.

Photo quality is key to a successful social media campaign

Instagram is essential to your holiday social media campaign, but it will do more harm than good if you do not share quality photos. Followers get a visual of your product that leaves a lasting impression. Therefore, if a photo is blurry or includes unkeen elements; dirt, holes, garbage, or random items, it is better to not post at all. Audiences understand that quality photos are taken of quality products. Consequently, it is a good idea to use appealing backdrops and props, sharp photography and a clear message when posting.

P.S. Unlike Twitter, Instagram users love hashtags so add as many as you'd like. Remember to keep them on topic with your campaign. Include the campaign hashtags you use on Twitter.

In conclusion, it is important to stay consistent while planning your holiday social media campaign. Therefore it is important to post frequently and stick with your theme! But, if you are having difficulties planning a campaign yourself, give us a call.

Shop St. Augustine

Shop local. Shop St. Augustine.

To support the shop local movement, we have created the Shop St. Augustine campaign. Whether you are a business owner or are shopping, eating, playing, or staying in St. Augustine, using #ShopStAugustine connects you with other businesses in town and helps show everyone that St. Augustine is open for business.

 

A slim and focused website beats a cluttered website every time. More is not always better. We have seen first-hand businesses make the mistake of including irrelevant information to their website. The website eventually loses its focus and ceases to be an effective marketing tool. You pay a lot of money in SEO and other marketing tools to get customers to your website - but there is little to no action from it. Remember you have a very brief window of opportunity to capture a customer. Your website’s visitor should immediately understand what your company does and how that benefits them. Failure to do this will simply result in the visitor going to your competitor. Take an honest look at your website. It may be time for a little de-cluttering and re-focusing. We can help!

Mission Statement

Our mission at Old City Web Services is to navigate the world of web design, web development, and advertising for our clients so that they can focus on what they do best – running their business! Our business intentions go beyond the metrics of graphics, coding, and SEO. Located on Florida’s First Coast, we run a personable home front service and consider our relationship with our clients as a partnership in their success. If you are looking to increase your business’ visibility give us a call at 904-867-4112 or contact us today.

Sharing and re-posting this blog is encouraged. Please credit Old City Web Services when sharing.
Disclaimer: Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information on Old City Web Services Blog.
Photo credits: Old City Web Services

3 Social Media Updates to Know About

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Social media platforms are essential to most marketing strategies. These three social media updates on Twitter, Instagram, and Hootsuite will easily connect you with customers, help you obtain feedback, and spread product awareness.

Instagram, Social Media UpgradesInstagram Adds Poll Feature

On October 3rd, Instagram added new stickers in the Stories section of the app that enable you to poll followers. The polls are limited to a two-answer query. But, there is a catch, the polls expire with your Story which lasts 24 hours.

Twitter also has a polling feature that many businesses use to collect feedback and essentially create happy customers. Social media updates made to Instagram, can be used in the same way and will give you a better idea of where you stand when it comes to the relevancy of your product or business. For example, if you are a bakery you can ask something like, "Do you like red velvet cake?" Based on the answers of your followers, you'll know whether to make dozens of red velvet cupcakes, or just a few!

Social Media Updates to Hootsuite

On October 10th, Hootsuite increased the number of posts a free user can schedule from ten to thirty! This is a game changer for businesses who utilize the social media management tool. Instead of buying an expensive package, they have access to schedule more posts in advance.

Hootsuite is constantly making social media updates. With their newest addition you can send more bulk messages, plan more campaigns, and keep your social media sites more organized. Instead of creating compelling messages on a day to day basis, spend your spare time interacting with followers by re-tweeting, re-posting, and liking or sharing posts.

Hootsuite, Social Media Upgrades

Hootsuite now alerts you to how many posts you have scheduled and available.

Twitter Updates Character Count

On September 26th, Twitter announced that a small group of users are experimenting with a larger character count per tweet. The social media platform believes users will appreciate the extra text room. If this is true, you can expect the limit to double from the current 140 characters to 280 characters.

As a business owner using media sites like Twitter is imperative for staying relevant and interacting with your customers. An increased character count means there is no need for sacrificing grammar or the integrity of a post. Basically, this social media update will allow businesses to better promote products, convey messages, and add more hashtags!

Twitter, Social Media Upgrades

"...languages like Japanese, Korean, and Chinese you can convey about double the amount of information in one character as you can in many other languages, like English, Spanish, Portuguese, or French." - Aliza Rosen, Twitter Employee, Chart by Twitter

Old City Web ServicesBusinesses that use blogs or social media platforms to channel their audience should also utilize an editorial calendar. Editorial calendars allow you to organize your media strategy, manage projects, plan bulk campaigns, and stay relevant! A visual record of content is also very useful when comparing efforts that have been successful to those that have not. Don't know how to get started? No worries, we can help!

 

Our mission at Old City Web Services is to navigate the world of web design, web development, and advertising for our clients so they can focus on what they do best - running their business! Our business intentions go beyond the metrics of graphics, coding, and SEO. We run a personable home front service located on Florida's First Coast and consider our relationship with our clients as a partnership in their success. If you are looking to increase your business’ visibility give us a call at 904-867-4112 or contact us today.

Sharing and re-posting this blog is encouraged. Please credit Old City Web Services when sharing.
Disclaimer: Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information on Old City Web Services Blog.
Photo credits: Old City Web Services, Twitter

Balance on Social Media

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tips-success-Natalie

Social media accounts - they're not just a way to stay connected in our personal lives, but also in our professional lives. All too often I see companies who are missing out on opportunities because they don't invest enough time building their social media presence. Social media isn't just some extra task to hand off to an intern. It requires time, effort, and strategy to get it right.
Tips for effective social media management:
  • Define your audience.
  • Determine which platforms will effectively reach your audience.
    • You don't have to be on every platform.
  • Come up with a content creation strategy.
    • What types of content to post
    • What times are best to post
  • Don't post just to post. Quality is more important than quantity. Post with a purpose. Each post should benefit your audience.
  • Post original content. It shows you are a source of information.
  • Don't post the work of others without giving credit. This is the same thing as stealing and can have legal repercussions. Give credit where credit is due!
  • Have fun and show personality! Social media is all about community and genuine connection. Your audience wants to see the real you.
If your social media presence could use some improvement, contact us to see how we can help!
Check back with us soon for more professional input!

How to Compete with Large Companies

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Adobe Spark(54)

If you own a small business, you may think that your only competition is fellow small businesses. That couldn't be further from the truth. These days, there are so many options for consumers. This means customers can afford to be picky and shop around. Chances are, there are other businesses doing what you do within a short drive. Customers will most likely read reviews and check out your website or social media before stepping foot in your store.

If people are going to give you their business, they want to know that they're making the best choice. And with large corporations out there who obviously have a great marketing plan and national and international followings, this can be intimidating. But it doesn't have to be.

So, how do you stand out and prove you're their best choice?

Design and Branding

You don't have to have a multi-million dollar budget to make a big impact. It isn't about how much money you spend but how you spend it. It's about making your budget work for you and working with the right team to help guide you to success. Investing in a quality logo and clean website can put you on the same level as the sizeable companies you're competing with. When it comes to who to give their business to, first impressions could not matter more. A professional looking brand builds trust with a consumer. They make the correlation between quality of brand and quality of product or service. If your brand isn't quite up to the level of your competition, they might associate that feeling with what you have to offer.

Advertising

So, maybe you don't have a nationwide following - that's ok. Once again, it's not about how much money you spend but about where and how you spend it. Effective advertising is all about knowing who your target audience is and investing in ways that will get their attention. Are you a hotspot for tourists? Then it might be a great idea to place advertisements in city maps and hotel rack cards. Facebook advertising is also a handy tool that allows you to set your own budget, how long you'd like your ad to run, and the exact audience you'd like to target. There is no concrete way to advertise. It all depends on your business and your mission.

Social Media

Social media is one of the easiest ways to get on top of your game with your customers. While you can do paid advertising on social media, there are many ways to utilize the free services available to your advantage. Social media really allows you to be involved in your community, connect and build relationships. Anyone can advertise a business, but it takes effort to do it effectively. Today's consumers are focused on connections and authenticity.

  • Show some behind-the-scenes shots of what it takes to make your business run.
  • Introduce customers to your team members.
  • Do a customer appreciation spotlight.
  • Ask for your customer's input on products and services.

As a small business, you have the advantage of knowing your customers and being involved on a daily basis. Use that to your full advantage.

Involvement with community/target audience

One of the best ways to market your business in your community is to partner up with other businesses. If you have a chocolate shop, maybe pair up with a wine bar for a chocolate and wine tasting event. If you have a bakery, talk to local coffee shops to see if you can sell some of your baked goods at their shop and, in return, sell their coffee at your shop. Partnering with area businesses is a great way to get your name out there, network with other entrepreneurs, and have customers associate your name with other reputable companies. It's a win-win.

At Old City Web Services, our mission is to help our clients succeed and stand out. We offer comprehensive design and development services that allow our customers' businesses to live up to their full potential. Once we've helped build your brand, we offer marketing services as well. We can put together a unique marketing plan just for your business. Contact us today for a free consultation and let us show you how we can help your business succeed!

5 Ways to Maintain a Good Online Reputation

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5 Ways to Maintain a Good Online Reputation

In a time when technology is in every facet of our lives, your business' online reputation means just as much, if not more, than the impression you make in person. Think about it. Before you go somewhere or try out a new product, what's one of the first things you do? You do an online search. And if that search has positive results, you're more likely to try that product, visit that store or eat at that restaurant, right? You should focus just as much time marketing your business online as you do in other areas of your advertising strategy.

Here are five things to keep in mind when you're trying to cultivate an online presence that makes others take note:

1. Sustain cohesion among platforms

Repetition across all platforms reinforces who you are as a company. This means your information should be up-to-date and accurate. Take the time to go through your website, social media accounts, and listings and see what information needs updating or improved. A uniform look across your platforms will increase your professionalism among consumers. Your current logo should be represented across all facets of your online presence. People are visual, and seeing your logo in multiple places will keep you on their mind.

2. Keep things current

Nothing says you're stuck in the past like a dated website or logo. Although people may be used to seeing the designs you came up with 10 years ago, that doesn't mean new customers will be all that comfortable with it. People judge your business from the first time they click on your home page. If you have a modern look, you are sending the message that you are current and knowledgeable about what is going on in your industry and can tackle whatever comes your way. Bringing new life to an old logo, adding a modern touch to your website, or revamping the copy on your website can make a big difference in the eye of the consumer and build trust between you and your audience.

3. Utilize online reviews

Reviews are useful to have for multiple reasons. First of all, they increase your search engine optimization which will bring more people to your website. Good, quality reviews help persuade consumers to invest in your business. If people are backing your services up with testimonials, new customers are more likely to trust you and give you their business.

4. Take advantage of online listings and directories

Although having a website and social media accounts are great tools to use to get your name out there, you also need to make sure that you are taking advantage of online listings. You should be listed on no less than 5 listings to effectively spread company awareness. Some examples are Bing, Google, Yahoo!, Yelp, and the Yellow Pages. Being a part of these listings increases your SEO which will bring more customers to your site. It also builds your name and accreditation within your field.

5. Make sure your site is mobile friendly

As the capabilities of mobile devices are increasing, more people are choosing to go to their smartphones versus their laptops for information. If people can do everything they need to do on their phone, shouldn't checking your website be one of them? Giving customers the option of browsing your site on their phones allows for one more way for you to get through to them. It is important to know what percent of people are viewing your site on a desktop, mobile devices, and tablets. A good way to track these numbers is by using Google Analytics, a service that tracks and reports website traffic. This is an invaluable tool when it comes to marketing and getting the most out of your website. If you need help getting started with Google Analytics, our team can help get you set up as well as teach you how to read your analytics reports.

Could your online presence use an update? Contact our team, and we would be happy to talk with you about ways we can help improve your overall online experience.

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We are Old City Web Services. We make it easy for small businesses to thrive online. Whether you need a professional website, help attracting more customers, or a fresh new look for your brand, we’ve got you covered. With over 20 years of experience, we specialize in simple, affordable solutions that work for businesses like yours. Let us handle the tech so you can focus on what you do best—running your business.

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