These days, it’s essential for even brick-and-mortar businesses to have an online presence. As social media is where a lot of people spend time online, it also helps to have a social media presence. But cafe and restaurant owners are chronically time-poor and busy enough trying to keep their business running smoothly day in and day out. How can we possibly find time for this?
Well, Kylie and Philip from Launch Online Solutions (Now Pink Lime Digital) are here to help. They’re the heads of a video and online marketing agency that helps businesses, mostly start-ups, beef up their online presence and audience reach. We spoke with Kylie and Philip to discuss some of their top tips for businesses who want to get online.
Get On Google Maps
The first, freest, most basic thing, is to register your business’s location on Google Maps. Having your business easily searchable on Google Maps is the easiest way to get free online advertising. Oftentimes, travellers and locals alike who’ve got a craving for coffee will search for a place nearby, and Google Maps is one of the most popular apps for this. If your business isn’t registered, then countless potential customers won’t be able to find you. Even if you’re just starting out, Google Maps comes with a ratings and reviews feature that some customers will choose to use, making it the easiest free advertising you can get.
Have The Basics
Going beyond Google Maps, it’s essential to have some level of social media presence. Kylie iterates again and again that Facebook and Instagram are the bare minimum social media essentials. Facebook has the breadth of reach and accessibility for the average consumer, and Instagram, with its focus on images, is a must-have for those in the food industry. People want to see pictures of your beautifully made meals and latte art.
It’s also essential, Kylie emphasizes, to have at least a basic one-page website containing all the relevant information a potential customer might ask for. These days it’s super cheap and easy to create a website, and no complicated embellishments are necessary. Cafes and shops that sell things in-store can get extra benefits from a website, as it becomes another platform on which to sell their products.
Develop Your Online Image
No matter how great you think your business is, customers have a lot of cafes and restaurants to choose from. They won’t necessarily go to your establishment just because you think they should. “It’s about adding value to your customers,” Philip says. Customers ask, “How are you adding value to my life?” Good marketing is all about answering this question to their satisfaction.
But it’s not so simple as just setting up an Instagram account and posting away. As with all marketing channels, it needs to be strategic. First of all, it helps to hire a professional photographer, or at least enlist the help of a talented staff member. The key is to have someone a little bit on the outside, with an eye for good shots, and an ability to create beautiful, authentic photos. Unfortunately, in most cases even the latest iPhone camera simply won’t do.
The next thing is to maintain consistency in your profile. This can range from the colour scheme to selected filters to the order in which posts go live. A unified thematic consistency helps clearly communicate what your business is about and may directly affect the kind of customers who walk in your doors – and who never shows up. This consistency applies across all social media; having a different colour scheme and logo between Instagram and Facebook will only confuse customers and, once again, serve mainly to turn them away.
Shoot Some Videos
Visual media has become plentiful and prominent in the digital age, and video even more so than photographs. It’s the fastest-growing medium of communication, and YouTube is these days one of the leading search engines. In 2020, roughly 80% of content passing through the internet will be video. “If you’re not using video,” Kylie said, “You’re not gonna get seen.” Don’t just post any old video, however: create something that tells a story and connects with the audience. Video benefits even moreso from a professional, or at least access to professional equipment and not a simple phone.
Plan Ahead
This leads us again to the original question: how can I find time for this? Well, the good news is that you don’t need to post weekly, or even monthly. Kylie and Philip recommend planning content out at least three months in advance, as things often change throughout the year, which might make a post planned far in advance odd or inappropriate. It really helps to plan ahead, and take some time out of every month, say, to brainstorm ideas and plan out the posting schedule. It often helps to get the team involved, as they may have some ideas of their own.
Of course, you can always use a service like Pink Lime Digital. Good marketers like Kylie and Philip want the client’s input, so it’s good to have some idea of what you want to communicate about your business.
Social media has only grown since its first inception, and businesses who continue to cast it aside will likely get left behind. Both locally and globally, companies that connect with their customers online often see that engagement translate offline. Whether you hire some marketing experts or do it all in-house, it pays big-time to have a social media presence.
With over 15 years marketing and sales experience, Phil Im has grown some of Australia’s biggest brands in the retail, online and multi-level-marketing industry. He also likes bad 80s rap music but we try not to hold that against him.
Kylie’s 10 year history in Coaching and online branding world means she knows what it takes to build a successful business from scratch. From video snippets to funnel design, Kylie knows how to get your customers attention, fast. You can find out more via their social channels or visit their new website at https://www.launchonlinesolutions.com/
You can also get in touch with Kylie and Philip via email at hello@launchonlinesolutions.com
Kylie and Philip’s Key Takeaways
- Make sure your business is registered on Google Maps – it’s the easiest way to get some free advertising.
- Facebook, Instagram, and a basic one-page website are the bare essentials for a decent online presence.
- When posting on Instagram, be sure to include hashtags – this makes your posts findable by users who aren’t following you, and thus increases your reach.
- You don’t need to post on social media every day, but do it on a regular basis – ideally three times a week – to ensure consistent customer engagement.
- Think before you post: is it consistent with the other posts on my page? Will this communicate a value-add for the customer?
- Video content helps create a story and connect your business with potential customers.
- No time? No problem: schedule posts ahead of time when you can.
- As a local business, you can take advantage of local events as an opportunity to engage with customers and potentially bring more in.
- Don’t do it yourself if you can help it: enlist the help of some professionals, or at least a savvy employee, to put together your social media portfolio.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
