Get to know Launch Kit's playbook for marketing your Grand Rapids, Michigan, small business via branding, website design, photo/video content, and social media management.
So, you have a small business and want to improve your marketing. Where do you begin?
First, it's great to hear you are passionate about sharing your message and getting your name out there. At Launch Kit, we believe marketing is the opportunity to share your story.
This article is a playbook for building your small business's online presence in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Before we begin building your online presence, we need to make sure we have a solid foundation. Specifically, we need to identify our business's values, mission, and vision. AKA, figure out who we are. We also need to be crystal clear on who our ideal customer is. In our Brand Design process at Launch Kit, we name this persona and build a character around them. Based on who we are and our ideal customer, we need an identity (logo, color, font) that resonates with that ideal customer.
Action Items:
With our branding elements in place, it's time to establish our online home base with a website. If the internet were a spider web, your website would sit at the center. All roads lead back to the website.
On your business website, we need to answer all the essential questions that prospective customers are looking for. So if you're in the home service industry, we should outline exactly what services your company can be hired for. If you're in food and beverage, make it clear whether or not you take reservations. Someone should be able to visit your website and determine if your business is an ideal fit for their need without having to jump through any hoops. With Launch Kit's website program, we get to know your business, its goals, capabilities and revenue streams to determine how the website pages should be laid out.
After educating someone on your capabilities, services, or products, it should be crystal clear how they can get started working with you. For some, this is as simple as a phone number, email, or address. For others, it's a custom form that connects directly to your CRM. The key here is to make it as easy as possible for someone to get started.
Action Items:
Photos and video are basically the gasoline that powers the entire marketing system. The photos and videos you create for your business will be used on your website, social media, ads, and other marketing collateral.
Whether you are utilizing Launch Kit's Content Membership program or creating content yourself, what's important is that you stay consistent. You can't go to the gym once and expect results. However, if you show up consistently, you will begin to see the effects take place.
Action Items:
Now that you have a consistent supply of photo/video content, you can set up your business profiles on all relevant social media platforms. With organic content, we want to post photo and video content that genuinely provides value to the viewer. Remember, the viewer has the choice to watch your content or not; if they aren't enjoying it, they can scroll down to the next post. This is where organic content differs from ads. If you're sitting on the couch watching TV, you can't skip the ad.
Action Items:
Along with our social media profiles we want your business to be present on all relevant digital profiles.
The purpose of doing this is to claim your business profile on as many directory sites as possible. Doing so makes it even easier for people to discover your business. For SEO (search engine optimization), this also creates backlinks, which boosts your likelihood of ranking highly in search results.
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We hope this article brought clarity to building your small businesses online presence. The world of marketing can often feel overwhelming but rest assured, there is a method to the madness, it's just a matter of putting things in the right order.
If you could use some help with any of the four steps outlined above, send me an email; kevin@launchkitdesign.com. Launch Kit is a digital marketing agency based in Grand Rapids, Michigan that gives small businesses the chance to share their story, grow revenue, and build their company culture. We provide brand development, website design, photo/video content, social media management and digital advertising.
Each year, we take a fresh look at the various marketing efforts a small business can make. We've built this framework to get started optimizing your business's online presence.
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