Local businesses face more challenges than they ever have in the past. That’s an unfortunate fact that any local business owner has to face. The current business landscape can feel imposing and discouraging, no matter how well the business has gone in the past. This is why every small and local business must master these best 5 lead generation ideas for local businesses and SME’s.
For one, there’s all the competition with large companies. Big brands open stores in more places every day, and it’s almost impossible to compete with their low prices and convenience.
Online business also makes things difficult. People would almost always rather order from sites like Amazon. Again, it’s not easy to compete with the low prices, huge inventory, and optional free shipping.
That’s why local businesses have to get more creative with lead generation. Even smaller online businesses can benefit from effective lead generation. But how is it done? The Modern Millionaires training program is one of the best in case you want to learn that (and here’s my review of the course).
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Now, let’s go over five best lead generation ideas for local businesses and small businesses
1. Facebook Ads
Chances are you already use Facebook for something involving your business. After all, every business needs to use social media to have some sort of online presence. More So than a website, social media provides a personal connection to customers and prospects.
That much is true, but you might not be using Facebook to its fullest extent. One of the best utilities Facebook has to offer is its ad platform. Just think about how many people use Facebook — billions. Granted, there aren’t that many people local to you, but that should give you an idea of how many people you can reach regardless.
2. Google AdWords
Much like Facebook, billions of people also use Google. You might have even ended up here from a Google search. With that many people using Google every day, local business owners can’t afford to ignore how powerful it is as a lead generation tool.
Think about the last time you searched for a business or tried to solve a problem using Google. No matter what you searched for, you got a number of sponsored posts and ads at the top and the side of the page. Ever wonder how they got there? Google AdWords. You can use the platform to show your business as a result when people search for what you do.
3. Email
Email marketing is one of the most important tools for any business of any size. There’s no way around it, and there’s a reason it’s so popular. That’s especially true for lead generation and any type of local business.
Luckily, email marketing isn’t a tedious, manual task like it used to be. You can use tons of different tools to run email campaigns automatically. That means you can do it yourself, on your own time, without hiring outside help.
4. SEO
If you’re not familiar with SEO, don’t worry. Maybe you’ve heard enough about it to know that it’s not something you want to try your hand at. If that’s the case, there’s some good news. SEO is one of the most effective ways to improve your lead generation efforts. click on this course to help you get started
It can be difficult and require time, there’s no doubt about that. But that doesn’t mean it has to be backbreaking work if you don’t want to put in the time and effort. You can improve your SEO with simple tweaks to things like title tags and meta tags. If you want to hire somebody else to do it, they’ll go much more in-depth and you’ll see drastic results.
5. Giveaways and Contests
There’s not much that people love more than free stuff. Costco samples, free shipping, the chance to win an all-expenses-paid vacation… The list goes on. But you have to consider what they’re giving away in exchange for anything free. After all, businesses wouldn’t do it unless it provided something for them.
So, figure out a way to get people engaged in exchange for free stuff. Maybe they sign up with their contact info for a chance to win something. Then, you have their information which means a lead for you. There are many ways to go about this, but it’s an easy way to engage with local customers.
So, there you have it. Five of the most effective lead generation ideas for local businesses. These only scratch the surface, but they’re a good place to start if you’re scratching your head. Once you start using these, you can branch out into more advanced lead generation methods. Who knows, one or two of these ideas might even be enough to keep your business going for the foreseeable future.
