To kick off 2025, I’m walking through how I would put the best marketing strategy in place for a location-based business, and the best place to start is your local business website!
Yes, the first place to start is your website. Not your Instagram or Facebook page. But your website.
then you get to print pretty business cards!
Ok, Let’s talk about why you need a website and then the sections on your site:
Does your local business need a website?
The short answer is yes. And I think most people would agree with that, but still local businesses do not invest enough in their website because they have been tricked into thinking that social media is the only online presence that matters. And THAT couldn’t be further from the truth.
Can we just use Instagram and DMs for our local business?
Ok, let’s be clear: you can do whatever you want. And there are some businesses that make sales through Instagram, but most local businesses are relying on Google maps to be found, and that requires a real website. Fortunately for everyone, Google has started indexing social media posts, so it’s not all in vain.
The other thing to consider is how difficult it is to manage DMs through social media. You may not want to give a staff member access to your accounts, but how will they be able to process orders? Will this all fall on you while you’re trying to relax on the couch after hours? And every time I’ve engaged a DM conversation with someone, they are the kind of person that refuses to do any research themselves and I spend hours typing in a tiny box trying to explain services.
SAY NO. Set up your autoresponder with your email address and phone number, then keep everything flowing into one location.
Do I need a custom email address?
I believe that businesses should use an official business email address. This makes you look professional and your customers are less likely to think you’ll steal their information. Here’s a blog post I wrote many years ago about how to link your domain email address to your free gmail account. Personally, I think Google Workspace is totally worth the monthly fee, and I barely use it to its full capacity.
If you’re paying rent on a building, then you should consider investing in the structure of your business with tools like Workspace, Zoom, or a POS system.
What does my local business website need to say
Ok, I think you’re convinced you need a website for your local business. But what should it say? I have a course about how to write your website, but let’s go through the highlights.
Sections of a single page local business website:
If you choose to have a single page, long-scroll website, these are the sections you need in order to make it valuable. It needs to have enough information on it for Google to notice and for people to learn about you.
The Hero Section: This is the header of your website and should clearly describe what you do.
The Problem: No one wants to talk about pain and problems, but your customer can’t know how you can help them if you don’t remind them of the problems they have.
The Solution: Now that you have a problem, tell them why you’re the solution to the problem.
Steps to Success: Show them how you have a proven process to solve the problem.
Credibility: Tell them why you’re the best in the biz.
List of Services: The ways you solve their problems.
FAQs: Let’s answer their questions (this is great for SEO!)
About: Tell them a little about yourself.
Contact Form: Give them a way to contact you!
I know it sounds like a lot, but that’s why there’s a course (and that’s why there’s me!).
Ready for more? First 5 Pages
These pages will be a little different for every industry (and I love making these a series on Instagram), but most local businesses need the same thing:
Home Page: Sorry to be obvious, but it’s one of the first 5 pages you’ll need.
Services: Or products. This could expand into several pages, with one for each product, service, or package. But you can start with just the one summary page (one long, juicy page will be better for SEO than a bunch of short pages)
Location & Hours: This is what everyone needs to know. And you can have a lot of good location keywords on this page. Maybe add a paragraph at the bottom with some location highlights to mention your town a few more times.
About page: Now you get to talk about yourself and why you are the right person to solve their problems. More and more, customers want to know about YOU. So while previously, people were more concerned about themselves and how you serve them, now they really want to make sure they’re doing business with real people who have the same values.
FAQs: Let’s expand those FAQs into a full page of questions people might ask about shipping, pickup, delivery, etc. etc.
Why you should have a blog
No, we’re not talking about the online journals of the early internet days. These are optimized and very useful pages for your business.
The primary reason you would have a blog these days is for Search Engine Optimization (SEO), so the posts you write (or I can write them!) should be focused on your services and your location. You can even make yourself the local expert on different things while building your site rankings for various keywords.
There are keyword strategies to consider when you start out blogging, although for my own business I just follow my heart.
Why is your local business website important?
I hope by now you realize you need a website and not just an instagram or facebook page, but here are EVEN MORE REASONS why your local business website is important
Search Engine Optimization and Map Optimization
We mentioned search engine optimization earlier, but this can’t be understated.
SEO is how people find your website online, and if you have really low website views, it’s probably because you’re not doing SEO correctly. I have other blog posts about how to kick off SEO on your website, and most of them rely on WordPress (which is no one’s favorite platform, but it is what most people are using).
You also need to optimize your Google My Business (or whatever they’re calling it these days) listing. And that means using all the bells and whistles. If you’re not getting a lot of reviews, you should put a QR code in your store for a review. You need to post pictures, link the menu, do everything you can. Then, Google will know you’re a real live business and that you are open and ready to make some money!
You Own It
As proved with everyone on TikTok, at any moment your entire online livelihood could be taken away if you build your business on a separate platform. While it seems like these places are safe, you never know what could change, and you need an online presence that YOU OWN AND CONTROL.
I’ll have plenty of posts about using Instagram effectively, but know that your website is the FIRST THING YOU NEED.
Reach all audiences
Not everyone is on social media, and people are regularly trying to reduce their usage on the platforms. This way everyone will still be able to find you through your website.
Ok, are you ready to get your website showing up first in search results and bringing customers through the door? Let’s set you up for a great 2025 by prioritizing your website!