Am I allowed to link and rant while on “hiatus?” (which is turning out to be the worst hiatus evah.) Because, I am.
As I think about what it is that I want to “be” or “do” as it relates to blogging, writing, social media consulting, I keep going back to being local. I know local people, I am a patron of local products and businesses. I like helping out the neighborhood and the small shops.
So I was very interested to read what Cassie Boorn (thanks, Kim) had to say about marketing your small business online in response to Jessica Gottleib’s thoughtful post about why small businesses should not engage bloggers. In Jessica’s mind, it all comes back to providing customers with the best product or service you can give them. If those suck, well, no good blog campaign can fix it. And Cassie gives some good tips in her post like having customers review your business. While I don’t necessarily agree that customers should be given discounts just for reviewing on Yelp (it may look like they’re being “paid” for a positive review), I think that third-party validation like Yelp always helps when making decisions about what service or business to use or shop at.
IMHO and from limited experience, at least locally here in Chicago, I think there are four keys to local social media outreach:
- Make genuine online conversation with your customers. I love, love what The Bleeding Heart Bakery (also a neighbor of mine) has done with their Twitter feed. It’s not sales-y. Rather their banter is light, funny and to the point. And always responsive to people’s opinions and thoughts. Sunda does the same thing. It has the benefit of local celeb Billy Dec to Tweet about, but when I replied to one of their Tweets, they responded immediately and genuinely.
- Tie in-store promotions and events with an online presence. Whether it’s a post offering an in-store discount to Facebook “fans” or mention a Twitter update for a free soda with your purchase of a sandwich, there has to be a connection between the bricks to the clicks. Not all people are on Twitter and Facebook all day long, but most people have an account to either service and would more than happy to check online for an in-store deal.
- Be an online personality. Most of the local small business people I’ve chatted with are terrific personalities in and of themselves. Cassie rightly says that small business owners should start a blog to talk about news, specials, post links, and have a conversation. But it’s more. Blogs are a showcase for the unique and individual nature of a small store owner’s personality and interests. And it’s a great way to get a niche following of other like-minded and interested bloggers and potential customers. (Hello, Krista K?? Why isn’t your blog updated!?)
- It’s not one size fits all. I agree with Jessica that blogger outreach isn’t for everyone or every store. I’m finding the more I talk about the topic, the more I find that the blog world in a lot of ways is a small, insular place. Every mom blogger event I’ve been to in Chicago has the same 75 person target list. Not all of those moms (many of whom I know and love) are going to all want to blog about the same thing. Some of my friends who are avid Facebook updaters don’t even have blogs. But they have a great audience on Facebook. There’s something to that as well. I think good marketing is an integrated mix of social media, traditional online media, print and good (emphasis on GOOD) PR. Blogging, Twitter, Facebook, foursquare, etc., are all good to have on the roster, but not necessarily all good to use in every situation.
So what are your keys? What am I missing here?
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
This is a great piece.
I agree. I agree. I agree.
I think you make great points. I especially like your third bullet. If I am shopping at a local boutique, it is not because it’s the cheapest place to find something. It’s because either the store sells unique items that I can’t find at some chain and/or, I need some excellent customer service. The local toy store near me is the kind of place I can walk into and describe the kid I am buying the birthday present for, and the owner gives me three great present ideas. Try that at Target! Thus, owners of small local businesses biggest asset is usually themselves. The more they can position themselves as experts on their topic, be it fashion or toys, in different traditional and social media outlets, the better it will be for their business.