Wondering if you need digital marketing? Here are five reasons digital marketing is still essential for all businesses.
Some business owners who operate brick-and-mortar businesses believe they don’t need digital marketing because they don’t sell online. But don’t get lulled into this misconception. Even if your website only serves to provide information about your physical store location, you still need digital marketing.
Brick-and-mortar stores are those that sell at a physical location or via phone or mail. That means that they do not provide any online sales or ordering, which is rare in today’s eCommerce marketplace. That’s why there’s so little information out there about marketing physical store locations.
But if your goal is to drive foot traffic to your location, why do you need digital marketing? Review these five reasons for still having a strong online presence and marketing.
Your customers are still searching for solutions online, that’s why you need to be there marketing to reach these customers, even if you don’t sell your goods online. Here’s a look at 7 primary reasons to do digital marketing.
With digital marketing, you can build a relationship with your customer online using email marketing. Digital marketing makes it possible to create a nurture list that you use to stay in touch with customers between visits or to encourage the prospect’s first visit.
Every customer who visits your website might not be ready to tap the address to get directions. They might need a little more time and support to express interest.
Brick-and-mortar stores need to stay top-of-mind and demonstrate their commitment to customers. To do that, digital marketing initiatives like how-to videos or blog articles about a topic can help support customers between visits to your store.
Depending on what you sell or the services you provide, you might need to get creative about how to provide value-added services to your customers to keep up your relationship with them.
Let’s say a customer is searching for solutions for back pain and you are a chiropractor. They go to the internet looking for answers and find that Amazon sells massage tools, electronic muscle stimulators, icy hot patches and more. So they’ve found eCommerce solutions to their query.
But then they read a blog article on your website about how most over-the-counter tools provide temporary, short-term relief for back pain instead of treating the source of that pain. Now the customer is intrigued because, with a few visits to your office, they could find long-term relief instead of purchasing short-term products from an eCommerce website.
See why being online and having a digital marketing strategy is so important even if you have no eCommerce presence? You have to be there to become a part of the potential customer’s decision set.
This is not to say that you shouldn’t get a billboard near the exit ramp on the closest highway to your coffee shop. But you’ll see an outstanding return on investment with digital marketing that you likely won’t from traditional media.
Radio ads can be great but streaming and podcast ads can get your impressions in your local area at a better price. Digital marketing generally costs less per impression and reaches customers at the right time with the right message.
Many brick-and-mortar stores forget that they are still competing with eCommerce companies even though they sell in-store only. If you aren’t marketing your products in the spaces where customers want to learn and explore, your eCommerce competitors will certainly beat you.
Going back to the chiropractic example, purchasing products online is simpler and seems faster than researching good doctors and setting appointments. Failing to be where the eCommerce competitors are means you won’t make it being a part of the customer’s consideration and therefore lose the business before you even know there was a local customer who needed you.
No matter your reason for serving customers in person without eCommerce, New Light Digital can support you in your brick-and-mortar business through digital marketing. From local SEO that helps you rank highly for your specific geography to content marketing that demonstrates your expertise in your industry, our team is ready to support you and your full marketing needs.
Schedule a consultation now to learn more.
Further reading:
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