| Small businesses selling hard products and local | | | | In fact, the main misunderstanding in all this is |
| services, like plumbers or doctors, live on their | | | | applying the same concept of the yellowpages on |
| local customer base and are subjected to | | | | the internet. If you publish your account on the |
| competition and recession in a harder way than | | | | yellow book, it will appear under a category and a |
| large companies. | | | | town, and anyone would be able to find it. On the |
| What they need is a constant supply of new | | | | net, categories and town research work in |
| clients, and the old way to achieve new clients | | | | completely different ways. Publishing a nice |
| through advertising was the yellow pages book. | | | | website is not enough at all and you need to |
| Nowadays, the internet has reached almost | | | | assign it the research features allowing people to |
| everyone and I personally didn't even touch the | | | | find you. But Mr. Smith doesn't know anything |
| Yellowpages book in about 5 years. | | | | about web search and he just puts out a website |
| At first, I used the online yellowpages to find for | | | | to tell he has one without even being aware of |
| shops, stores and restaurants. Now, when I need | | | | the amount of customers he could drive through |
| something, I find it faster and better through | | | | it and how. |
| search engines. And I know almost everyone is | | | | Here is some strategies small business owners |
| doing the same. The problem for small business is | | | | can immediately apply to improve their search |
| they usually don't adapt their advertising to this | | | | results. Name your website according to your |
| trend and stick with printed advertising. It's | | | | service or product instead of to your company |
| already in place, it's part of their habits and it's | | | | name. As I said, nobody is searching for "doctor |
| easy for them. | | | | Jones" if he doesn't already know him. You could |
| Most of the times, if they have a website, it only | | | | drive new customers to you site with a url with |
| tells their name, what they sell, where they are | | | | the word "dentist" or "doctor" in it. |
| and it's not at all optimized for search engines | | | | If your business is providing local services, add the |
| except for their own name. The only way | | | | name of your town in the URL. This way, your |
| someone could finds them through a web search | | | | results in the searches will instantly improve. Tell |
| is by knowing their exact name. | | | | more about your services on your website. |
| Let's assume John Smith is a plumber working in | | | | Search engines love content and rank websites |
| Dallas, Texas and he owns a website called "John | | | | according to their content. Describing your product |
| Smith Plumbing" at Do you think someone | | | | or service using the words your customers would |
| desperate for a plumber in Dallas, Texas would | | | | use to describe it will certainly give you far much |
| search for "John Smith" or "plumber Dallas | | | | better results than a site with just an address, an |
| Texas?" Mr. Smith's website is just another small | | | | image and an "under construction" statement. |
| drop in the ocean and nobody would be able to | | | | Follow these simple strategies and you'll see |
| find it if they didn't know where to look at. | | | | instantly better results and more new customers. |