Maximise the chances of being found online

Gone are the days when customers use the paper Yellow Pages to find your business. Research is now done online, so make sure your business can be found there.

List your business on Google Maps/Places, business directories like hotfrog, Yellow Pages or TrueLocal and industry websites.

Your listing should contain all the key words and phrases potential customers are likely to type into search engines.

For instance, if you are a florist, you need to include “floral bouquets”, “flowers”, “wedding flowers” and “floral displays” in your listing; if you are a virtual assistant, consider words like “VA”, “virtual assistant” and “administration”.

Your full business contact details are the next important inclusion. Potential customers need to be able to contact you in the way that suits them. Think beyond the business phone to your mobile, email, website and social media.

When writing your business description, mention your company name and keywords several times within the text to help optimise the listing for search engines, increasing the chance of potential customers finding your business. Try to write between 50 and 200 words, including options for payment and opening hours to give customers a good idea about your business and why they should choose you.

Online directories market your business 24 hours a day, which means your business can be found at any time.

By Johanna Baker-Dowdell.

Johanna Baker-Dowdell owns and runs Strawberry Communications, a writing and public relations service that generates amazing publicity. Strawberry Communications is based in Launceston and was launched in 2007. Johanna is also a freelance journalist and blogger. Visit Strawberry Communications’ website, strawberrycommunications.com.au .

Article provided by the Australian Businesswomen’s Network, which provides online training and mentoring, resources and advocacy for women in business. Read more articles at their website www.abn.org.au.

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