7 Digital Marketing Steps You Need to Take When Starting a New Business.
Are you starting a new business? If so, congratulations! It’s an exciting time, but it can also be daunting. There are many things to do, and it can be hard to know where to start. That’s where digital marketing comes in.
We’ve created a complete digital marketing tips for a new business guide and wanted to share the seven steps you need to take to get your business off the ground. Send us an email to help with any of them, and we’ll be happy to help!
1. Secure Your Domain Name
Before even registering your business, take some time to look at a domain registrar to figure out if you can have the website address you’re looking for. If you can’t find your exact name, try for alternatives using the tips below.
For example, L8P [Loop] Digital Marketing wasn’t supposed to be written using “l8p” as “loop” until we discovered that www.l8p.ca was available to purchase. Just like that, we got a 3-letter domain! #excellent ✨
Tips for picking the right domain name:
- Stick with .com or .ca
- Use keywords such as your services, locations, etc
- Keep your domain name short
- Make it easy to pronounce and spell
- Keep it unique and brandable
- Avoid hyphens
- Avoid doubled letters
2. Create a Professional Email Address
To create trust and add professionalism, avoid using your personal email address to conduct business.
If you do not know how to set up an email address in your domain/hosting environment, don’t worry. There’s a more straightforward solution.
You can head to a service like Google Workspace and create a new Business Starter account. Then, for a small $8 per month, you will get a professional email account that gives you access to Google Meets (video calls) and 30 GB of cloud storage. Ideal for conducting business all in one place.
3. Create your social media handles
Now, listen carefully – even if you might not want to be on all the social media platforms, it is still essential to create an account and secure your ‘handle’ for each of them! That way, if in a few years from now you have a social account manager who wants to start using TikTok to promote your boutique shop, you already own the same handle as all the other platforms!
Ideally, your handle needs to be short, memorable, distinguishable, easy to spell and tells something about your brand.
Tips for picking the right handle:
- Try your company name
- If that doesn’t work, try with hyphens or a period
- Use ‘the’ in front of your name
- Use one of your main keywords (service or location)
- Keep it short and easy to remember
4. Launch a Coming Soon Page (Website)
Bravo! You’ve already secured all your digital addresses, and it’s time to create your website. But wait, you feel it will take you a couple of months before you have all the information you need (read here: everything always takes longer than you think). It’s true. We know it and experience it over and over with our clients. And guess what we tell them? We say: that’s ok, but let’s create a quick splash page, so we don’t lose traction and momentum!
Head to any ‘build your site’ provider (Shopify if you’re selling online, Squarespace if you are offering services), and design a one-page website. Keep it short and straightforward.
Things to add to your splash page:
- company name
- description of services/products
- a quick note about you
- contact information (address, phone number, email)
- social media links
5. Create Your Google My Business Listing
The easiest way to tell everyone you’ve started a new business is to create a Google My Business listing. Why? Because it will create an ‘information card’ about your business which will show in Google Search and Google Map.
It takes 5 minutes, and it’s free.
Things to add to your Google My Business Listing:
- company information
- hours of operations
- website link
- images of your products or services
*PS, if you are a business offering services, you can still have a Google My Business listing and select an area/location where you offer your services.
6. Register to the Local Business Directories in Your Area
When you have your website domain, business information and a brief description of your services/products, head to local directories and add your info!
Your local directories can be either the generic ones (Yellow Pages, Yelp, etc.) or the more advanced ones like The Locals Guide or The Chamber of Commerce.
(Pssst, curious to know how the Locals Guide offers you more than a simple listing? Head over to their website to learn more!)
Tips for adding content to local listings:
- Keep a list of each listing you create
- Save your email and password somewhere safe
- Be consistent when adding your information (same info everywhere)
- Remember to review your listing if your business details change!
7. Share Your New Business In Your Personal & Professional Network
After completing all the previous steps, it’s time to share your new business in your personal and professional network.
Don’t be shy. Share, share and share!
Give yourself a like from your personal profile on your business page (TBH, everyone does it!), and create stories on Instagram about your new business to share with your network. Also, email old colleagues and people you know that might be interested in your new business.
It’s your time to shine 💫, and there’s nothing wrong with sharing it in your community!
Even though it’s a lot of hard work, launching a new business is also incredibly rewarding. And we want to make sure that your digital marketing efforts are off to a great start. That’s why we put together this guide of seven essential steps you need to take when launching your new business online.
If you need help with any of these steps, don’t hesitate to contact us for assistance. We would be happy to help you get your business off the ground and soaring high in no time at all. Thanks for reading, and good luck on your entrepreneurial journey!
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L8P offers digital marketing services for small businesses that want to elevate their online marketing to the next level.
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L8P Digital Marketing
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 1-604-848-4104
Mail: BOX 598, Garibaldi Highlands (Squamish), British Columbia V0N1T0