10 things you can do today, for free, to improve the marketing of your business.

1. Does your website have a padlock symbol next to the site address? If not, your site does not have a security certificate and Google may penalise it in the results. Now is the time to arrange the simple installation of a security certificate which your internet service provider can do for you. Expect to pay in the region of £50-£100.
2. Your website really should be mobile-friendly by now. Many sites are, but if yours isn’t, speak to your developer about what steps to take to remedy this. To check if your site is mobile friendly, go to https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly
3. If you have a Facebook business page, has the page been verified? Verified Facebook business pages are considered more authentic than unverified ones. To verify your business page go to: https://www.facebook.com/help/100168986860974 If your business does not a Facebook page, you are missing out on online business benefits.
4. Are the contact details (address, telephone, email etc.) for your business presented consistently across the internet? Perhaps this sounds insignificant, but when the Google robots are crawling the internet, they like to see details presented in the same way across the web. Simply Google your own business, print off the results and identify if any details need bringing up to date.
5. Check that your digital marketing channel profiles have been completed thoroughly. It’s human nature when setting a profile up to do the minimum and complete the rest later, (and then you don’t get around to it)! Re-visit your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other digital accounts with this in mind.
6. Have delivered to your in-box, at intervals you choose, latest news about your competitors, your market, other businesses in your area; in fact, anything you want using the Google Alerts service.
7. GDPR is very much a live subject, 12 months on from the law coming force. It is well worth staying in the know as to GDPR developments and how they may affect small businesses. The ICO website has regular practical posts and sensible guidance: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/
8. Stand out on Google for free. Take better charge of what people see about your business when they search. Google My Business provides tools to update your business profile, post content and receive customer reviews. https://www.google.com/business/
9. Over half of all internet traffic is viewed on a mobile device. The speed that your website’s pages download on a mobile device can affect your Google ranking. Take the mobile test and receive a free speed report to improve the performance of your site on the move: https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/intl/en-gb/feature/testmysite
10. Keep telling your story. Your business is helping your clients find solutions to problems and/or adding value to their activities. Find the time (or ask someone else to on your behalf) to talk about your successes by focussing on outcomes rather than process and be brave enough to ask other people to say nice things about you.

Sixth Sense Marketing has been named Marketing Specialists of the Year 2019 (Hampshire) by SME News.

If you are interested in understanding how you can bring your business to the attention of more people interested in your goods/services, contact Sixth Sense Marketing:

E: nick@sixthsensemarketing.co.uk

T: 01252 213131

W: www.sixthsensemarketing.co.uk