How to promote your business locally: 4 must-dos for success

In the digital world we live in, promoting your business locally requires a strategic approach to cut through the noise and connect with potential customers in your area. 

Whether you’re a marketing leader overseeing a national brand or a small business owner looking to build local visibility, this guide will provide you with four indispensable tips for how to promote your business locally.

From leveraging organic digital marketing to hosting local events, we will uncover proven strategies tailored to help multi-location enterprises and neighborhood shops alike master the art of promoting locally and driving more customers through your doors. Let’s dive in!

1. Organic digital marketing (SEO and social media)

Organic digital marketing, including search engine optimization (SEO) and social media, establishes visibility and accessibility for local customers searching online. For national brands, these strategies create localized connections between individual branches and surrounding communities. For small businesses, organic digital marketing makes you discoverable right in your hometown.

In both scenarios, these approaches establish accessibility, trust, and relatability, making them vital for local success.

Strategies:

• Conduct keyword research to optimize pages for terms your local customers are searching. Target both informational queries and geographical keywords.
• Create locally-angled content that speaks to your community. Share local success stories, events, and more.
• Leverage social media platforms to engage locally. Use geotags, location pages, and check-ins.

Tools:

• SEO tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs for keyword research
• Social media management platforms like Sprout Social and Hootsuite to schedule localized content

If you’re part of a corporate marketing team and would like to empower local operators to assist with organic digital marketing, here are some suggestions:

• Provide local SEO training to equip branch managers/operators with optimization best practices. Teach keywords, metadata, etc.
• Give local operators access to update and optimize on-page elements for their location’s website or listings.
• Implement social media guidelines and scheduling tools to unify brand messaging while allowing for custom local content. Incentivize local staff to create localized social media content highlighting events, partnerships, etc.
• Share local success stories internally to motivate branches to create quality localized content.
• Provide templates and resources to make localized content creation easy for local staff short on time.

With a strategic organic digital marketing approach, both major brands and small shops can tap into local search demand and establish themselves as go-to neighborhood destinations. This is one way how to promote your business locally.

2. Paid digital marketing

While organic marketing establishes a strong foundation, paid digital marketing provides the fuel to accelerate local results. When you need to drive immediate visibility or boost foot traffic, paid channels allow you to get your message in front of nearby audiences right when they’re searching.

For multi-location brands, geo-targeted paid ads create a unified presence while still connecting locally. For small businesses, paid ads offer an express lane to stand out in the neighborhood.

Strategies:

• Use pay-per-click (PPC) ads to target local searchers by bidding on relevant geo-modified keywords.
• Run targeted social media and display ads focused on your city, ZIP codes, or radius.
• Retarget potential customers who have engaged with your brand by serving ads as they browse elsewhere.
• Create location-based ads for services that provide value when users are nearby.

Tools:

• Google Ads and Facebook Ads offer robust targeting based on location.
• Marketing automation platforms like HubSpot allow you to retarget website visitors with customized messaging.
• Location-based platforms like Foursquare provide foot traffic analytics to inform hyperlocal targeting.

The ultimate tool for multi-location businesses: Evocalize

For large brands looking how to promote your business locally, Evocalize offers an all-in-one solution to streamline multi-channel paid ad campaigns. This means that each location can set up automated ads that will personalize to their unique location and then distribute across platforms like Google, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and more!

Evocalize optimizes budget allocation across these channels to maximize your spend. That way ads are shown on the best channels without you lifting a finger. 

Location-level campaign insights allow corporate teams to see how campaigns are performing across the brand, while also giving visibility to the local operator. 

So, whether you’re a nationwide brand or a neighborhood gem, paid digital marketing, coupled with Evocalize’s prowess, is your secret weapon for driving immediate local results and boosting your local presence. It’s the fast track to local success, showing that promoting your business locally is as much about speed as it is about strategy. 

3. Google My Business (GMB)

The next must-do for how to promote your business locally is Google My Business (GMB). GMB is an invaluable free tool for establishing and enhancing your local visibility. With Google powering a massive share of local searches, an optimized GMB profile serves as your digital storefront on the search engine.

A complete and consistent GMB presence allows customers to easily find, engage with, and transact at the nearest branch. It brings your shop onto the local map and into “near me” search results.

Strategies:

• Fully complete your GMB profile with keywords, images, accurate business information, and local attributes like menus or services.
• Post frequent updates showcasing events, offers, and local news to engage visitors.
• Monitor and respond to reviews to build credibility and connections with customers.
• Verify your locations by mailing in postcards with PIN codes to confirm physical addresses.
• Use location tagging on social media to sync posts with GMB profile.

Tools

• GMB dashboard for publishing posts, offers, events and managing reviews.
• Review monitoring platforms like Podium to track and respond to customer feedback.
• Check out location data providers like Foursquare for inventory management and verification.

For multi-location enterprises, central marketing teams can set GMB guidelines while empowering local operators to keep profiles updated. Location-level dashboards provide visibility into engagement.

Optimizing your GMB presence establishes your business as a trusted local leader. It’s the digital street sign pointing customers straight to your (digital) door.

4. Local partnerships and local events

Forming partnerships and sponsoring events are high-impact ways to engage locally while giving back. These community-focused initiatives build goodwill and provide valuable exposure to local audiences.

For major brands, partnerships and events allow individual locations to strengthen neighborhood ties. Getting involved locally helps ingrain your brand as a valued community member.

Strategies:

• Identify relevant local organizations and causes to partner with. These may include charities, schools, chambers of commerce, sports teams, etc.
• Sponsor community events like concerts, festivals, or fundraisers. Negotiate sponsorship perks like branding, booth space or giveaways.
• Participate in local business groups and associations. Attend networking events to connect with other local entrepreneurs.
• Host an event at your location highlighting your products/services and benefiting a local cause.

Tools:

• Local organization listing sites like Charity Navigator to find potential partners.
• Event listing sites like Eventbrite to discover upcoming community happenings to sponsor.
• Check out digital community calendars offered by many towns and cities along with local business directories and associations.

Forming real-world local connections through partnerships and events is a powerful way to boost your physical presence and give back. These initiatives turn customers into true brand champions.

Read more about how to promote your business locally with community engagement. 

How to promote your business locally

Promoting your business locally in today’s digital landscape requires dedication across multiple fronts. However, with the right strategies and tools in your arsenal, it’s easier than ever to build local awareness, engagement, and sales.

For multi-location enterprises, take a unified approach by setting overarching guidelines and objectives, while empowering local operators to connect within their communities. Provide resources and incentives to make localization simple for individual locations.

For small businesses, focus on grassroots efforts like optimizing online visibility, participating locally, and engaging customers through social media and review sites. Don’t underestimate the power of getting involved in your neighborhood and forging real-world relationships.

At the end of the day, promoting locally is all about making connections. Follow the strategies outlined above for organic marketing, paid advertising, optimizing Google My Business, local partnerships, and events to master how to promote your business locally. But most importantly, don’t lose sight of the human element. Foster real bonds with local customers and partners.