Social media for local businesses takes a lot of time and effort and are you sure that that time and effort is actually doing something for you? In this video I’m going to clarify that for you and give you the three types of content that your local business needs to be concentrating on to drive more customers in your future.
Get this right and your effort will be multiplied in results. Hi, I’m Dave. If you’re new here and I help simplify complex marketing strategies for local businesses. When you’re thinking about content and buckets of content for your social media in your local business, you need to be thinking in terms of the customer journey.
If you don’t know what the customer journey is, I’ve got a video for that. But really, if you simplify it down, there are only three main types of content that you should be making on a regular basis. Doesn’t mean you can’t make other content, but if you make these three types on a regular basis and utilize that content properly, you’ll be way ahead of the competition and you’ll have a strategic plan that you can follow to help you know what to create and what to post every single day.
Content type number one. This is what we call a top of funnel piece of content. That means your potential customers get sorted into a funnel with a large number at the top and a small number at the bottom because you have to move them through that journey to get actual paying customers at the bottom of that funnel.
At the top of the funnel, your job is to attract more people. But they have to be the right people for what your business does. There’s no point in getting a whole bunch of views from people that are never going to buy from you because they don’t want the product. They don’t like your vibe. They’re not local to you or they’re just not in market.
So what’s the best type of content to grab attention, let customers know that you’re there for them and explain to them what you do? Your virtual handshake., if you will. It’s Instagram reels, those short vertical videos. They get a lot of viewership and help you stand out from the crowd. This is the type of content that if you post it regularly, we’ll give your potential audience a reason to care and engage with you.
So this content has to be authentic. It has to feel like you, and it has to feel like your potential customer. It needs to meet them where they’re at. Right here is a great example from a food truck in Chicago called Wiener Circle. You may have heard of them. Colbert has been there. They have a very specific type of customer.
They sell hot dogs that are fantastic, but it comes with a whole bunch of abuse. So if you’re the type of customer who doesn’t want to be abused when you’re buying great hot dogs, You’re going to stay away. You’re not going to watch that video and you’re not going to go. That’s what this business wants.
They only want the type of clients that are interested in what they sell and how they sell it. This is how they target their audience specifically. And this is what you need to do too. What is it that makes you different? What is it that makes you stand out? What is it that you want to do for your customers and who will that attract?
Make your content specific to that. And we’re not talking one vertical video here. We’re talking regularly posting these videos to see what resonates with your market. You’re not going to get it right the first time. So just keep trying. Keep posting. Keep getting fresh content out there. And in the end, you will attract your ideal customer if you’re putting that content in front of them.
Okay, content type two. Now we’re getting into the middle of our funnel. Now customers are aware of what you sell, how you sell it, and how you’re different. Now they need to trust you. They need to understand why they should do business with you. And they need to see what it looks like to do business with you.
So this type of content consists of customer reviews, testimonials, user generated content, people using your product or service. Ideally, these folks look the same and act the same as the people you’re trying to attract. And they talk about the things that make your product or service better. The things you want new customers to know before they buy.
The more authenticity you show here, Behind the scenes of your team working with customers, customers actually on camera giving their honest reviews, or just text reviews that you get from your customers from time to time. The more authenticity you show here, the less polish you show here, the more credibility you’re going to earn with your potential customers, and the more trust they’re going to start to have with you.
And now that they’ve reached this stage, they know you. They like you and they’re starting to trust you, which means they’re almost ready to buy. And here’s a great example of this type of content. This is an image from a restaurant in New York City called Tommy Jazz. They have a very specific offering.
They give their customers great food, great drinks, and jazz. And so this image showcases the great food and it has a customer telling them that the jazz was great as well as the food and the drinks being great. All in one simple image. It’s really straightforward. So go through your archives, look at your Google reviews, pull out these outliers, get some pictures, put the quotes on the pictures, find pictures that your customers are posting on social, ask for permission and use them.
And you can never have too many of these. Keep looking every week for more. Ask your staff to ask for these reviews and don’t be afraid to ask them to go on video. If you’ve got a spot in your office or in your bar or restaurant, wherever you do business, where you can film, set it up. Take an easy, authentic video and use it on your socials.
And finally, number three, these are square images with writing on them that help people understand what the offer is, how much it is, and what the easy steps are to buy it from you. The text on these images and in the description. The description that goes with the images needs to answer any questions you think your customers might have, overcome any objections they might have when they buy from you, help them understand exactly what is involved in buying, what the price is, what the process is, how long it will take to get the thing that you offer, and then give them a better Very simple next step to take action that action might not be by it might be call you it might be sign up for a consultation it might be come into the office it might be drop by it doesn’t matter just give them a really simple next step to take and here’s a fantastic example that it isn’t actually taken by a brand for a brand this is an entrepreneur who works at home baking fresh tortillas and selling them on lampposts but if i were a local restaurant and i had fresh food like this I’d be using something similar.
I’d print out something exactly like this, stick it on a lamppost, take a picture of it, take it back off the lamppost, send that picture out to Instagram. But take a look at what’s on this ad. It has everything someone needs to know to buy. It tells them what the product is, why it’s great, why you should buy it from them, how to buy it from them, and it gives you the phone number to do it.
It really is that simple. But you need to have all three pieces of creative on a regular basis on a loop in order for the entire system to work. Don’t just post a whole bunch of one of those things. You need all three in equal measure. Now if you need any help with this or need some advice specific to the industry that you’re in, the type of business that you are offering, then pop a question down in the comments.
Let us know what industry you’re in. Or head over to our bio and hit the link there to get early access to the blueprint that I’m working on that will help guide you through creating this content. It’s totally free, it’s easy to access, so once you’re finished watching, go and grab that. Now, I’m not quite finished.
Now that you understand what types of content you should be creating, you now need to learn how to get that content in front of the people who will become your customers, not randos who will never buy from you. I’ve got that covered in this video over here. Click on over there and watch that.
