Ways to attract more customers/work?

[jsc123]

Hi, I run a computer repair shop in Norfolk & wondered if anyone had any suggestions on how I can get more customers & more work to grow my business?

I already advertise in local magazines & have a few posters up in some places, but my shop is sorta out of the way a bit.

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!!

 

[WebshopMechanic]

Morning @jsc123

I would like to add my opinion (following on from Jerry's dazzling insight ;-p )

OK, with any business it's important to be in front of your audience when they need you and even when they don't need you. Converting a customer is often about timing more than anything.

For example, I would only need your services when my computer needed fixing, correct? But, that doesn't mean to say I wouldn't be interested in hearing your advice on PC self-maintenance, cyber security, backing-up my work, etc.

What I'm trying to say is that you need to create a buzz for your business all of the time and not just rely on advertising. Yes, advertising has it's place but it's a short-term strategy that is usually dictated by how much money you have to spend.

With this in mind, my strategy would be:

Short-Term

• Get your local business listing and SEO sorted (this means you will appear in the searches)
• Set up a localised Google Adwords campaign for targeted terms (Make sure you create an offer landing page not just send people to your homepage)
• Create a 'Cybersecurity for Dummies guide' and get people to sign-up to download it. (This will help build your email list)
• SEO your website for location (i.e your town)

Long-Term

• Create a blog (if you haven't already) and write like a man/woman possessed about the common computer issues you get asked about. Provide solutions to problems.
• Create content about cyber security and the latest trends people should be aware of and then talk to local press about running a feature to help small businesses / home computer owners. (You want to be the local go-to expert.)
• Set up a Google Plus page and start sharing the content on there. It will help your business exposure on Google.
• Make sure your website has AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages). Google is all-in on mobile so you could probably rank higher than your competition alone with AMPs activated and some good content.

I followed this strategy for my own business in London and I now ranked 1st in London and 1st in the UK.

I hope that helps.

Matt

 

[jsc123]

Okays thanks for the ideas. I have actually been working towards setting up a newsletter with that type of thing in it and I'm currently writing a few article.

I thought that it would be a good idea as i can print A4 copies off, fill the back with advertising & the front with the newsletter then drop them off at local libraries, waiting rooms & places like that. I also thought of possibly asking a couple of local magazines if they would like the article to publish as a regular tech column or something like that.

Most of my clients are older/not always tech savvy enough or don't have the interest for blogs so I thought this could be a good way to reach them. But I will also try a blog.

I know I also need to start doing more Facebook, Google Plus & social media but I personally find that quite hard with what do I post.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Do you offer current clients a discount if they send their friends, colleagues, etc., your way?

 

[Digimem]

Morning @jsc123

I would like to add my opinion (following on from Jerry's dazzling insight ;-p )

OK, with any business it's important to be in front of your audience when they need you and even when they don't need you. Converting a customer is often about timing more than anything.

For example, I would only need your services when my computer needed fixing, correct? But, that doesn't mean to say I wouldn't be interested in hearing your advice on PC self-maintenance, cyber security, backing-up my work, etc.

What I'm trying to say is that you need to create a buzz for your business all of the time and not just rely on advertising. Yes, advertising has it's place but it's a short-term strategy that is usually dictated by how much money you have to spend.

With this in mind, my strategy would be:

Short-Term

• Get your local business listing and SEO sorted (this means you will appear in the searches)
• Set up a localised Google Adwords campaign for targeted terms (Make sure you create an offer landing page not just send people to your homepage)
• Create a 'Cybersecurity for Dummies guide' and get people to sign-up to download it. (This will help build your email list)
• SEO your website for location (i.e your town)

Long-Term

• Create a blog (if you haven't already) and write like a man/woman possessed about the common computer issues you get asked about. Provide solutions to problems.
• Create content about cyber security and the latest trends people should be aware of and then talk to local press about running a feature to help small businesses / home computer owners.

I followed this strategy for my own business in London and I now ranked 1st in London and 1st in the UK.

I hope that helps.

Matt

Hi Matt, do you have expirience with b2b ecommerce marketing?

 

[WebshopMechanic]

Hi @Digimem

I do have experience in B2B digital marketing. Are you selling software?

Let me know and maybe I can help.

Cheers

Matt

 

[Digimem]

Hi @Digimem

I do have experience in B2B digital marketing. Are you selling software?

Let me know and maybe I can help.

Cheers

Matt

ill pm you Matt

 

[Honey Blinds]

Going 'above and beyond' is often a good strategy when you start out, even if it means you make little money for your work on that job. A satisfied customer may tell their friends, a very happy customer will go out of their way to tell people. Its a balancing act between making much needed cash and getting recommendations which are easily the best way to bring in new business

 

[bobby280]

I would say - think you may have said above but I only skimmed - that most people who use this sort of service are a little older. So target them. Not sure how exactly but look at local clubs and groups, perhaps, golf, tennis, bowling. See if you can get flyers in those places or even perhaps ask if you can go down and have a chat with people. You could even produce a talk/video about how to speed up an old computer and see if you can go and show that somewhere. Chances are a lot of older people with a bit of cash may decide they'd rather just pay.

Then when you do get that type of customer really try and impress and subtly suggest that if they have any friends with similar issues they should give you a call.

 

[tony84]

Facebook page and promote yourself in local groups.

 

[KindaichiShota]

There are 7 ways to attracts customers.

1. Identify Your Ideal Client
2. Discover Where Your Customer Lives
3. Know Your Business Inside and Out
4. Position Yourself as the Answer
5. Try Direct Response Marketing
6. Build Partnerships
7. Follow Up

 

[alex360]

You mentioned your customers are older and. It tech savvy have you looked at provide group classes where you can teach them computer and Internet related topics? This will cost almost nothing and since you are the expert in their eyes people will come to you.

 

[alex360]

You mentioned your customers are older and. It tech savvy have you looked at provide group classes where you can teach them computer and Internet related topics? This will cost almost nothing and since you are the expert in their eyes people will come to you.

 

[StevePoster]

Content marketing then amplify with the popular mediums in the web like social media and micro blogging sites. A story that will answer your target audience's problems and expectations in the field.

 

[Businessquotes]

Some good advice here especially on the digital marketing side - but be careful on starting out with paid advertising if you don't know what you're doing - you can easily spend a fortune and get no return. Take some time to visit other businesses in your area, go in and meet the owners, tell them what you do and offer your services, leave a card, ask them what their it support is like, who are they currently using, offer a free survey of their equipment- local businesses could be a good source of regular trade and they'll appreciate the personal touch, you'll also start to feel part of the local business community and build a network, the worst they can say is no thanks.

 

[dariadavis]

I guess social media ads will work out, but make sure you have your Social Media Strategy Developed:
1. Define your Buyer Persona
2. Create positioning/messaging words
3. Set up Facebook ads targeted to your Buyer Persona. Btw, use rich media options to stand out the feed.

Hope it helps.

 

[Paul Carmen]

First of all make sure that you have an always on organic search campaign...

Sounds like bulls**t bingo to me!

What does that look like, how do you turn it off?

Sorting out the sites local SEO rankings would suffice, they're a local business who want to rank geographically, they are not trying to compete nationally with currys. This post has already been answered well by WebshopMechanic, did you read it?

 

[JhonnyH]

You can do local listings for your business so that more customer knew your business and reach up to you.

 

[mattk]

Do you have prices on your site? A lot of people ask me for simple tasks such as removing malware, replacing a dodgy charger pin, fixing a keyboard etc. Usually no more than one hour jobs.

When I ask why they don't get a local professional to do it, they usually say they think it will be too expensive or are afraid of being ripped off.

I've looked into this too and they are right. I think there is a real opportunity for someone to offer fixed price (and even timeboxed) services.

 

[iDigLocal]

Concentrate on SEO for local searches.

Make sure you set up your Google "my Business" page

If your clients tend to be older why not do some local volunteering for silver surfers. There are usually a number of organisations that cater for night school like classes. e.g. womens institute. Also you can interact with local facebook pages and groups although this has to be interactive, not really talking about your services, just making people aware of your brand.

 

[Brandspeak]

Main thing is look at what types of customer there are out there for you. Once you have defined these different customer groups then identify marketing strategies that target those different groups. For example you could run one marketing campaign for B2B and one for B2C.

 

[Thomas Ejsing]

Thanks for at good writing
Best regards
Krystal & HealerHuset

 

[SEO.co.uk]

Leafleting could work and local meetups//networking. Asking existing clients for referrals etc.
Having a local presense helps quite a lot.

 

[Jenna Lopez]

I've actually just written an article about this earlier. In it, I explained how important it is to improve (or start on building) your social media presence because everyone is in it nowadays. To increase your chances of connecting with potential clients, you need to get yourself across all the popular social media websites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. It is also a terrific way to build trust with your customers by being engaging and interactive, and by being ever-present and accessible.

 

[Dan (CE)]

Have you thought about digital advertising like Google AdWords and Facebook Ads? You can use these to target people within a certain radius who are interested in what you are offering.

You can sign up and do this yourself with limited results, or you can hire someone like myself to do this for you for better results.

 

[RjMaan]

I think you should focus on giving some deals or giving some extra benefits to your customers that can attract them.