How to Build & Grow Your Online Presence as a Small Business

So, where do you even start? You're a small business owner looking to improve your online presence, and of course, you've heard of SEO, social media marketing, and website optimization, but the options are overwhelming, and you just don't know what's right for your business. So how do you determine the best strategy for your company with all the options available, and what kind of results can you really expect?

Identify Your Target Market

First and foremost, with a small business (like any business), you have to determine your target market to understand who you're trying to reach and how competitive it is to do so. Ideally, you need to see who else is doing what you do and how they're doing it; what does their online presence look like? In other words, find someone to emulate.

Start with a basic search in another city, look for successful businesses in your market, and find one that makes you think, "wow, I want to be exactly like this; this is how I want mine to look." This is a great starting point to help you create a plan of action to emulate what they're doing, who they are targeting, and, of course, also striving to be better.

Keep Everything Consistent

Once you have a solid idea of how you want your company to look, consistency is key. This means your company name needs to be as close as possible to, if not exact to, your domain name (.com, .org, etc.). Ideally, this should be your first consideration when deciding on a DBA name, so everything can sync up as closely as possible when filing state and federal formation documents.

Get Listed Everywhere

With a solid foundation in place, submit all company information, also known as NAP (Name, Address, Phone), to registries via Yelp, Yellow Pages, etc. This tells the world, “This is me, this is what I do, here’s my phone number, call me.” The most basic fundamental is to put it out there (marketing 101). It's important to note that you should also have a single phone number that matches everywhere, not two or three or five, and keep track of where it's listed.

Build Out Social Media and Sales Channels

Now it's time to set up your social media accounts and establish sales channels. Again, matching all NAP (name and phone number), especially with your branding. An official logo and brand identity that's clear and concise, scalable, and equally recognizable on a thumbnail or a billboard is crucial. For example, you don't want your logo to look one way on Facebook and another on Pinterest. You want the least amount of confusion possible- your brand should be consistent.

Make Your Website the Hub of Everything

A huge part of establishing your digital presence is an official website that serves as your main foundation, in other words, a digital marketing hub that everything points back to. So, for example, your Facebook, Instagram, and website all need to line up and be identical, all pointing to the same website (and phone number). When running Google ads or posting on social media, second to "call me", your mindset should be (visit my website), to make the call, place the order, submit the request, etc.

Don’t Fall for the “Post Every Day” Myth

When it comes to the actual marketing on the social media accounts you set up, a lot depends on your industry. We like to argue with mainstream advice on posting every day. At Cegrix, we advise otherwise. What many sources fail to mention when providing advice to business owners is ad fatigue. And especially if you're not targeting the right audience, you'll annoy people and drive potential customers away. Keep in mind that unfollowing, muting, and overall lack of engagement with your brand result in bad rankings on algorithms.

Know Your Niche and Stay Authentic

Again, this comes down to knowing your target market. Notice the trend? Identify your niche, know who you're trying to attract and what they want to see, not just what you think is cool, but understand it from your customer's perspective. Keep in mind that when first starting out, it may start slow, and chances are it will. One of the most common problems is that many business owners create a Facebook page, invite friends and family to like and follow, and that's where it becomes misleading.

For example, a Facebook post will get good engagement, and from the outside, you think "Wow, I got this," but the problem is, it's not actual customers, it's friends and family- not money in the bank. This is where nearly all business owners get caught. And if you're not aware of what's really going on, this is where burnout happens, the all too famous line, "I post on social media, but it doesn't work." Or, even worse, you hire someone to do it for you, and they simply copy trending content that gets laughs and reactions, but again, no money in the bank.

Focus on Quality Content

So, how do you escape the burnout? First and foremost, let's start with creating quality content. When it comes to creating content, it needs to be high quality, and this doesn't just pertain to visuals; it's subjective, too. Especially in today's oversaturated, AI-influenced market, authenticity is becoming the golden standard. While stock photography can work, it's few and far between, and, most importantly, avoid ripping off random pictures and using anything that's not yours, especially if it's watermarked. Come on, really?

Try to use original content that's fun and engaging, tapping into what someone wants to see. Set aside a budget for a photographer; don't just settle for someone great at taking selfies. Keep in mind, you're in a very crowded market, and all markets these days are oversaturated. Your ideal customer is on their phone, bombarded with ads, trending reels, and overstimulated by everybody competing for attention. This is where value comes in as a brand, the ability to "stop the scroll" and solve a problem- a value proposition.

Budgeting for Growth

Once your social media is up and running, this is where most start weighing a budget for advertising. Whether you're tempted to hit the boost now button or hire a professional, it's natural to think about how amazing it would be to advertise for free. But again, don't let the engagement from friends and family fool you. Think about it, you can spend nothing, "post every day" and become a millionaire? Let's be real: Mark Zuckerberg has billions for a reason, and in the world of business, it takes money to make money. Advertising platforms, just like banks, want a piece of the pie too.

That said, you have to set aside a quarterly or annual budget to determine how much you can spend each month. As business owners, by nature, we default to a conservative spending mindset. Because it's all about making money, not spending it, another critical factor many struggle with is the question, "Does it cost more to do it myself… or is it more cost-effective to hire someone?"

Understanding ROAS (Return on Ad Spend)

Digital marketing is like renting a storefront and putting up a sign on a building. It's all advertising. Yes, it's an investment, but the question is, what does that investment return?

Let’s say you put $1,000 a month into marketing and it brings in an extra $48,000 in revenue for the year. That’s what we call ROAS. It shows the direct return from your advertising efforts.

Here’s the simple breakdown. If that $1,000 you spent this month helped generate $4,000 in new revenue, that’s a 4x ROAS. With a 50 percent profit margin, you’re keeping $2,000 in gross profit. After subtracting the $1,000 you invested, you’ve earned $1,000 in real profit, and over the course of a year, that adds up to $12,000 in additional earnings just from being visible in the right places.

This is the moment marketing clicks for most business owners. When you can clearly see what each dollar is returning, advertising stops feeling like a risk and starts becoming a controlled lever you can use to grow.

Test, Scale, and Stay Balanced

At this point, you should be getting a good idea of what works and what doesn't, and it's time to make crucial decisions based on testing. Should your marketing initiatives be producing strong results, you can now gradually increase your budget to get where you want to go. However, it's important to keep a balance, always make sure your business can keep up with an influx.

The Bottom Line

Ultimately, as with starting any business, you have to have patience and balance. There's no one trick, no magic pill, and no one-size-fits-all tactic or technique. Always do your homework, be mindful, and determine the best strategy. Ultimately, the results you get depend on how much you invest as you get out what you put in. If business were really that easy, everyone would be doing it.

Need Help Getting Started?

Have questions about your small business marketing initiatives? Reach out to us today, and we'd love to help you figure out how you can reach your small business goals.. Contact us today at 281-940-8650, or shoot us an email at info@cegrix.com.