The first move in creating an online presence is to create and build your website on your own domain. Okay done. Now, the big bucks start rolling in right?

Wrong.

Many companies complete this first step in their web presence but that is where they stop. They do not take that next initiative to list their business with Yelp, get a Facebook fan page, or claim their Google business listing, and this is a mistake.

I believe many companies are afraid of these sites because of the negative reviews they may receive. Well, get over it. People will talk negatively about your business on or offline, and knowing what they are saying allows you to take a pro-active approach and overcome the negative reviews. Turn a negative into a positive if you will.

There are many advantages to jumping into the social media sphere and I will name just a few of them for you here:

• SEO for Social Media Sites– The search engine optimization on many social sites is excellent. They have an immense popularity behind them and have great rankings, which enables your business to be found.
• Trusted Referrals–I think any business owner would tell you that the best referrals are ones from past customers and friends. Social media allows people to recommend a service or product or “become a fan” of a service or product. When people see that their friends like something, they are that more likely to buy since it is coming from a trusted and reliable source. This can’t happen with a search engine or PPC marketing campaigns.
• Social Media is the New Search Engine–Not only is it becoming the new search engine for real-time results, but also is the new search engine when Google or Bing fails or the user is looking for a second option. People are increasingly turning to Yelp, Twitter, Facebook and many others to find relevant results, and, at the same time, getting feedback from past customers.

When people are going online to look for a business, which over 70% of us are now doing, they are not solely turning to a Google or Bing result, but increasingly seeing what social sites have to say. As mobile search continues to increase, people will count even more on social sites that have embraced the world of apps. Do you think somebody with an iphone is going to search for a restaurant via a Yelp app or open their lap top, log onto the internet, put in a google search and see what comes up?

Jump on the bandwagon of Social Media for your business before it leaves you behind.

Tags: Los Angeles, santa monica, search and social media, SEO, small businesses and social media

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