Local Business Marketing

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mberman84

mberman84

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Jan 17, 2007
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Los Angeles
I have decided I want to try some marketing for local businesses. I was thinking about trying dentists, car dealers, etc.

Any and all information you guys could provide would be appreciated.

Here are some of the original questions I have:

1. How do you track performance once the lead goes offline? And what are the best methods to track performance overall?

2. What types of businesses work well (besides the ones listed above)?

3. What is the best way to approach local businesses so I don't look like a douchebag salesman? How do I show them the potential of advertising online?

4. What is the best way to structure a deal (per lead? per sale?) with a local business?

Thanks in advance for your help!

PS i looked around for a thread covering this topic, sorry if there is one already.
 


There are already threads on this started. Plus, people are going to flip out because you keep asking for knowledge without at least providing boobies.

If you can't be bothered to source some tits, why should anyone spend time giving you business intel? Because you asked?

Just some food for thought.

mberman84 said:
1. How do you track performance once the lead goes offline? And what are the best methods to track performance overall?
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Performance offline?

mberman84 said:
2. What types of businesses work well (besides the ones listed above)?
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Spend two hours flipping through the yellow pages, and watch the size and volume of ads. Make notes.

mberman84 said:
3. What is the best way to approach local businesses so I don't look like a douchebag salesman?
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Comb your hair.

mberman84 said:
How do I show them the potential of advertising online?
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I posted this the other day. Pick some high profile targets, offer them your services 6 months for free, in return for a referral or endorsement. Make sure you have metrics to show them in 6 months (although I would keep in touch with monthly info, and request feedback along the way). And if possible, find a way to tie your service to their business, so that they can hear from phone callers and foot traffic that they came via the web.

mberman84 said:
4. What is the best way to structure a deal (per lead? per sale?) with a local business?
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This is so ridiculously general. What are you selling? Different products and services get sold differently.

You have to provide value, this means not only treating the wealth and prosperity of their business as your own (so you get paid) but also finding ways to communicate the value you provide back.

Lots of businesses are poorly marketed, locally and online. Use your intelligence and find ways to get their profile raised.
 
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bb_wolfe said:
+rep for Guerilla.
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The trial period is the fastest way to get their attention just make sure that you spell out in a contract that if you fulfill x,y and z that you will get a commitment from them. Spell out what you both consider achievable and successful. And most important of all - make ABSOLUTELY sure that you are talking to the ultimate decision maker. You don't want to hit homers for six months expecting a signed long term contract only to find out that you were talking to the owner's son and that this is the first time the owner has heard of your efforts.
Many local businesses are cutting back on advertising and I would bet that most have no idea what online marketing entails. Present yourself as a valuable resource, deliver, and watch the referrals roll in. Also consider (if you haven't already) Twitter and/or SMS as a community building tool. Trumpia, Sumotext, and HipCricket are good ones to check out. For brick and mortars that rely on foot traffic, getting to the customers' cell phone screen is often better than getting to their computer screen. SMS has no spam folders, phones are always in our pockets, and not every phone is email enabled but they are almost all text enabled.
Good luck.
 
Don't be a douchebag, I picked up 3 reps with this thread!

Getting your freebie portfolio folks to re-sign isn't that big a deal. You're using them during the trial to setup your next round of paying clients.

I'm not the greatest salesman, but I have been pitched by a lot of salesmen.

I'm either in the mood to talk over lunch (you are paying) or not.
I'm not interested in whether or not you are a nice guy. I want to know what you are doing, what it costs, if you will fuck it up, how much longer I have to talk to you, etc.

It's important to emphasize VALUE. Why do they need web traffic? Why do they need to score top rankings for local searches?

You don't know how to do their business. But you do know the internet, and you do know marketing. You can drive them more business, so they can do what they are already great at, to make higher profits. You want to provide VALUE.

If you conduct yourself like a douchebag, people can smell that. They can tell who is out making calls and just putting in his time, and who is making a call on a mission from God.

And never, ever ask someone for their business card. Leave yours if they are cold, tell them you won't bother them again, but if they reconsider or think there is some assistance you can render, they can always reach you at CONTACT DETAILS.
 
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