Claudene Wharton reported in Nevada Today on a good idea: a series of online workshops for Nevada businesses on connecting with their customers through digital media during covid.

The workshops ran in July and covered two core subjects.

Website best practices, with panellists leading an open discussion. Knowing the basics of using an online presence to build a brand and give people confidence to buy is fundamental to any successful website — design, calls to action, menus, and welcoming, informative content.

Digital marketing basic concepts, social media and business development, covering how central this now is to growing a business: social media, traffic, conversion and retention, all key parts of a working campaign.

Be Proactive, Take Orders Online

Mask-wearing customers are the most many bricks-and-mortar businesses are getting at the moment, so being proactive and taking more orders online is the obvious answer.

So what do the panellists mean by informative content? They mean avoiding the spam and repetition that comes from keyword stuffing, where the objective is to cram as many keywords into an article as possible. The content needs to be useful to the reader, so they stay longer and click through to more pages. Every search carries a user intent — match the terms and the content to that intent, rather than filling the page with words that say nothing.

At the same time, a word-heavy page is not welcoming. Useful images, clear buttons and a decent colour scheme all help with navigation. Avoid stock images where you can, because most readers can tell — it is worth having some real ones taken.

Sometimes More Powerful Than A Website

In some niches, social media does more work than the website. Being able to post regularly, in front of an audience that already chose to follow you, is very useful. But the content still has to earn attention and encourage people to engage, like or share. Most social platforms are image or video led — people need to get the message quickly, or they scroll past — so it is worth using decent design tools to make the post look like something.

Do not over-post, because some people read that as spam, but do keep it regular. Five posts across a week beats five in one day and then silence. Vary the message to avoid repetition while keeping it inside the brand’s theme.

Running a competition with a prize can get the numbers moving, as can sharing material from related businesses that are not competitors, since they will often return the favour.

Las Vegas has so much going on, and so many colourful things worth sharing, that there is no reason to be shy about posting about where you live and the culture around you.

These are difficult times, and some imagination is needed just to stay afloat. Getting the online marketing right may be what carries a business through to better ones.

More from VisibilityBam