Beth Staub of Adventure Auto Glass knows a lot about social media – she ought to, given that she is featured as an example in a social media class at a local university! See what she has to say about how easy local small business marketing can be for a small business, even with a small budget.
What Was Your Interest In Local Small Business Marketing With Social Media?
I had a static site a few years ago and we weren’t showing on any search results. The guy who made it said it should take 8 to 16 months to show, but that seemed wrong to me, and the competition was getting our business. I found a company that helped me with SEO, I studied the hell out of social media, and I figured out how to do it.
Twitter is great; it’s hard, but it works. Just like in real life, you gotta get out there and build relationships with people.
Sharing content from other people is vital, and many small businesses lose this opportunity.
What Other Hats Do You Wear In The Business? Do You Just Focus On Local Small Business Marketing, Or Do You Do Other Stuff?
I do payroll, I’m the CSR when CSR is out, I do the taxes, I network, I do everything and volunteer while I’m at it; the only thing I’m not doing is installing window glass!
When Did You Start Hitting The Local Small Business Marketing Hard Beyond Getting Things Printed With Your Logo? What Sort Of Difference Have You Seen From This Change In Focus?
We made a lot of mistakes, and the change made a huge difference. Radio and television was the best for us at first because it got our name out there, we tried newspaper, but it was a nightmare, and we kept with it because we felt bad (I don’t recommend it – if it isn’t working, get out fast!)
Then we started getting organized. We made a calendar with monthly goals to make sure people knew who we were. For example, we will do so much radio or TV this month.
I started the social media stuff 3 years ago, and its enjoyable. Social media is HUGE. We track where our customers are coming from to see where our dollars should go. People came from the ads on TV, so we kept some money there. Getting organized and keeping track of who’s coming from where is critical to our success.
Have You Been Able To Back Off The Radio and TV?
Yes, we severely cut down that budget. Now that we are on the map, we don’t need to continue to work on TV and radio, and we have many repeat customers. Those repeat customers get our number from the promotional materials we leave in their vehicles after they get work done here. Our money goes to promotional materials because we’ve tracked it and seen that it works. We also keep some money back to educate ourselves more on local small business marketing.
What’s The Best Thing You Have Done To Improve Your Local Small Business Marketing?
Listen, if you don’t do anything else, buy a class from Pam at pamannmarketing.com and whatever she says to do, do it. Heather saved my life with her website work. Heather made my website rock. Within a week, I was showing on page 1 of Google search results. Do not mess with people who tell you it will take forever; you gotta go with what works, and Heather works! (ummm we’re totally blushing over here, Beth was not paid to say that — promise!)
It is worth every cent. You need to put time, effort, and energy into marketing, and if you don’t know what you need to do, it won’t work for you.
I think people often look at the overall marketing picture, and it’s so daunting because there is so much to do. It all adds up, and the time and financial investment seems like it’s too much.
My advice? Go to a professional to get the education and products you need, then put the time in. Time is what new small businesses have a lot of, so invest that into a good foundation. Then use the new income to pay other people to do the pieces of the marketing you don’t have time to do so that you can focus on running your business.
Any Warnings For People Who Are Just Starting Out?
You get what you pay for. People in social media marketing know – if you expect customers to pay top dollar for your services, don’t expect other people to do their services for less. You’re worth what you charge, but then you can’t go to the social media people and ask for 20% off. Why would I want to cheat an educator? If your business means something for you, pay the full price.
When you look at marketing and services, be aware of how they are selling themselves. If they charge an hourly rate or a really low flat price, chances are it’s a bad deal. The more expensive services are selling value. When you work with high-level service people, you get value.
If its not the right solution, it will hurt you in the long run because you just have to go back out and pay someone to fix the mess.
We paid high dollar for a static website, and it was a mess. Don’t be scared to pay someone to do it for you! Value comes from not having to repeat it and come back and do it again.
Look at the long term; I paid X amount, but how many years will I have it? And what is it worth to me? How does it pay for itself? These are the questions you need to be asking.
How Do You Target People Who Are Physically Close To You? What Are You Doing To Find People Who Are Your Customers?
Social media is about making connections. I search local businesses and I follow them. Then, I start talking to them. I also do a Twitter meet up and I take stuff to them (meeting people from the internet in real life – what a concept!)
Crossing that bridge, taking online relationships and making them real relationships, that’s how I turn social media into profit.
Do You Have A Checklist That Helps You Stay On Track Or Progress Towards Goals?
My schedule is different every week, and I never know what it’s going to look like, so I have to stay organized. Just because I own my own business doesn’t mean I do whatever I want, although I am able to take care of my daughter on her time like I planned to do from the start.
I have a planner, I use my iPhone. Pam Ann has a calendar template that I’ve taken and expanded on. I took a blogging calendar and produced it for Adventure Auto Glass. I wish I could abide by them all the time, but that’s not always possible. I have to have structure like that or I don’t show up.
What Other Problems Have You Overcome in Your Small Business?
People feel like technology is this huge roadblock: “I can’t do X because I don’t have A, B, or C. I don’t have a forecast.” The funny thing is, a lot of it is really part of our imagination, and we don’t need them to get started. The key is to put something in motion and then put plans and tracking in place.
Once of the best pieces of advice I can give you is this; if you start with local small business marketing, write your goals down and work backwards. So today is January 14th. Ask yourself this: at end of January, what do I want to accomplish? Make a checklist, and anything you don’t accomplish, move to the next month. Keep at it, and you’ll be amazed at what you can accomplish.
This is critical: Get rid of fear! Fear will keep you from doing anything. Figure out what you want to go after and then go after it.
Any Parting Advice That You Want To Share?
I could talk for hours! If you’re a small business, spend the money, call Pam, call Heather, get it done right the first time, and create a marketing budget.
Stay Awesome!
How To Contact Beth Staub
Twitter: twitter.com/AdventureGlass @AdventureGlass
Facebook: facebook.com/AdventureGlass
Website: adventureautoglass.com