Need Local Inbound Marketing Ideas? Here’s How You Can Increase Sales

Before online marketing existed businesses needed to rely on other methods to get customers. If you wanted to market your local business, you were limited to face-to-face selling, telephone sales, direct mail advertising, trade shows and media advertising. Today, if you want your local business to stand out from the crowd, you must, among other things, know local inbound marketing.

So, what is local inbound marketing?

Local inbound marketing is an online strategy that brings customers within your community to your business. It is data-driven and focuses on the purchasing process, not the seller or the product itself.

In other words, local inbound marketing uses data to find the needs of a market and helps businesses develop ways that will address those needs to cater more effectively to their prospects. This strategy eliminates the impulse to continually come up with products or services that you think will suit your customers. Instead it focuses on nurturing the relationship you have with them instead.

But how do you get customers to come to you through local inbound marketing? Here are a few marketing ideas that can help grow your local business.

Local SEO

If you want your business to rank high on search engines, you need great SEO, but this does not happen overnight. You have to be patient for your efforts to pay off. Getting great local SEO is like planting a seed and waiting to harvest in the future, while doing everything else possible in between to support it.

To ensure your SEO efforts do pay off in the long run, you may want to develop content on your website and blog that focuses on targeted keywords. Other SEO tactics include:

• Optimizing landing pages
• Keyword research
• Utilizing inbound links and more

You can use some SEO audit tools to help you understand some issues and ways you can fix and optimize your site.

Ask for email addresses

Email marketing, when done right, goes a long way toward gaining new customers and keeping the existing ones happy. For example, you can do a monthly offer exclusively for your current local customers.

It’s important to understand that gaining new customers should never be at the cost of your existing clients. So figure out how to get new customers without hurting the existing ones. The good thing is that email marketing integrates well with other local inbound marketing strategies and can be automated. You can use a free ebook creator to create a lead magnet to help entice them to enter their email address. Here are a few lead magnet ideas that can help you capture those email list.

Create landing pages for each geographic area

If your business caters to multiple towns or neighborhoods, creating individual landing pages for each area is a smart move. Think of it like having a personalized welcome mat for each community you serve. Why? Because when someone searches for a product or service in their specific location, a dedicated landing page speaks directly to their needs.

Imagine you’re a plumber serving several towns. Instead of a generic “Plumbing Services” page, create separate pages like “Plumber in [Town Name]” or “Emergency Plumbing Services in [Neighborhood].” This not only helps you rank higher in local search results but also allows you to tailor your messaging and offers to each area’s specific concerns.

For instance, your “Plumber in [Coastal Town]” page could highlight your expertise in dealing with saltwater corrosion issues, while your “[Inland Town] Plumber” page might focus on well pump maintenance. This kind of personalization makes your message more relevant and engaging to potential customers, increasing the likelihood they’ll choose your business.

Each landing page should include relevant local keywords, testimonials from customers in that area, and information about local events or partnerships you’re involved in. This localized content helps you connect with potential customers on a deeper level, building trust and credibility.

Add videos to your Google Business Profile Listing

Google now allows small businesses to add videos to their listings. These videos show up in the photos right in the Google listing. You can use them to control what your clients see about your business. For example, add informative videos that tell buyers what your business specializes in and how you can help.

What type of videos works with Google Business? Here’s an animated explainer video example by Top Explainer

Remodeling Explainer Video from Topexplainers on Vimeo.

Publish great content

High-quality content is your ticket to attracting customers and establishing authority. Create blog posts, articles, or social media updates that offer real value to your local audience. Share insider tips, local insights, or even behind-the-scenes glimpses of your business.

Need an example? Imagine you run a local bike shop. Try a blog post on “5 Scenic Bike Routes Around [Your Town],” complete with insider tips on the best pit stops for coffee and snacks. Or, post a quick video showcasing your newest bike model on social media, inviting followers to test ride it.

Remember, great content is relevant, informative, engaging, and authentic. Use images or videos to make it even more appealing. Don’t forget to optimize it for search engines so your target audience can find it easily.

Create instructional videos

Video content is king these days, and it’s a powerful way to engage your audience. Never underestimate the potential of instructional videos! A well-crafted video can elevate your local marketing efforts to new heights.

Need ideas? If you own a local plant nursery, create a video demonstrating how to properly repot a houseplant. Or, if you’re a yoga instructor, film a short sequence focusing on beginner-friendly poses for stress relief.

Remember, your videos should be clear, concise, and informative. Invest in good production quality for a professional touch, and share your videos across your website and social media channels.

Infographics marketing

Images speak louder than words. Why not then leverage infographics and take your local marketing efforts to another level? If you have some understanding of Adobe Illustrator, creating engaging infographics will be an easy task. If not, get someone on UpWork or Freelancer to do it for you.

Want something even better? try video infographics:

Write an eBook

Want to show your authority and knowledge of a topic in your niche? Write a great eBook. If you are a good writer, you can have your eBook ready in no time.

Plus, there are ebook creators, like Designrr that help to speed up the process. Once you have finished writing the content make sure that it is proofread and edited. It’s easy to miss those small bits especially if you have been looking at the content for days. Next, import the content into Designrr, pick your template and publish. Try to do some pre-promotion to get reviews and hungry buyers in advance.

Check out our article on how you can write an ebook in 7 steps.

And here’s how you can make an ebook in 5 steps.

Local eBook Ideas

Here are a couple of ideas for local eBooks that can showcase your expertise and attract potential customers:

• For a Local Restaurant:
  • “[Your Restaurant Name]’s Cookbook: Signature Recipes and Stories from Our Kitchen” – Share your most popular recipes, along with anecdotes about their origins and the people who created them.
• For a Real Estate Agent:
  • “The Insider’s Guide to Buying or Selling in [Your Neighborhood]” – Provide valuable insights on market trends, local amenities, schools, and tips for navigating the real estate process in your specific area.

Key Tips:

• Tailor the Topic to Your Expertise: Choose a subject you’re passionate about and knowledgeable in.
• Keep It Local: Focus on aspects that are unique to your city or region.
• Offer Value: Provide insights, tips, or information that readers can’t find elsewhere.
• Promote Your Ebook: Share it on your website, social media, and local directories.

Team up with other businesses

Teaming up with neighboring businesses can double your reach by cross-promoting. This can be as simple as giving the other stores your flyers, business cards, or coupons to display and in return you do the same for them. In a nutshell, find out how you can team up with other local businesses to make a significant impact on your customers.

Join a referral network

Referral networks are a great medium for local businesses. You can join one or start your own referral program. The good thing about these networks is that they help you to leverage existing customer relationships and to broaden your reach by getting your business in front of new potential customers. Create word of mouth marketing using a referral program doesn’t take too much time. With the right tools, you can equip your existing customers to be brand advocates!

Repurpose old content

Don’t let your old content gather dust! Breathe new life into it by transforming it into different formats. An old blog post could become an eye-catching infographic, a comprehensive eBook, or even a step-by-step tutorial video.

Think about it: that popular article on your blog about “Top 10 Hiking Trails Near [Your City]” could be a fantastic short video highlighting the trails, or even a downloadable checklist for hikers.

Repurposing content isn’t just about saving time and resources; it’s about maximizing your reach. The same information presented in different ways can appeal to different audiences and keep your content calendar fresh.

We wrote an article, listing 24 content repurpose ideas you can use to help with your local business marketing.

Conclusion

Marketing doesn’t have to be a constant headache. You do not need to hire a marketing team to help you get more sales. We’ve provided some inbound marketing ideas you can set up one time to help increase your conversions. Let us know if you used some of the strategies here, and what other strategies have you used to grow your leads?