In today’s world, there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to marketing and advertising. Businesses and brands must learn to adapt their strategies to fit specific markets and demographics. One area where this is most evident is in the digital sphere. In the past, simply delivering an email or posting on social media would suffice. Now, to be successful, businesses must have a presence on all major social media platforms (Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook) and utilize various online marketing tactics (SEO, PPC, content creation, and outreach). In this article, we will discuss the most recent trends and stats concerning local online marketing in Tarrant County, Texas, and how you can take advantage of these trends and stats to grow your business.
What Is Local Online Marketing?
If you are reading this, then it is most likely that you already engage in some form of local online marketing. Simply said, ‘local’ and ‘online’ are essentially the same these days. People are connecting online through social media platforms and searching for local businesses online who they can then visit or order from directly.
Marketing to people within your local area is considered ‘local’ online marketing. To put this into perspective, if your target audience is only within a 100-mile radius of where you are located, then this would be considered ‘local’ marketing. However, if you are able to gain a large audience across the United States, then this would be considered ‘national’ or ‘global’ marketing.
Why Should You Care About Local Online Marketing?
Aside from the obvious fact that you are trying to sell your products or services to people who are physically close by, there are several perks to having a strong local online marketing presence.
Firstly, being able to market to people who are already in your area means that you will be able to gain a more intimate knowledge of your target audience. This, in turn, will likely lead to increased conversions and a better grasp of the problems your target audience is facing.
Additionally, by having a strong local online marketing presence, you are able to utilize numerous free online tools that can help you optimize your marketing efforts. This can include things like measuring and analyzing traffic to your site, identifying the most effective online marketing tactics, and getting started with pay-per-click advertising (PPC).
So, as you can see, there are many advantages to having a strong local online marketing presence. However, this does come with its own set of challenges.
Trends In Local Online Marketing
As we mentioned above, today’s world is not one-size-fits-all when it comes to marketing and advertising. This is especially evident in the case of local online marketing. Just like in any other area of marketing, online marketing in a local area will always be different than national or international marketing.
As a business owner or a marketer trying to understand the trends in local online marketing, it is important to keep in mind that the makeup of your target audience will have an effect on what is and is not popular amongst them. In other words, what is trendy or in vogue in one area of the country may not be so in another. To give you an example, if you are running a restaurant in Dallas, Texas, then you may want to look at what is popular in your area versus other parts of the country.
Thankfully, with the right research and strategy, you will be able to find trends that fit your area and demographic. You can use these insights to better understand your target audience’s needs and wants and subsequently, find the right way to market to them.
Local vs. National Marketing
The biggest challenge associated with any sort of marketing is knowing where to focus your efforts. Just like with any other part of your marketing arsenal, you will want to start with a solid foundation, learn from your mistakes, and then continually evolve and tweak your strategies based on the latest research and analysis.
When it comes to marketing to a local audience, you will want to make sure that you are taking the proper steps to ensure that you are reaching your target audience. One of the keys to effective local marketing is understanding the demographics and psychographics of your target audience. This will help you to tailor your strategies to fit them.
While it is always good to reach an audience as large as possible, you must understand that not all of your audience will be receptive to your message. For example, if you are a clothing store and you want to target young adults living in cities, it may not be the right move to only focus on urban areas as a potential customer base.
As a business owner or marketer, you must be able to understand your target audience’s needs and wants. Simply put, you need to know what makes them tick so that you can provide them with the best possible service or product.
The Future Of Local Marketing
When you have a little one in your family who is becoming progressively more independent, it can be difficult to know how to keep them safe online. Being able to limit their screen time and block potentially harmful websites and apps is essential for their safety. Additionally, keeping track of what they are or are not allowed to see can be a challenge. Luckily for busy parents, there are several helpful tools available to monitor and restrict their online activity from a mobile phone.
For example, the HTTPS Everywhere Browser Extension will transform all of the connections to your family’s favorite websites through HTTPS (HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure) to increase security and prevent any accidental exposure to harmful content. Additionally, the TRUiC (Traffic Report Utilities in Chrome) extension will notify you when your loved ones reach harmful websites or apps and give you the opportunity to intervene or restrict their access. Similarly, the Kids’ Digital Nomad app will allow you to manage the content your children access online. This is especially beneficial if you suspect that they have wandered onto a potentially dangerous site. Lastly, the Safety Appliance act (CPSIA) in the U.S. requires that every toy or children’s product sold in the country must be safety tested and certified by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). This is a lot of work, so for companies that manufacture and sell toys in the U.S., this may be a significant cost-saving measure. For example, the Commission’s new online tool, Kids Voice, allows parents to test and rate the safety of more than 100,000 products across 20 categories (toys, games, books, etc.) from the convenience of their mobile phones. All of this information is then easily accessible by the Commission’s staff, who will then notify the company if there are any violations.
As you can see, there are several ways that parents can keep their children safe online. With these tools, you will be able to easily and efficiently control what your kids see and do online.