Family businesses face many challenges that corporate businesses do not. Beyond funding, small & family businesses don’t always have the resources and means of understanding buyer behavior. This can put some strain on the business, especially in 2019 with so many options available for technology. How do family businesses tap into these technological advancements that are at our fingertips? Read through this blog.
Years ago, there was no way to predict what we’d face today with smartphones, AI, and technology ever changing. Technology can ultimately help small and family businesses get closer to their target audience.
Studying Your Consumers
Understanding your customers is the first step. Getting closer to understanding how your customers want to receive your information and how they want to purchase your products or services will help you to better produce and grow. Understanding lifestyle choices, trends, patterns, and more can be done through social media and online platforms. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social platforms can help you develop a brand, stay consistent with your followers, and better understand their needs.
Creating Social Media Pages for the Small/Family Business
You can create a Facebook page and a Google My Business listing for your small or family-owned business. This helps search engines recognize your business and shows users your location as a result when triggered in search engines. There are plenty of platforms used by restaurants and businesses for clients to place orders, reserve seats, or make reservations online. Look into these tools, and decide which one would best help your industry. Your online presence and the use of technology could be more beneficial to your business than you may assume.
The best advice we have is to start as soon as possible. Get going with your online presence, and the sooner you have a presence, the sooner you can start using technology to your advantage and building your online network of followers. Social media is a great, free tool for businesses to get publicity and recognition.
Engagement & Authenticity
Your social media accounts can highlight your products, services, your team, and your business values. Having social accounts is an extra step, in addition to your website. It’s a great way for consumers to connect with you. It’s an opportunity for you to resonate with your followers and communicate with them in a personal way. The more you update your social accounts and interact/engage with your followers, the more success you’ll receive from your efforts.
Tech to Keep On-Hand in the Small Business
Utilize these online platforms on laptops, desktop computers, smartphones, tablets, and other devices in your business. Just because you’re a small or family-owned business does not mean you have to miss out on this marketing and networking tool. Internet presence is one of the most important aspects of a business in 2019, no matter what size. When you have technology on hand in the small business, you can keep up to date with your reviews, engage with your followers, and post about deals and promotions. Hop on a laptop, update your timeline, and create a Facebook event page for your next event.
Instead of looking at technological advancements as a headache, consider looking into support for your business, and getting M&H on your team.
Categorised in: Business Management