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3 Errors New Businesses ALWAYS Make (And How to Fix Them)

Last Updated: November 16, 2017

For new businesses, there’s a lot to do when you first set out on your venture. Unfortunately, there’s no book or step-by-step guide that tells you everything you need. Sure, there are countless articles and e-books about the fundamentals, but the nitty-gritty stuff you have to do for your web presence often remains a guessing game.
That’s why it’s so easy for new businesses to make mistakes when putting your company out there on the web. You’re bound to hit some stumbling blocks as you go. However, Prospect Genius wants to help you correct those mistakes so you can keep forging ahead.
In this blog post, you’ll discover three of the most common, yet easily fixable, errors we see new businesses make. Are you guilty of any of these? Let’s find out!

1. Using Your Personal Cell Number as Your Company’s Primary Phone Number

When first starting out, many small business owners, particularly local service providers, use their cell phones as their main business phones. This seems logical when you first think about it. After all, you always have your cell phone with you, and it’s the easiest way to answer calls when you’re on the go.
However, as you continue on your journey as a business owner, you’ll come to realize how important it is to have well-defined boundaries between your company and personal life. Unfortunately (and, perhaps, inconveniently), using your personal cell phone as your business phone blurs these boundaries quite a bit. For example, you feel pressured to answer your phone when you’re out with your family because a customer might be calling.
Also, to be a little more frank, it creates a nuisance. Do you really want your personal cell phone ringing at all hours of the day and night? The answer is probably no—especially when you consider that a lot of those phone calls are spam.
You see, when you use your personal number as your business number, it will appear everywhere your business does. This means your personal phone number is all over the internet (on your website, Google, Facebook, Yelp, Bing, and dozens of other platforms). This also means the National Do Not Call Registry no longer applies to you. As a result, you’ll be getting solicitor calls nonstop.
Importantly, using your personal cell phone for business also prevents you from hiring a receptionist or answering service to assist you with incoming calls.

How to Fix It

As we see it, you have a couple of options. You can:

  • Go to your preferred wireless retailer and get a new cell phone dedicated exclusively to your business.
  • Add a separate, company landline for your home office (if you have one).
  • Get a metered, VoIP line (like our CallTrax service or something similar). This kind of phone line enables you to track all of your incoming leads,  and it also comes with spam-blocking technology to limit how many telemarketers get through to you. Best of all, you can forward this line to any number you like at any time. This means you can forward calls to your personal phone, go on vacation, scale up your business, add more phones to the line, and so on.

2. Setting Up Facebook Incorrectly 

If you’re not already an avid Facebook user, the platform can be confusing. Often, we see novice Facebook users accidentally put their business name on a personal Facebook profile, instead of creating an official business page. In doing so, it’s as if their account is for a person named “Mike’s Plumbing” (for example) rather than a verifiable business.
Why is this a big deal? It matters because Facebook treats personal accounts and business pages very, very differently. So, if your company is limited to a personal account on Facebook, it won’t have the same capabilities that most other businesses have. For instance:

  • Personal profiles don’t give you insights into your page’s performance, such as audience engagement with your posts and visits to your page.
  • Personal profiles don’t include important business information. People won’t be able to see vital details like your industry/category, phone number, street address, “About Us” description, products/services, and customer reviews.
  • Personal profiles don’t allow customers to leave reviews of your business. Without customer reviews, your business won’t have a star rating or any way to demonstrate value. People like to read reviews before choosing a business for their needs.
  • Personal profiles can only  have up to 5,000 “friends.” If you want to grow beyond that, you need a business page.
  • Personal profiles can’t advertise with Facebook Ads. Therefore, your reach will be limited and you won’t be able to boost any of your posts, promos, or coupons.

Above all, having a personal profile for your business looks highly unprofessional. It instantly tells people you don’t know what you’re doing on social media. This doesn’t exactly instill confidence in your other skills.

How to Fix It

Thankfully, this mistake is easy to fix. There’s no need to delete the personal profile you accidentally created. Instead, you can follow the steps outlined here in Facebook’s Help Center: “How do I convert my personal account to a Facebook Page?”
If you’re confused by Facebook’s guide, you can always ask your marketing team for help. Prospect Genius offers assistance with this, as well.

3. Having an Unprofessional Email Address for Your Business

Are you using the same AOL address you’ve had since the early 2000s for your business? We hate to break it to you, but you need a new business email ASAP.
Your company’s primary email address must look professional. This is for two reasons:

  • Prospective customers want to know you’re a legitimate operation. So, if you list a wacky, personal email address under your company’s contact details, you might lose some business. Generally speaking, most people would rather do business with “mike@mikesplumbing.com” than “sk8rd00d99@aol.com.”
  • Dealing with Google is much easier when you have an email address on a corporate domain (like “mikesplumbing.com”). Whether you’re claiming a listing or assigning a new manager to your listing, the whole process is streamlined when you can email your authorization from a corporate domain (because Google sees this as a verification of your identity).

We understand the desire to simplify your life and only have one inbox to check, but having a separate, professional email address for your business is an absolute must.

How to Fix It

You have a few options here:

  • If you have your own website and domain, the process for setting up an email address on your domain is relatively easy. This is the ideal move because you’ll appear super professional and official. At the same time, it will make all your dealings with Google much easier in the future.
  • If you have your own website but can’t figure out how to set up your address, your advertiser should be able to do it for you. (For example, Prospect Genius offers this service for a small fee.)
  • Don’t have your own web domain? You can sign up for a Gmail address, instead. It’s 100% free, and the whole process is fairly simple.
  • For any of the above solutions, you can set your new business address to forward all emails to your personal inbox. This way, you don’t have to check two separate accounts, which makes life a lot easier.

Don’t Be Discouraged

For new businesses, getting yourself online for the first time without a single error would be unheard of. The opportunities for mistakes are endless. So, please, don’t feel discouraged if you’ve made any of these missteps. All that matters is you fix your mistake in a timely manner, learn your lesson, and keep moving forward. And if you ever feel lost or confused, reach out for help! Prospect Genius is here to answer any questions or concerns you might have.
Now get to work!

7 Quick Tips to Turn Groupon Groupies Into Loyal Customers

Last Updated: November 9, 2017

Have you ever offered a promotion on a daily-deal site like Groupon or LivingSocial? The experience of running a Groupon or LivingSocial promotion can be a mixed bag, to say the least. On one hand, you make a lot of new contacts and your phone rings off the hook for a short time. On the other hand, you don’t make as much money as you hoped, and the overwhelming majority of these new contacts are just there for the discount. These bargain hunters, or “Groupon groupies” as we like to call them, rarely return to your business because they’re only interested in deals.
So, what do you do? How do you capitalize on the opportunity to expand your loyal customer base with a Groupon or LivingSocial deal? It’s not easy to do, given the fleeting interests of your new customers. However, there are a few things you can do to stay top of mind and lure them back. We’ve put together some tips below. Check ’em out!

1. Only use a daily deal like Groupon or LivingSocial if you’re a service provider.

If you use the coupon site to sell products, expect to lose a lot of money and inventory. On the other hand, promoting deals as a service provider just means you lose time. Still not a win, but definitely worth it if it leads to expanding your customer base.

2. Get their email address before you perform any service.

When you get their email address right from the jump, you already have their contact details and you don’t have to track them down after the service is complete. Getting their email address is crucial because it enables you to keep them in your marketing funnel and follow up with them later. Even though they’re bargain hunting, they’ve still demonstrated an interest in your services—which means they have the potential to be consistent customers if you play your cards right.

3. Ask them to like your Facebook page and follow you on other social media right away.

Do this as soon as your service is complete—or even smack-dab in the middle of it. This helps you grow your social reach and follower count, which are important numbers in your overall web presence. Facebook also functions as another channel for promoting specials to customers in the future.

Related: “The Only Checklist You Need for a Winning Facebook Page”

4. Don’t be afraid to up-sell immediately.

Hand them a coupon for a similar service with a comparable discount so they’re tempted to return. We’ve already established these customers are bargain hunters, so another discount will surely lead them back to you. Plus, next time, at least the middleman (Groupon, LivingSocial, etc.) won’t be part of the equation.

5. Remember to follow up a few weeks later.

Following up helps you stay top of mind. Sending them special offers and discounts to get them back in the door is a great idea. However, you should also ask them for reviews and referrals to help you grow your customer base even further.

6. Don’t spam them!

Nothing turns off customers more than a constant barrage of texts and emails. Show some restraint and only contact them a maximum of once per week.

7. Give them an experience worth returning for.

This may seem obvious, but it bears mentioning. Don’t phone it in just because they’re not paying you full price. Give them the royal treatment—really wow them. Otherwise, if they’re unhappy with their experience, all the follow-up emails and Facebook posts in the world won’t bring them back.
Have you discovered any other tricks that work for you? Let us know!
Good luck out there!

How to Run a Holiday Facebook Ad That Drives Results

Last Updated: November 21, 2019

So, you want to run a holiday Facebook ad this year.

Holiday and winter-themed promotions are different from ads you’d normally run on Facebook, given their specific and temporary nature. You want people to make an immediate purchase or hire you for a particular, seasonal service. Therefore, you’ll have to create your holiday Facebook ad with these goals in mind.

But have no fear! Follow our recommendations below to run a holiday Facebook ad that’s effective and successful.

Choose an Audience for Your Holiday Facebook Ad

First, identify the people you want to target with your holiday Facebook ad. To run successful ads, you need to target the kinds of people who will actually want to click on them. This is your “audience,” and you’ll decide what your typical audience member looks like:

  • How old are they?
  • What’s their gender?
  • Where do they live?
  • What’s their education level and occupation?
  • What are their spending habits? (Yes, Facebook has access to this third-party data…)
  • Are they homeowners? (Again, Facebook knows this through outside channels.)
  • And more!

Note: If this is your first time running a Facebook ad, you may want to target your audience more broadly.

For instance, you might just say you want people age 18-65 in your home state to see your ad. Why? Since you haven’t run ads before, you probably don’t have much data regarding your target audience’s specific demographics and behaviors. Therefore, you don’t really want to narrow it down too much unless you’re super-confident in the profile you’ve created for your audience.

Set a Goal for Your Ad

What do you want to get out of your holiday Facebook ad? Do you want people to…

  • Visit a specific page on your website?
  • Buy your product?
  • Contact you?
  • Like your Facebook page?

Because you’re promoting a specific service for a short amount of time, your goal is probably for people to make a purchasing decision of some kind. If that’s the case, then you’ll want to set up your holiday Facebook ad with a “conversion” objective.

AgoraPulse advises, “Use the Conversion objective when your goal is to get people to convert for a specific action, whether that be opt-in, register or purchase.”

However, Facebook says you should only aim for conversions if you’re confident you can get a minimum of 50 conversions per week. In other words, only use this objective if you’re certain you can get at least 50 people to make a purchase, sign up for your program, or hire you in some way. Why? Because Facebook needs data about the people who convert so it can better optimize your ad and show it to even more people who are likely to convert.

If this sounds confusing, you’re not wrong. But just take Facebook’s word for it that your ad will be more successful if you can ensure a minimum of 50 conversions per week.

So, what if you’re not confident your holiday Facebook ad will get that many conversions in a week? You’ll want to use a “consideration” objective, instead. With this goal, your ad will increase things like website traffic, Facebook engagement, and lead generation, rather than purchasing decisions. These are still highly valuable actions!

Get all these tips simplified on a single page in our step-by-step guide!

Set a Budget for Your Ad

One of the reasons we love Facebook ads so much is that they use a super-simple billing system. In this regard, Facebook is much easier to use than Google AdWords.

Facebook simply charges you per day for each of your campaigns. So, all you have to do is decide how much you want to spend in total, and then divide that by the number of days your campaign will run.

During your ad campaign setup, Facebook will ask you how much you’d like to spend each day. This is where you input the daily spend you’ve calculated. Easy-peasy.

Create the Appearance of Your Ad

This is where practice makes perfect. You’ll probably end up experimenting with multiple versions of your holiday Facebook ad until you’re satisfied with how it looks.

However, the most important aspect of your ad is the image you use. Often, the success of an ad comes down to its visual component rather than its headline or messaging. People are visual creatures, after all.

Building on this fact, Facebook’s carousel ads take visual formatting to the next level by allowing you to display several different images and/or videos at once:

“The carousel format allows you to showcase up to 10 images or videos within a single ad, each with its own link. With more creative space within an ad, you can highlight different products, showcase specific details about one product, service or promotion, or tell a story about your brand that develops across each carousel card.”

In our own experience testing out different Facebook ad formats, we’ve had substantial success with carousel ads. We highly recommend at least trying out this format and seeing how it performs for you.

With all that being said, here are some general tips to keep in mind when developing the ad itself:

  • Use a high-quality image with bright colors and a high contrast. This will make your ad leap off the screen.
  • Make sure your image has a visually interesting subject to grab people’s attention. In most cases, it should represent the particular product or service you’re promoting.
  • Use strong call-to-action language (e.g. “call now,” “click here,” “contact us today,” etc.).
  • Make your ad’s headline count. Put the most important message right there in the headline so your audience can’t miss it.
  • Your ad must link to a dedicated page on your website about the product or service you’re promoting.

You can find even more tips in our post, “How to Start Promoting Holiday Services in October (and Why You Should).” Go check it out!

Note: As the folks at RWL Design point out, there’s a significant increase in the number of people using Facebook on their smartphones during the holidays.

Whether it’s because they’re out shopping for gifts or attending holiday parties, they’re scrolling through their news feeds on their phones more often than on desktops. Therefore, you’ll want to be sure your Facebook ad looks great on mobile devices.

This means shorter text, concise call-to-actions, and light-colored images. Moreover, make sure the webpage your ad links to is mobile optimized, as well.

Get the Most Out of Your Holiday Facebook Ad

Phew! Did you catch all that?!

When you’re setting up your holiday Facebook ad, use this post as your guide. These tips apply to virtually any type of local business or service provider. If you follow our above suggestions and advice, you’ll have a stunning ad that targets the right audience and gets you the results you need—all without breaking the bank.

Good luck!

Why You Must Market to Millennials (and How to Do It)

Last Updated: October 19, 2017

Another day, another article about millennials, right? We get it. You’re sick of hearing about them. However, we ask you to bear with us this time—because this is directly related to your small business’s marketing efforts.
Millennials are the largest living generation today. According to the 2015 U.S. Census, our country has more than 83 million millennials right now, compared to 75.4 million baby boomers. That’s a lot of purchasing power! And thanks to rapid changes in technology, we’re seeing a sharp difference in the way they prefer doing business.
This means you’re going to have to adapt to millennial preferences soon, if you haven’t already. They’re becoming the next generation of homeowners, and therefore your target customers for things like electrical work, plumbing, home remodeling, appliance repair, and the like. So, if you’re a local service provider specializing in any of these services, you have no choice but to get on board with how millennials operate. That’s just reality.
Obviously, this begs the question: How, exactly, do millennials operate? And what will you need to change in order to accommodate them?
Keep reading to find out!

How Millennials Approach Local Businesses

A recent Goldman Sachs report calls millennials “the first digital natives.” That’s a fitting description, to say the least. Millennials spend a lot of their time online. Like, a lot. Here’s what you need to know about their digital habits and how they deal with businesses online:

  • They browse the web on their smartphones and tablets daily. Consumer Barometer (a Google partner) reports that 75% of millennials go online via smartphone at least as much as via computer. Moreover, roughly 33% access the internet on smartphones more often than on computers.
  • They Google *everything*: 55% of millennials use search engines to research products they’re interested in buying. More than 40% do this research on a smartphone. They demand and expect information on the spot.
  • Once they’ve heard about a local business, they typically look for its Facebook page to check out reviews, posts, photos, and more details.
  • They rely on customer reviews and recommendations more than other generations. They use social networks to get advice twice as often as Gen-Xers and baby boomers.
  • They don’t like making phone calls. In many cases, they’ll go out of their way not to talk to someone on the phone, even if that means working with a different company.
  • Their preferred methods of communication are text, email, and IM/chat. According to Forbes, 68% of millennials say they text “a lot” throughout the day. Compare this to just 47% of Gen-Xers.

The gist? Millennials love using their phones for everything except talking. Go figure.

How You Can Appeal to Millennials

Taking all of the above into account, you get a strong sense of what appeals to millennials. So, in your own marketing efforts for your local business, apply these three rules:
1.) Look good on their smartphones.
The majority of millennials are glued to their smartphones. They search Google, watch videos, go on social media, and text. If you want to appeal to millennials, your business has to be easily discoverable and accessible on their smartphones. This means having a strong Google Maps listing and an attractive, mobile-optimized website.
2.) Meet them on social media.
Social media is where millennials are spending their time. It’s how they connect and interact with the world. They rely on social media for recommendations, advice, and general information. If you don’t have an active page that millennials can check out, you’ll miss out on tons of business.
3.) Think beyond phone calls.
This one is huge in terms of closing jobs. Even if you have an attractive mobile site and engaging Facebook page, you could lose a millennial’s business simply by not having an email form or messaging option. You must provide a way to contact you that doesn’t require a phone call.
And if you DO have an email form set up, make sure it actually works! We can’t tell you how many businesses have an email address on their website and just never check their inbox. It’s as if all their prospective jobs jump straight into a black hole. Along those same lines, if you do have a Facebook page with Messenger enabled, make sure you’re receiving notifications so you don’t miss any messages.
Pro tip: Always respond in kind. In other words, if someone messages or texts you, use that same mode of communication when you reply. Do not return a text with a phone call, unless the customer specifies otherwise.

Resistance Is Futile

There’s nothing easy about upending the way you’ve done things for years. However, if you want your local business to continue to grow, rather than shrink, you must adapt to the youngest generation with the strongest purchasing power. That means you have to make it easier for millennials to find your business, learn about your services and reviews, and contact you—all from the smartphone in the palm of their hand.
By following our recommendations in this post, you’ll be well equipped to meet the expectations of millennials and turn them into your newest customers. Good luck!

How to Start Promoting Holiday Services in October (and Why You Should)

Last Updated: October 12, 2017

Do you have a plan yet for capitalizing on the holiday season? We know, we know: “It’s only October!” But we all know the holidays have a way of sneaking up on us before we’re ready. This year, why not plan ahead?
That’s why we put together this quick guide to help you jump-start your winter advertising early. By following our suggestions in this blog post, you’ll promote your seasonal services and set yourself up for a busy, fruitful winter. (Better stock up on coffee now!)

Why Market Seasonal Services Early?

Before we get into the how-to, let’s explain why it’s a smart move to start marketing your winter seasonal services in October.
First, if you start your advertising a few weeks early, you’ll give your ads a chance to gain traction. They’ll put the bug in people’s ears for holiday gift ideas, winter specials, and other seasonal services they might be interested in. As one business owner says, “It can really help to beat the noise by starting a seasonal campaign before everyone else.”
Most people don’t consider it wintertime until at least mid-November (even though the winter solstice isn’t until December 21). So, if you start running ads now, you can get an edge on your local competitors. You’ll get your message across before everyone’s Google and Facebook pages are flooded with winter-themed ads.
Of course, it’s not only about beating your competitors to the jump. By starting your marketing early, you’ll also reach those eager holiday shoppers looking for gift ideas. As Adam Heitzman writes for Inc.com:

“Starting in September, the internet comes alive with holiday fanatics who are already counting down the days to December. On top of that, a huge number of adults start their holiday shopping as early as October to space out their purchases. If your business peaks during these holiday months, start promoting deals, products, services, and ideas to reach those early shoppers.”

So, if you’re going to start advertising early, make sure you’re choosing products and services that are seasonal or time-sensitive. This will build a sense of urgency, which makes ads more effective.

What Kinds of Seasonal Services Are Good for Ads?

When we talk about seasonal services for the winter, we’re referring to any service that has significantly higher demand in the winter months. These could be popular Christmas gift ideas or just services relevant to the fall and wintertime. For example:

  • Year-end accounting (seasonal service)
  • Remote car starter (gift idea)
  • Massage therapy (gift idea)
  • Snow removal (seasonal service)
  • Leaf removal (seasonal service)
  • Firewood delivery (seasonal service)
  • Electrical/handyman work for stringing up lights and decorations (holiday-specific service)
  • Christmas tree pickup (holiday-specific service)
  • New appliance installation (gift idea)
  • New car stereo (gift idea)
  • Home theater installation (gift idea)

…Just to name a few!

How to Run Sponsored Ads for Seasonal Services and Gifts

Whether you decide to advertise with Google AdWords or Facebook Ads, that’s up to you. As we explained in a previous post, both platforms are well suited to special, limited-time promos. Your decision will come down to your budget and what, exactly, you’re promoting:

On AdWords, your special must be for a product or service people are already searching for. On Facebook, the special has to be intriguing enough that it steals people’s attention away from their news feeds.

Also, keep in mind that AdWords is generally more expensive than Facebook. Meanwhile, Facebook will be easy on your budget and still allow you to reach quite a large audience. Plus, Facebook’s ads are highly versatile and customizable. Just remember that AdWords is more often credited for directly driving up revenues for businesses. So, while AdWords is expensive, it may turn out to be worth the investment for you.
You can discover more about their differences here: “How to Choose Between Facebook Ads and Google AdWords.”
Once you’ve chosen which ad platform to use for your seasonal services, it’s time to think about what you want your ads to say.
Ad Creation Tips:

  • Keep your message clear and straightforward.
  • Make your ad’s headline count. Put the most important message right there in the headline so your audience can’t miss it.
  • Use strong call-to-action language (e.g. “call now,” “click here,” “contact us today,” etc.)
  • Don’t give too much information away. Instead, give your audience an intriguing preview so their curiosity builds.
  • Create a sense of urgency by using phrases like “don’t miss out” and “last chance.” If it’s a limited-time coupon, include the end date.
  • Use a high-quality image with bright colors and a high contrast. This will make your ad leap off the screen.
  • Speaking of images, make sure your image has a visually interesting subject to grab people’s attention. In most cases, it should represent the particular product or service you’re promoting.
  • Include your company slogan to increase brand awareness. Use other brand assets, like a signature font and logo, while you’re at it.
  • Consider adding a giveaway with your promo to generate more interest and excitement.
  • If you have the capability, create a video ad. Adobe reports that consumers who watch a video ad are 1.81 times (almost twice) more likely to make a purchase.
  • Show off your sense of humor! Don’t force it, but if you can make a good joke in your ad, your audience will respond more strongly.

Two MUSTS: 
1.) Whatever product or service you’re promoting must have a dedicated webpage your ad can link to. It can be a landing page specifically designed for this promo, or it can be a relevant page on your existing website. Just make sure the page contains all relevant details and displays your contact info prominently. A call to action would help, too!
2.) Give yourself some time for your ad to be processed and approved. To be safe, create your ad at least 24 hours in advance of when you need it to display.
Feeling stuck? Need some inspiration? Check out this awesome list from AdEspresso: “55 Facebook Ads That Get the Holiday Advertising Right.”

Prepare to Be Busy!

If you use these suggestions to promote your wintertime specials and seasonal services, and you start advertising NOW, then you’ll be in great shape by the time the holidays roll around. In fact, this scene might start to look a little too familiar:

Busy Elves During the Holidays

Good luck!

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