If the answer is: What is a digital audit? Than you are in luck, we are here to help. If the answer is never or too long ago. Do not fret, the end of a season is a great time to do it. In this blog we will talk about what a digital audit is, what to audit and tips for ensuring that your digital small business presences is in good health.
A digital audit is a helpful process for your platforms and your small business. Think of it like a check up at the doctor. You want to make sure that everything is in working order with your health. Your digital presence could probably use a check up too. A digital audit ensures that you are consistent and connecting effectively. Join us as we go thought a check list to audit your website and social media. Actionable steps to help ensure that you can connect with your visitors and create easy digital flow across all your online platforms. Setting you up for success with your small business no matter the season.
Take the time to update your products and services on your website for the changing season. Ensure that all of the products and services you want to offer for the coming season.
This may seem like a pretty easy one. However, the year usually moves a lot faster than we anticipate and its really easy to for our websites, if you are a small business that maintains their own website, to get away from us. It happens to most business owners at some point. The list of things to do gets long and updating our website gets forgotten. A good rule of thumb is to break the year into quarters and follow the retail calendars. The retail calendar works about 6 months ahead and actually Dollarama - yes the dollar store. It probably the best and most useful example of it in practice. They put out their Halloween, Christmas and New Years items in the end of August. As the autumn/Christmas retail calendar indicates that from September to January encompasses all those important retail or service time seasons. They do this to help their customers know of the changing seasons and start thinking about what they may need or want during that time. For most small businesses doing a spring/summer and autumn/winter layout of their offerings work best for them. This ensures that when customers are visiting their website they have the most accurate products and services being shown to them in relation to what they may need. If you are a small business that wants to do it seasonally. That is even better and you should before the start of the first month of the season. Visitors are more likely to purchase your goods and utilize your services if they are up to date and reflective of current seasonal needs.
Go to your website and click on your social links. Make sure they actually link to the social platform you want it connected to. Ensure that ALL of your social media platforms are listed on your website.
Did you update your social media handles lately? Start using another platform? Rebrand your business? If the answer is yes to any of those. One of the most beneficial things you can do for your business is make sure that your social links on all your platforms connect correctly to any other platform. Also, to ensure that they are not connected to the website provider you used to build your website. Yes! That happens and most businesses do not know its happening. If you have used a template to build your website. The website provider will put in their social handles into the template until you replace them with your own social media handles. Which can be helpful to them but not to your business. Do a quick click on all your socials, make sure they are connecting to your business and you are able to funnel customers to your other platforms with ease.
One link to rule them all. If you use multiple platforms to sell your goods or services. Consider a multi purpose link!
Different platforms have different advantages and vasty different audiences. If you are a small business owner who sells their goods or offers their services on a variety of platforms. It may be useful for you and your visitors to have one link that connects them to all of them. Multipurpose links like Linkree or SmartBio. Make it so that you do not have to choose which platform gets featured and that you visitors can visit you across your various platforms. Multi purpose links also allow for your to include your social media planforms. Helping you build all your platforms, increase your visibility and provide a variety of options for people to connect and stay connected to your small business.
Get consistent. Go to all your social media platforms and ensure that your bio, section, logo, colour theme and aesthetic is the same.
Consistency builds consumer confidence. A consistent branding or aesthetic motif can be extremely helpful to building consumer confidence and more importantly create brand association. No matter the size of your business or the industry you are in. It is important that you help your products and services stand out. For many of the brands you are familiar with today, it was not necessarily their products that earned them widespread attention, but more the consistent branding. Think of Barbie and the signature lettering and color associated with the Brabie Brand. When we see those distinct colours and text lettering we know its Barbie branded and have strong brand association. You can have that too! Ensuring your business is consistent across platforms presents a polished and professional representation of your business. With tools like Canva. Even the most inexperienced business owners can create logos, banners and branded visuals that achieve the polished and consistent look. If you would rather have a professional do it. That is not an issue a branding agency to help you with achieving that and ensuring a clean and easy roll out - they will obviously be an expense for your business but also an investment into the legacy of your small business as well.
Share your business story, on any digital presence you have. Tell us, visitors and potential customers about yourself. A brand story helps people get to know you.
Did you know that an about section, a FAQ - frequently asked questions, or a bio section are one of consumers first places to visit then being introduced to a business new to them? Did you also know that a lack of a small business bio, brand story or origin story can also be a factor when a consumer is deciding if your products, services and offerings are right for them? Why is that? Well its relatability. In a more consumer conscious world, consumers want to support small businesses that they can relate and identify with. Sharing your unique story helps consumers get to know you, know your ethos and it humanizes you as a small business. What are some things you can include in your small business about or brand story?
What motivated you to start making your goods or to offer your services?
What background, expertise, education or standout knowledge do you have within the field your products or services are in?
What makes you passionate about what you offer?
How did your business come to be?
Share what your personal connection you have as a business owner to the industry you have a business in?
What inspired you to start and continues to inspire you, to keep going?
What are the ethos and or unique practices of your business? That consumers can relate to. For instance are you are eco friendly brand? Share what actions and practices do you take to ensure you are eco friendly.
Are you a social enterprise? If so share how your business stays conscious.
Really there is no right or wrong when putting together a bio or brand a story. As each small business and their small business journey is unique. Go with what you feel good and comfortable with but remember your story an experience is worth telling and sharing. So do it!
Be mindful where you spend your time online and with whom. Stop chatting with other small businesses and start chatting with customers and visitors to your social media. We know this one will not be liked however, someone has got to say it.
Community is a great thing, having it and maintaining it. However, if you are not careful. You may find yourself spending a little too much time chatting with other small business owners and not your victors. It happens a lot, to small businesses who are starting out. They will seek out places like Facebook groups and engage in distracting practices. Like gossip and taking on negative business habits, eating up your time and ensuring you loose focus. They are essentially and echo chamber - telling you what you want to hear not what you need to hear to improve your business.
What is it that well known businesses have that maybe you do not? The discipline to use their time wisely and be talking to the right kinds of people, their customers. No recognisable and established brand spends their digital time gabbing with other small businesses. Why?
Other small businesses are not their customers, which is the case for 90% of all businesses. The small 10% is businesses like ours and small business service providers. We make it a priority to talk with you, you need to make it a priority to talk to your visitors and customers.
While yes engaging with your small business community is important, it is never going to be more important than talking with people interested in supporting your business finically or who assist in its growth. If you have time to be in a group on Facebook chatting or a forum, you have time to make content on your small businesses platforms and engage to your potential visitors and customers. Make connections with customers and visitors, priority one and other businesses a secondary. If you do not separate your digital distractions, they will surely separate you from your growth. You can count on that!