For years, brick-and-mortar retailers have watched as the term “brick-and-mortar” has come to conjure images of an antiquated building, crumbling beneath the overwhelming, far-reaching digital empire of online sales. These days, it seems hardly a news cycle goes by without another major retailer announcing its plan to shut down physical locations: Sears, Barnes & Noble, JC Penney — the list goes on. Meanwhile, Amazon has grown so big that sometimes other ecommerce sites make more sales through an Amazon digital storefront than their own websites.
But despite these grim circumstances, there’s no reason for brick-and-mortar store owners to be intimated by the ecommerce giants. After all, there was a time not too long ago when Amazon only sold books. How did it grow beyond that? The company combined excellent customer service with a cutting-edge digital marketing gameplan to grow into the massively successful retailer it is today.
As it turns out, today’s brick-and-mortar businesses have access to many of the very same digital strategies that catapulted their ecommerce competitors to the forefront. By taking advantage of improving online technology and strengthening their customer relationships, traditional retailers can supercharge their digital marketing efforts. In fact, by following the tips below, brick-and-mortar retailers can even generate greater ROI than they’re used to seeing from traditional advertising.
1. Use localized search engine optimization to drive your online visitors to your physical stores.
In today’s competitive marketplace, you need a website. Most consumers today find information about stores in their area by searching the web. Using search engine marketing means not just having a website, but also ensuring that the content on the site contains relevant keywords, key phrases and localized information so that search engines can find your site and…