To get real results out of your local business advertising strategy, you want to leverage every opportunity to get your brand in front of as many potential customers as possible.
While your competitors might be satisfied with obvious methods of advertising a local business, savvy small businesses that need to stand out from the crowd take a multi-channel approach.
Adding just a few of these local business ads tips to your strategy could make a massive difference to the amount of revenue you’re reporting at the end of the month—and some of them are super simple too!
1. Local online business directories
Online directories are one of the fastest ways to start local advertising for small businesses and submission is usually completely free.
Posting your listing in the top directories, as well as dedicated local directories, can quickly earn you extra visibility and qualified traffic. Not only that, but a wide citation distribution can also boost your Google local pack and Maps rankings, as the search engine uses NAP data (name, address, and phone number) from other directories to verify your business.
But submitting to all these directories is a real slog, so leveraging tools that take the legwork out of it can get you some easy local business ad wins in next to no time, freeing you up to move on to the next big idea.
Local business listings distributed by Semrush’s Listing Management tool
2. Advertise your small business in the local paper
The traditional way to get eyes on your local business is still effective today. Local advertising for small businesses is the bread and butter of newspapers, which often offer excellent rates to entice buyers away from Google Ads.
Package deals could include a local business advertisem*nt on the front page of the print edition, an advertorial (a paid advert that resembles an editorial), as well as a mention on their social media pages and website.
And while you’re in touch with the local paper, consider free opportunities to market your business with them. Pitch a compelling editorial spin on your business such as a newsworthy event, human interest story, or local charity donation via a big novelty check.
Local reporters are often under a lot of pressure to fill otherwise blank pages, so send a photograph along with your pitch to make life easier for them (local newspapers don’t always have the resources to send out professional photographers these days).
Stories printed in the local paper can end up in the online edition too, creating an opportunity to get a link to help with your local SEO efforts as well.
3. Encourage locals to advocate for your business
Social proof is a powerful way to convince people to get in touch or visit your location, especially for local businesses that rely heavily on their reputation.
Asking customers to leave a review where people are discovering your business can be a huge boost for your conversion rates, and there’s no better place to display five shining stars than your Google Business Profile.
Local business reviews in Google’s local pack
Fortunately, Google provides lots of free materials to advertise your Google Business Profile and encourage people to post a star rating.
Advertise your Google Business Profile on the counter at your brick and mortar store, your vehicles and flyers you hand out to customers.
4. Billboard ads and posters
Classic billboards and bus stop poster ads are still a popular small business advertising channel.
Real-world display advertising adds credibility to your business and builds trust with users that pass by it on a daily basis.
However, tracking the impact of this type of local business advertisem*nt is notoriously difficult compared to the sophisticated tracking capabilities of today's digital advertising.
Consider a call tracking service like Callrail to help you work out if this particular local business advertising method is paying off.
5. Local Facebook and Instagram ads
Facebook and Instagram are a cheap way to invest in local advertising for small businesses.
Clicks tend to cost less than search engine PPC advertising and you can get creative with discounts, special offers or free samples to entice people to click and share.Plus, you can upload client lists that have opted into marketing so you can retarget people that you know are already interested in your business.
Local business advertising on Facebook
6. Locally targeted Google Ads
The beauty of Google Ads is that you can target users in very specific locations, so you’re only spending money on the most relevant audience.
Local advertising for small businesses can appear in Google Search results, Google Maps and even in Gmail inboxes.
And if you take reservations or sell products and services online, Google Ads is one of the best local business advertising channels available for tracking your ROI because you can see exactly how much you’ve spent versus how much revenue each campaign brought in.
Getting Google Ads right can be tricky if you don’t have much experience, so it might pay to use the services of an agency, freelancer or an AI-powered app like Ads Launch Assistant to make sure you’re not wasting ad spend on irrelevant keywords or targeting areas you don’t serve. Rank tracker: Google Ads is a great way to appear at the top of local results, but you should also invest in local SEO to get your profile positioned organically too. Use Semrush’s Listing Management tool for an objective view of where your business ranks (checking Google yourself by simply searching keywords can show you results that are vastly different to those shown to the average user).
7. Landing pages tailored to your location
Whatever method you use to attract local traffic, you’ll want to make users feel confident that they’re in the right place once they find you.
A well-optimized landing page not only delivers the best possible user experience, but if you use the right local keywords, you also increase the chances of your content ranking organically.
And it doesn’t hurt to place a Google Map and use schema code to mark up your NAP data to help users find your location and verify your address to search engines.
8. Sports team sponsorship for advertising local business
Sports clubs suffered massively during the pandemic, with many having to close their doors to supporters and fundraising opportunities along with them.
Sponsorship is not only a great way to build brand awareness at a local level, but it also positions you favorably in the community, who’ll be more likely to support a business that helps lift up their team.
Practically all local sports teams offer sponsorship deals, from simple field-side boards to your brand’s logo emblazoned across players’ chests.
A local business advertising board at a soccer club in the UK
9. Flyers and direct mail
It might not be the hottest thing in local business advertising, but sticking paper flyers in people’s hands and through their doors can still drum up a lot of business.
You can design good-looking flyers yourself with affordable software like Canva, or use the services of a local or online printer to make them for you.
Flyers often get stuck on people’s refrigerators or pin boards at home, ready to grab when they’re in need of your business’ services.
10. Collaborate with others advertising local businesses
Building relationships with other local businesses that are relevant to yours can bring you new customers with zero investment.
For example, a car rental company might strike a deal with a hotel to keep a branded vehicle in the parking lot in exchange for handing out accommodation discounts to their customers.
Referrals are often a primary source of new business for companies prepared to go the extra mile to delight customers. Working with similarly minded companies in your area gives you a whole new audience to advertise to with very little efforts.
Bonus tip: Semrush Local's Listing Management tool is a local citation building service local citation building service that rolls out your small business listings to more than 70+ directories—and you only have to submit your details once!
Time saver: Once the reviews start pouring in, you’ll need a way to manage them all and get back to everyone that was kind enough to offer feedback. Semrush Local's Review Management tool lets you reply to reviews across several platforms, saving you a lot of time that could be better spent on other local business advertisem*nt efforts.
Rank tracker: Google Ads is a great way to appear at the top of local results, but you should also invest in local SEO to get your profile positioned organically too. Use Semrush’s Map Rank Tracker for an objective view of where your business ranks (checking Google yourself by simply searching keywords can show you results that are vastly different to those shown to the average user).
