Doing Business Online: Get Leads In Real-Time
Doing Business Online: Get Leads In Real-Time
With the global economy shifting from brick-and-mortar stores to online sales, there has never been a better time than now to start your business. If you're looking for ways of getting leads on the Internet, you will be pleasantly surprised to know that there are many options available. You can have live conversations with potential customers through Skype and Facebook Messenger; advertise your business on Craigslist or in classified ads; or create an eCommerce website that is completely optimized for search engines like Google. What's more, these methods will not only lead your company into new markets and make more money but also allow you to interact with potential clients in real time. In this post, we'll give you three ways of doing business online along with their corresponding pros and cons.
1. Facebook Messenger Chat
Facebook Messenger Chat might just be the most effective lead generating tool in your arsenal. After all, if someone is willing to chat with you online, they must consider your brand or company at least somewhat interesting. Plus, there's no awkwardness involved – when someone engages in a conversation with you via social media, it's easier to build rapport than it would be in real life. If you're planning to use this method, your best bet is to open up a Facebook Messenger Chat window and start talking to people. In fact, you should never offer any incentive or promotion in your first chat with them – just talk about your business.
Pros:
Conversing with clients in real time makes it easier for you to establish a rapport and build trust.
Unlike other methods, Facebook Messenger Chat does not cost anything – that is why it's such an effective lead generating tool for small businesses.
The only hard part of having a chat conversation on Facebook Messenger is getting people to initiate contact with you. As long as you manage to do that, your time will surely be well spent.
Cons:
Because people who initiate a conversation with you are probably interested in your services, many people will seem almost ready to sign up for them the minute they get through to you. This can lead to an influx of new clients and make it hard for other people to find a way in.
The main disadvantage of Facebook Messenger Chat is that it's hard to figure out who's really interested in signing up for your company.
2. Craigslist
Craigslist is an old school website that's free to use and wants nothing more than bringing people together. It was essential during the rise of internet access in the United States, and it continues to be useful because of its simple user interface. Instead of using your own website or even a social media account for getting leads, you could simply post ads on Craigslist for your business. There are many different categories like cars, jobs, apartments, or household products you can choose from – all with the sole purpose of getting people to talk to you online. However, this tends to be a very one-sided exchange – whenever you search for something on Craigslist or click on a listing, you're the only one that benefits.
Pros:
Craigslist is free to use and offers a wide array of options for your business. You don't have to worry about creating a website or an eCommerce store – just post an ad!
Once you've published your ad, there's virtually no limit to how many people will look at it. You can even have them message you back if they like what they see.
Although Craigslist may seem like the perfect option for small businesses looking for leads, the site does have some limitations. For starters, it doesn't allow payments.
Cons:
One of the best things about having a website is being able to track the traffic you get from social media, review websites, and search engines. You can also see how many people visit your site and contact you on Facebook. However, Craigslist is not a very effective lead source – most clients will end up emailing you because they don't see any other options.
The fact that Craigslist is free means it lacks credibility. Some people might worry that they'll be pressured into buying something through this service if they've been contacted online. They just don't know how to tell the difference between good leads and scams.
3. Google Local Listing
Google Local Listing is a free service that allows you to create a business listing for your company online. It's simple, quick, and best of all – it allows you to get leads from search engines like Google. In order to do that, you would just need to create a Google+ account, name your business, upload some photos of your products and services, and add the proper tags so that people can find your listing more easily when they're looking for a local business like yours. It may sound confusing when we describe it this way, but in practice everything is simple. All you need to do is upload the pictures and fill out some of the blanks.
Pros:
Google Local Listing is one of the most effective and popular lead sourcing tools available on the internet today. Whenever a new visitor comes to your website, it's easy for them to know whether or not you're a real company by checking your listing on Google.com.
Unlike other methods we've mentioned, Google Local Listing offers more benefits than just getting leads. If you offer the proper information, people will be able to find your business in their maps app on their phones and even get directions! This means that there's a good chance that they'll visit your store and make a purchase.
Conclusion
Lead generation is one of the most important aspects of running a small business. Many companies think that they can simply grow on word of mouth, but this is almost never the case unless you're doing something very unique. As we've explained above, there are many different techniques you can use to get online leads for your business and it's up to you to choose the right one based on your company, industry, and personal preferences. One general tip we recommend is avoiding social media whenever possible and using Facebook Messenger Chat in its place – Facebook has so much more information about each individual user that it makes the whole process more effective in general.