Why your online presence can make or break your multi-location business

Gone are the days when all you needed was a simple website to attract and retain customers. Today, savvy customers expect more than a decent website—they want a strong digital footprint that drives trust. With more consumers shifting to trust-based, socially forward organizations, they want to connect with brands they trust and it’s going to take more than just a website to accomplish that.
What do consumers want these days?
People want to connect with brands, they want to support their local community and drive traffic to the places they enjoy frequenting. They expect to be able to buy from purpose-driven brands that believe in the same causes and have the same values. In fact, purpose-conscious consumers make up the largest segment of consumers, around 44%. Today’s consumers want brands that bring people together. We have written previously about the importance of building community and finding spaces where you can bring your audience together, whether that’s an online forum or an in-person event.
In order to drive connection and community these days, your multi-location business needs to have a strong digital presence, and not just a website. Each location should be active on social platforms and other relevant spaces to build trust with audiences and actively manage their reputation. Most consumers want to be able to trust a brand, and that trust comes in the form of a glowing reputation. These days, most of those interactions are managed online through reviews and communities, not websites. Case studies were once the gold standard for reputation management and building trust, but with the ease of access to actual client’s opinions on numerous platforms, reviews have grown in favor over company created case studies. All in all, this makes a robust digital presence a necessity, not a nice to have.
How an outdated online presence can cost you sales (and trust)
An outdated online presence is going to cost you because if your clients cannot find your business or easily access the information they are looking for, they will go elsewhere. Any barrier to information or the slightest indication of irrelevant data is enough to serve as a deterrent to conversion. That is why meeting your audience where they are on social media and in other digital ecosystems is a powerful way to keep or gain market share and build the community they seek. So, how do you ensure a robust digital presence as a multi-location business?
A quick checklist to help you improve your online presence for the conscious consumer
- Invest in the right platforms. Do you know where your audience is getting their information? Do you have an online presence where your demographic frequents? If you know a large percentage of your audience uses Facebook over Instagram, it doesn’t make sense to put most of your energy into posting on Instagram. Rather, invest in the right platforms first, and then you can grow your audience from there. Discuss how each location will appear on digital platforms and where they need to have a profile. Maybe each location requires a Google Business profile and a landing page but not individual social media accounts.
- Make your values loud and clear. Want to get it right with purpose-driven consumers? Make sure your values come across in your actions and your profiles. Put them front and center on your website, and reference them on your social profiles. Talking about your causes is a great way to start conversations and drive traffic.
- Build a robust social presence – Social media is the gold standard for digital engagement these days! With a robust social media presence, you are winning more than half the battle in multi-location marketing. It’s vital for driving traffic and engagement. And, if you really want to score big, make sure to include the leadership team and your employees in your social strategy. Why? According to Sprout Social, “Seventy-two percent of consumers report feeling a bond with brands when employees share information about the business online.” That’s a huge majority of people that want to hear from your employees! So, why not let them take center stage?
- Refresh outdated terminology and visuals – If your brand looks tired and old, it is time to make it relevant again. Invest in a visual identify that attracts and engages people and evokes a certain feeling everytime they see it. For a multi-location brand this might also mean giving each location a unique accent or callout in order to allow for easy recognition. And, because messaging matters, it should be updated to reflect brand values and an evolving audience.
- Engage with your customers – Some actions provide exponential returns, and connecting with your audience is one of those actions. How? Respond to reviews, solicit feedback, run campaigns that include real customers or employees, show support for your audience’s causes, show support for your brand’s causes, and share content and videos about it all!
- Listen to what people are saying. Are you incorporating feedback? Are you performing regular market research? There are few things more bothersome than a brand that sends out irreverent or off-the-mark campaigns and doesn’t respond to feedback, direct or otherwise. Take the time to implement feedback you receive from your audience, both on digital channels and in person, as it can go a long way in encouraging people to remain loyal customers and engaging those you may have lost.
Brands that know how to engage with audiences
While a brand refresh is a great way to reengage an audience, remember that it’s going to take more than a logo change to really boost your online presence. Below are a few quick examples of brands and campaigns they have run to show how they are evolving and responding to the desires of their ideal audience.
- Aerie recently ran a campaign eschewing societies traditional notion of rail-thin lingerie models in favor of real bodies, using the tag #AerieReal on social media to engage a broader, more representative audience. With the company approaching a billion dollar valuation, their campaign has more than succeeded.
- Crocs – Everyone loves to hate Crocs, until they buy a pair of Crocs. To boost adoption, the brand aligned itself with influential figures and got a refresh, appealing to younger generations through personalization.
- Patagonia – While not so much the result of a refresh, Patagonia has done an amazing job of speaking to its values and being a top-tier purpose-based organization. With a mission to save the planet, people engage with Patagonia because of its unwavering commitment to the environment and manufacturing quality outdoor gear. It brings people together over common goals and hobbies. Once a Patagonia customer, always a Patagonia customer.
Ready for a brand refresh? Need help building a more robust digital presence? Get in touch with MDG today to start seeing results for your multi-location business.