The Reasons Why Strong Digital Presence is Essential for SMBs

06/08/2021

What is a digital presence?

Digital presence is the identity of your business online. In simpler words, digital presence refers to what people find about your company on the internet. It includes the content about your company that you or your customers post online. This can be website content, social media profiles, product reviews, office or store locations, digital advertisements, and more.

A good part of this digital presence is under your control. For example, your social media profiles, digital marketing campaign content, and website content are strategically drafted and then uploaded by you. This gives you the power to decide what people know about your brand. Besides this, digital presence may also include the image your customers build for you by posting reviews about your products and services.

Reasons for SMBs to have a Strong Digital Presence:

There are about 622 million active Internet users in India. And 90% of users prefer searching online before buying the product from a brand. They wish to know about your brand’s journey, products or services that you offer, location of your store, service hours, and other related information that influence a decision. Thus, if your customers are online, it makes more sense for you to join their league. Here are few more reasons to have a strong digital presence:

Ensure Round-the-Clock Accessibility

E-retail sales are expected to account for approx. 22% of all retail sales worldwide by 2024. Digital presence helps your existing and potential customers have regular access to relevant and updated information about your products and services. This fills the communication gap between you and your customers. It also allows them to find the information about your brand in less time, without physically visiting your store or contacting a customer service executive.

Your website could be considered equivalent to a 24-hour showroom. This may increase the chances of sales. Customers can place an order sooner instead of having to reach your brick-and-mortar store. Research suggests 1 in 10 mobile searches for local business information results in a purchase.

Improve Brand Building

According to a source, nearly 70% of customers prefer buying products from a company only after checking its review online. To build your brand’s image, it is recommended to build a potential customer’s trust in your company and your product by providing an online presence. This can give your customers a chance to review your company. Positive online reviews can influence 90% of customers. Similarly, the way you communicate with your customers, show efforts to resolve their queries and process requests, the quality of your social media posts can work in your favor if leveraged effectively. Once you are successful in creating a positive impression of your brand, the chances of them buying from you increases too.

Increase Customer Reach

While face-to-face interactions are a boon for brands, argumentatively it has a limited reach. The internet has increased the ability of customers from diverse geographies to buy from online retail stores. This expands the reach and helps boost sales for brands. Having a strong digital presence can also give you the golden opportunity to pitch your products to a wider audience worldwide. This allows you to sell to people next-door as well as people who stay in a different country. When you have access to a greater number of customers, you are likely to close more sales and expand bottom lines.

Helps to Know what Customers Prefer

Personalization forms the basis of an effective sales pitch. When you know what customers want, you can easily provide them the right service. Social media profiles open up avenues for transparent communication with your customers. The reviews posted online can serve as a guideline you refer to. Based on what your customers prefer, you can choose to better customize your offerings. This two-way communication facilitated by digital presence can serve as a bridge between the seller and the buyer.

Better and Cheaper Marketing for Products

People enjoy shopping more if they buy voluntarily. Online presence and marketing allows buyers to make a more relaxed and better - informed decision. Besides putting your customer in charge of product purchase, it also conveys your message subtly. In fact, online product reviews are trusted 12x more than traditional advertisements or other forms of sales copy.

How can SMBs Create a Strong Digital Presence?

Setting up an online marketing presence is a highly recommended step for consistent business growth. When creating a digital presence for your brand, several factors come to play. For instance, you need to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly as 51% of shoppers use cell phones to search online and make purchases. Similarly, if your website is easy to use, attractive, and strategically designed to improve customer experience, it would be more effective. In addition to this, sellers who post interactive and relevant content for their customers can build stronger customer-seller relationships. Besides this, sellers can optimize search engines, monitor the effectiveness of their online presence, and work towards creating a stronger digital presence.

One of the easiest ways to ensure everything is in place for maximum impact is to register as an e-seller on popular marketplaces like Amazon, which would not just help expand your business reach but also grow your sales through digital ad products. Digital journeys of companies that have bloomed beautifully after going digital, serve as an encouragement. Companies like Zishta, Tied-Ribbons, India Gardening, and Aarshaveda are a few among the many success stories of sellers. If you find such success stories inspiring and noteworthy, you choose to join them in their journey by going digital.

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