There are 7 simple steps to improve your offline business

1.) Keep an updated listing on Google My Business and other online platforms.
2.) Use recent and clear photos.
3.) Add a good image description.
4.) Happily ask customers for reviews.
5.) Respond to reviews.
6.) Request for customers email and social media handle
7.) Be active on Social Media.

As a business growth/Copywriting expert one of the common questions I get is from small businesses who want to get more local customers for their business is how they promote their business online for a little as zero cost.

You can do this by improving your local SEO so that your business shows up on Google searches and on all the important social platforms.
There are the 7 steps I usually recommend to offline business owners to follow in order to improve their listings and get more customers. These steps are free and easy to implement, and they generate results if done properly!

1. Keep an updated listing on Google My Business and other online platforms.

Many small businesses set up their accounts on various online platforms and then never bother to update them.
An old, outdated business profile can hurt your business.
On the other hand, a complete profile that’s consistently updated shows you are serious with your business and it will bring customers to you.
When someone searches for a business in their city, the quality of your profile is what usually decides whether a customer chooses you or one of your competitors.

Action: At least twice a week, update your business listings on Google, social media, and any other sites. Make sure all your contact details are up to date and you’ve filled out as much information as possible.

2. Add a good image description.

One way to keep your profile current and active is to regularly add new photos to your business profile.
Whether you run a restaurant, fashion, saloon business, or any other type of business, it's important to show yourself visually to your intended customers.
This may contain any of the following images:
• Image from a recent event or work.
• You and your team at work or hanging out.
• Your work environment.
• Your latest product
You can even let your customers take pictures of you; all you have to do is ask them to tag you when they post photos on Instagram (or any social platform).

Action: thrice a week, add recent corporate photos.

3. Add a good image description.

A good image description tells the story behind the image, Google, Facebook and Other social media platforms provides you with space to add a description to the image to be posted.

Don't just write anything but use that space to highlight why your brand is unique and why your customers should visit it. This may include:
• An attractive description of your business.
• Special offers and discounts.
• Seasonal offers.
Make the description relevant to your target audience and give them some reason to look at you instead of your competitors.

4. Happily ask customers for reviews.

This is one of the most important things to do for local SEO (and for your business’ marketing in general).
Get as many great customer reviews as possible.
Research shows that potential customers based their decision on the quality of positive reviews.
Note: You should always be asking your happy customers for reviews ( It is important).

Unhappy customers will always find their way to your profile pages if they really, really want to leave you a bad review. But you don’t need to encourage that to happen.
On the other hand, you can make it easy for your best customers to leave you great ratings by just asking them directly.

Action Step: When a customer tells you that they really like something about your brand, kindly tell them to drop a review on your page, or let them tag you when they drop review about you on their social media handles.

5. Respond to reviews.

Reviews shouldn’t be one way thing, response to every review either good or bad.
Responding to reviews means your take your customer’s word dearly. If a customer drops a positive review, thank them for doing business with you and invite them back.
When a customer drops a negative review, don’t delete it, rather, acknowledge their issue and offer to make corrections. If possible offer a discount on their next visit.
Responding to customers reviews makes you become likeable.

Action: Respond to every review about your brand and products, either positive or negative.

6. Request for customers email and social media handle

Your customers are one social media platform or another and are most likely to have an email address.
Don’t be shy to request for their email address or/and social media handles.
This is a great way to build your audience and you can communicate with them anytime in the future when they are not at your business.
It is important to be in constant communication with your customer when they are away from your business, there are many competitions out there so you need to be on their mind always, and you can only achieve this if you are in constant communication with them.

Action: Encourage your customers to give you their email address/social media handle; give them a reason to do that.

7. Be active on social Media.
You need to keep in touch with your customers everywhere they are. You have to constantly engage them on social media.
Like their post, comment when necessary and celebrate with them.
Send monthly newsletter if you have a mailing list.

Action: [/b]Be in constant touch with your audience.

These 7 action-based steps will get you result [b]if done accurately irrespective of the type of business you run.
If you own a brick and mortar (physical) business, you can also utilize these steps to get customers to your store.

Do you have any questions, feel free to drop a comment, I promise to respond to all questions.