We have compiled a list of tips for managing your business listings during the novel coronavirus outbreak. Read on for five fundamental tips to prepare your business listings for what is going to be a long and hard fight ahead.
Small business is under siege:
When a castle is under siege its resources are being cut off, this results in weakening on the inside of the kingdom from an outside source. With people not leaving their homes for the foreseeable future, your main source of income may have been cut off overnight. COVID-19 is the invisible enemy and its ability to bring your business to its knees is very real. But all is not lost, you can fight back! We will dive into one way you can work around this indirect attack and come away with your business intact rather than reduced to rubble. Let’s talk about online business listings.
What are business listings?
Business listings are how people find you online. It’s like the phone book, remember those? Except that instead of there being only one or two phone books there are over 70+ phone books to list yourself. They are online, virtual, and dynamic with constant changes occurring. Sound like a lot of work to get listed and maintain all of them? You bet it is.
What should I do with my business listings during the global pandemic?
This is a great question, your listings have a very real impact on people finding you online. Making a simple update on a popular platform could have unintended consequences.
We want you to succeed here at Yahoo Small Business so we compiled a list of the top things you can do with your business listings right now. Read on and launch your counter-offensive now.
Stay on top of key business information
Ensure your hours of operation and phone number are up to date so customers can get in contact or visit you at the right times.
Special Note: It is advised at this time to update your business listings using the holiday hours feature rather than the normal business hours. This has surfaced as the result of some businesses being categorized as closed permanently even if they are only closed temporarily.
Update your business description
Your business description can provide details directly on various business listing platforms such as Google, Yelp, Bing and many more. This ensures critical information is seen by all who search for your business.
Create a featured message
With featured messaging (available on some platforms) you can drive traffic to your site or a response page with a single click to quickly inform customers if and how your business has been affected.
Stay on top of your community via reviews
Customers may be asking questions and updating information about your business across 70+ platforms at any time. Everything from asking a question to spreading misinformation should be monitored and dealt with in a timely manner.
Use analytics tools to see trends
With so much information flying back and forth, having clear metrics to make informed decisions is critical. Use analytics to assess key data, get ahead of the curve, and stay objective.
We hope you find these tips helpful now and into the future. If managing your business listings seems like a daunting task we encourage you to check out Localworks today. Think of it like a master phone book that informs 70+ other platforms on the details of your business and ensures those details don’t change unless you say so. After all, you are the ruler of your business right? Localworks allows you to easily manage information about your business across all major platforms in one spot.
