Planky1
Well-Known Member
Have just been updating my website and was thinking about how to promote myself more. I have done pretty much everything on Lynne's amazing thread but I need to drum up more business and am not in a position to do any paid advertising at the moment.
I then got to thinking about local businesses, about how hard times are shutting the small local businesses down and how the big wigs, like supermarket chains for example are really taking over and raking it in.
I'm all for supporting local shops and businesses, I use them whenever I can, I go to our local butcher for our meat and try to use local shops if possible for other things too.
This then got me thinking that I could be on to something. I am going to have a "Other Local Services" section on my website. All my clients so far have mainly come from my website and a few from word of mouth. I've had over 16,000 people view my website (shame they didn't all book though! ) but the point is, they viewed it and viewed every page.
I will approach local businesses and ask if they'd like to feature on my website promoting their service, in exchange for having some of my cards in their shop and recommending me or having me feature on their own website if they have one.
I have one client whose daughter owns a florist very local to me and she has been struggling to drum up business herself, so I'm sure she will love to be promoted elsewhere to help, as they too have been trying to think of what they can do. My husband is also starting out on his own after being made redundant before Christmas, so I will of course feature him too.
Feel quite excited about my little idea. What do you think? Have any of you tried something like this and if so, was it successful?
I then got to thinking about local businesses, about how hard times are shutting the small local businesses down and how the big wigs, like supermarket chains for example are really taking over and raking it in.
I'm all for supporting local shops and businesses, I use them whenever I can, I go to our local butcher for our meat and try to use local shops if possible for other things too.
This then got me thinking that I could be on to something. I am going to have a "Other Local Services" section on my website. All my clients so far have mainly come from my website and a few from word of mouth. I've had over 16,000 people view my website (shame they didn't all book though! ) but the point is, they viewed it and viewed every page.
I will approach local businesses and ask if they'd like to feature on my website promoting their service, in exchange for having some of my cards in their shop and recommending me or having me feature on their own website if they have one.
I have one client whose daughter owns a florist very local to me and she has been struggling to drum up business herself, so I'm sure she will love to be promoted elsewhere to help, as they too have been trying to think of what they can do. My husband is also starting out on his own after being made redundant before Christmas, so I will of course feature him too.
Feel quite excited about my little idea. What do you think? Have any of you tried something like this and if so, was it successful?