Growing your business is a challenging endeavor, no matter the circumstances. However, after a considerable number of companies had to shut down in 2020, the thought of creating a business growth strategy might seem impossible.
2020 brought about a lot of firsts for a lot of us. The pandemic showed us just how versatile our businesses need to be. The upcoming 2021 is the best year to consider a few fool-proof methods of keeping your business running despite any unforeseen circumstances.
This is where online business presence comes in.
Why You Should Get Your Business Online
Putting your business online gives you many benefits, the biggest of which is the promise of more customers. There are also other critical positive outcomes in creating a business website. Let’s take a look below.
1. Your business will get credibility.
Let’s face it – the way the world is headed right now, every business needs a website. Owning a website gives your business credibility. People will likely trust your brand more if they see that you have a website. Your business will appear more professional and dedicated to serving its customers.
2. You will reach more customers.
When you own a brick-and-mortar store, there are limited advertising opportunities available to you. The most you can do is employ good branding for your business. On the other hand, putting your business online gives you a wider reach. You can even start getting customers from all over the world, regardless of where your business is located.
3. Receive online reviews
Most people leave reviews for restaurants online, but these days even small businesses receive ratings. What customers think about your business is vital because the internet is getting more and more user-oriented. Users trust other people to rate the quality of service that they receive from a company. As a business with an active website, you can reply to customers’ comments and provide better customer service.
4. Be better than your competition.
Most people will consider your business to be reliable and professional if it has a website. In the cutthroat world that we live in, any small advantage you have over your competitors can be all it takes to be the best.
5. Be in control of your brand.
When you create a website and social media accounts for your business, you control your brand. These days, companies all over the world are going online, and Ugandan firms are no different.
When you control your own online presence, you have a say in how people view your business. Take control of your business narrative by putting relevant details about your brand online.
If you are ready to take your business to the next level and have a solid disaster recovery plan, you need to get your business online. Let’s take a look at how to grow your business online in Uganda in 2021.
7 Ways to Grow Your Business Online in Uganda
1. Buy a website
The first step in growing your business’s online presence? Invest in a website.
A lot of businesses in Uganda are turning to websites to make their online presence stronger. Just think about it – how many times have you googled a restaurant, or checked the directions to a place? Now more than ever, Uganda is shifting to a more digitized way of living.
There are many web design companies in Uganda today that can create your business’s website for you.
2. Create a content marketing strategy
Content marketing is a type of online marketing that aims to bring attention to a brand without necessarily advertising products to buyers. This means that you create different kinds of content for users who might find your products attractive and useful to their lifestyle.
There are different tactics you can apply in your content marketing strategy. Let’s take a quick look at them below:
Write articles
When you type something into Google, you are looking for information. This information is almost always presented to you in the form of an article. Of course, these days, you can also find YouTube videos on the search page, but most of your answers are located on a webpage.
What does this mean? You need to write articles that will attract visitors to your page. Visitors to your page are your potential customers. A lot of people think that they can create a website and stop there. However, if you are looking to grow your business’s online presence, you need to start writing informational content.
Publish SEO optimized content
After writing your articles, it’s time to make sure that they actually reach people. Here is where SEO comes in. SEO, or Search Engine Optimization is a set of techniques that allow search engines like Google to present your articles on the first page of the Search Engine Result Page (SERP).
The first step in SEO is to ensure that you create quality content that answers user questions. Make sure your articles have proper grammar and punctuation. In addition to that, keep your website functioning correctly and responsive to different devices. This increases your chances of appearing in search pages.
Incorporate social media into your business
You are probably no stranger to the social media platforms that are popular in Uganda today. Apps like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter are gold mines for content creation. Social media apps make sharing your content easy. People can share your articles and videos on their pages if they like your content. This, in turn, brings in more customers to your business.
Make YouTube videos
To bring in more customers to your business, consider creating YouTube videos. People love watching videos these days. In one day alone, over 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube!
Combine great visuals and appealing music to entice visitors to check out your business. Create informational content that people will share with their friends and family. This way, you can increase your audience reach.
3. Create contact forms
Now that you have your website up and running, it’s time to create contact forms. Adding contact forms to your website allows visitors to talk to you. These users are potential future customers. When a user clicks on a website and doesn’t find a way to contact you, they will likely click off and find another website with contact information.
4. Build your email list
An email list is a collection of user emails. To entice visitors to subscribe to your email list, create a compelling Call to Action (CTA) that promises to provide new and exciting updates from your business.
5. Use Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free tool that helps you to see the traffic statistics of your website. When you create a Google Analytics account, you can see the number of visitors to your site, how they found your site, and what they do after landing on your site.
You can also see what articles or pages on your site are getting the most attention. These statistics are essential for planning and improvement. You can then focus on what brings in the most results and do more of it.
6. Consider advertising
In the past, advertising might have been rare in Uganda, but today, advertising content is straightforward. There are so many Ugandan businesses that are advertising their products and services online. You might have seen “sponsored” posts on Instagram and Facebook. These are examples of the simple advertising that you can do today.
7. Interact with users.
To grow your business online in Uganda, interact with users to your site. Interacting can be as simple as replying to a customer’s comment with, “Thanks for leaving a comment”. These types of comments promote a sense of community among users. A user will choose your business over someone else’s just because you appeared friendly and helpful.
Over to You
Now that you have learned how to grow your business online, it’s time to buy your website and get started with your email list. Ugandans today are gearing more towards online methods for buying products and services. Take, for example, Jumia – there is a reason why it is so popular today. We are all going online.
