Top 8 Digital Marketing Tools Every Local Business Should Use

Digital presence for local businesses has become essential these days – from small coffee shops to service providers with branding becoming more and more important in attracting new customers and retaining existing clients. Modern digital technology allows local businesses to manage their digital marketing strategy without the need for technical skills. For example, a small coffee shop in Phnom Penh can attract new customers daily by using free tools like Google Business Profile and Facebook Ads. Below list will show you the 10 essential tools local businesses should never ignore for managing their digital marketing strategy.

1. Google Business Profile – Be Found on Maps

Claim your place on Google. Nowadays, Google is everything people go to when they need something. Thus, Google Business Profile is very important for local businesses to stand and attract walk-in traffic that searches for something near their location. Google Business Profile, when well-optimized, helps businesses appear on Google Search and Google Maps, especially when those customers are searching for products, services or shops near their place. Good optimization of Google Business Profile boosts visibility and builds credibility through reviews. For example, a salon in Siem Reap gets most walk-in clients from Google Maps searches after optimizing its profile and adding photos weekly. Our digital marketing services also include free optimization of your Google Business Profile (GBP) for your business, contact us for more information here.

2. Meta Business Suite – Manage Facebook & Instagram in One Place

Meta Business Suite is a free tool to connect Facebook and Instagram pages. Important features of Meta Business Suite include post scheduling, messaging, ad management, and analytics. Using Meta Business Suite allows you to easily manage social media pages by using one central place, like posting and scheduling new contents to all pages under your management, managing ads or boosted posts, or replying to messages or comments. For example, a restaurant in Battambang schedules daily menu posts using Meta Business Suite and replies to messages from both platforms in one inbox.

3. Canva – Design Like a Pro

If you don’t know how to design using professional programs like Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW, Canva is your best choice. Canva is an online platform that provides you with millions of ready-made templates for designing pictures and videos. Canva is available in both free and paid options. The paid option costs around $10 per month and you can access unlimited premium designs and export in high resolution images.

4. Google Ads – Target Local Customers

Google Ads is an important tool for advertising your business. It allows you to place ads to targeted audiences who search for products or services online. Moreover, you can run your ad campaign for search and map ads for local intent keywords. A home cleaning service targets “cleaning service Phnom Penh” to appear at the top of Google search results.

5. Mailchimp – Stay Connected with Customers

Mailchimp is an email marketing autoresponder service that allows business owners to build an email list of targeted customers. Email marketing is now a great tool for building customer loyalty. For example, A fitness studio sends monthly newsletters with new class schedules and exclusive discounts using Mailchimp. Mailchimp offers a free option for starters to build up to 2000 leads for free. Beyond that, you may consider upgrading your membership to build unlimited leads for your business. Email marketing is a good way to build relationships with your customers and especially to build leads of repeat buyers like they say, “Money is in the list”. 

6. CapCut or InVideo – Create Engaging Videos

Videos are very popular nowadays. People tend to watch videos more than reading articles. Recently, short-form videos dominate all social media platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram. For example, a barber shop records quick haircut transformation clips using CapCut and gains thousands of local views. Today local business owners do not need to hire video designers to create video content. Capcut is a small video design app that runs on your smartphone. Invideo is an AI video creation software that works on your browser. These two video creation and design softwares are enough for a local business owner to create new content or promotional content for his/her business. 

7. SEMrush / Ubersuggest – Find What People Search For

The key to reaching the right audiences is to know what people are searching for. This is when the keyword research tool comes in. SEMrush and Ubersuggest are two of the most popular keyword research tools in the market. For example, a spa in Siem Reap discovers that people search for “relaxing massage near Angkor Wat” and uses it in website titles, so whenever someone searches for this keyword, their website will appear at the top. These keyword research tools will show you the volume of searches and also conversion rate. Certain keywords are highly searched with strong buy intent. Such keywords may have high competition or cost higher if you run an ad campaign to target them. Google values the relevance of your content so well-optimized SEO will give your website or your Facebook page more visitors. 

8. WhatsApp Business / Telegram Bot – Communicate Smarter

In the world of business competition, the speed of replies matters! That’s why every business owner should never ignore WhatsApp Business or Telegram Bot as part of their marketing strategies. In the Cambodian context, Telegram is the most popular channel where customers can reach a business instantly. In other countries, WhatsApp may be more popular. For example, a car rental service uses WhatsApp Business to send instant booking confirmations and location pins. Now business owners can take advantage of auto reply bot in WhatsApp Business or Telegram Bot that engages with your customers instantly they message you rather than you waiting to reply by yourself all the time. This quick bot reply can help engage new customers and keep them waiting to buy from you. 

Conclusion

Using the right tools consistently is crucial for digital marketing success. It does not depend more on how many tools at hand you have, it does more matter if you use a few tools with mastery. You can start using free digital marketing tools like Google Business Profile of Google and Meta Business Suite of Facebook. As you get familiar, you will start to learn more about paid options of these tools, which helps boost your business sales growth. If you want help setting up these tools for your business, please contact Nara Agency – we help local brands grow online.