All Businesses Are Digital, Even If They Don’t Know It

I was driving home last week and noticed a Thai restaurant I hadn't seen before. Feeling adventurous for dinner that night, we thought we'd try it out and order some take away. I jumped on Google and, to my surprise, the mysterious Thai restaurant could not be found. I tried Google Maps, and again, no result.

At this stage, most customers would have given up and moved on. But on a desperate hunt for a delicious Penang curry, I even went so far as to stalk them on Google Street View. Unfortunately, their phone number wasn't visible in the window, so we decided to go back to our trusty local.

As someone who works in digital every day, I couldn't believe this restaurant's management had overlooked such a simple opportunity. Even though they ran an "old school" small business, it was frustrating to see digital was clearly something they hadn't considered. And they're not alone.

Today, every business is and needs to be a digital one. The most traditional "bricks and mortar" stores are impacted by digital—even if they don't realise it yet. Unfortunately for them, customers and competitors aren't going to wait for them to catch up.

The fact is, customers don't turn to the Yellow Pages anymore when they need an accountant or a dry cleaner. They Google instead. And it's not just being visible in search you need to worry about.

We live in an age where customers decide which restaurant to eat at based on online reviews at Yelp or Urban Spoon. A check-in on Facebook Places at a bookstore is an endorsement to 229 people (the average number of friends a user has on Facebook). And a single tweet mentioning bad customer service is enough to turn potential customers away.

All this, and more, happens whether you like it or not. If you think you're a business who doesn't need to worry about digital, you're mistaken.

What can you do about it?

If you don't want to dive into the digital deep end, dip your toes in the water with these simple, low resource-involved but effective opportunities:

1. Put yourself in the customer's shoes and Google yourself. Try your business name, and then something a customer might search for (eg., "thai surry hills"). You may be surprised by the results.
2. Register your business on Google Maps (or update your current listing) for free. Here's a good place to start.
3. Start thinking about what role digital can play across your business, specifically around your website, social media, and search (organic and paid). There are plenty of articles on here to get you started.

"Digital" can be a daunting word for any business, especially with so much jargon and so many buzz words out there. However, with a little research, even the most traditional small business can be hugely rewarded by investing some time into the basics.

I'm still hoping to one day try that Penang curry, but they're not making it easy for me.

 

Zac Martin| Digital Strategist – Pigs Don't Fly