To get leads with or without a website.

Whether you have a website or not. You are on the internet! Homeowners are increasingly turning to the internet for advice and reviews. Websites like Yelp, Angie’s List, Merchant Circle, Facebook and Twitter have become rich sources of information.

I don’t know about you, but when was the last time you flipped open the yellow pages? For me, unless I have seen of, or heard of, a particular company in my area, it is rare for me to get a number from the book.

Most consumers these days without the advice of family and friends, turn towards the internet as their primary source for research.

Which brings me back to the websites like Yelp and the others. These websites have one thing in common, they provide consumer reviews for restaurants, companies and service providers.

The chances are your construction company has a listing and you may have reviews.

Without getting into a lot of techie mumbo jumbo, you need to take the following 5 Simple Steps. In future articles, I will explain for you the merits of each service and how best to position your company.

1. Get a Gmail Account
   Gmail is a web based email service that you can sign up for free! With a Gmail account you will have access to
   • Google’s Local Business Center – Local Directory and Map functions for local searches
   • Analytics – Provides valuable information on your website’s traffic
   • and more
2. Take Charge of Your Company’s Listing on YelpYelp is rapidly becoming the premier source for user reviews and business listings on the internet.With a Yelp Business Owner’s Account, you can upload photos and logos, highlight featured services that your company provides and other useful information for your clients.A powerful feature for you, the business owner, is you can see how many times potential customers are viewing your listing.
3. MerchantCircle Provides a free listing for business owners. Here you can edit your business listing to show hours of operation, highlight services and offer coupon specials.
4. InsiderPages Simply put, another business directory with user reviews. But what I really like about this service is you can solicit, even bribe your customers into giving you a review. Unlike most review/directory sites like Yelp, who frowns on solicited reviews. InsiderPages encourages it!
5. Capture Your Twitter Username Twitter has had explosive growth even to the point that advertisers poke fun at the cliche type messages people post (called Tweets.) Well I’m not going to tell you to start Tweeting your diet. I will tell you, Twitter has an important business aspect which I will delve into in a future post. Realize too, companies like Milwaukee Tool, Porter Cable, Greenlee and others all have Twitter accounts. The important thing right now is to at least capture your username before you lose it forever.

So there you have it. 5 Simple Steps to promote your business on the internet.

Be sure to sign up for our updates in the top right hand corner of our website. We will be actively posting similar articles to help you gain more customers. In addition to the articles, we are in the process of creating step by step videos to walk you through the steps we recommend.

The last thing I want to do is overwhelm you in the techie mumbo jumbo. You will be able to accomplish these steps and many more without the need to spend the Big Bucks to have someone else do it for you. In the end, for a little bit of time and effort, you to can be well on your way to having more customers and money in your pocket.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

David Vogel, founder of HomeBuildR, helps Residential Contractors and Small Business Owners attract more clients. Be sure to sign up for email updates and lots of free tools for your business.

NOTE: Are you looking for fresh content for your ezine or website? Feel free to reprint this article as long as it’s kept intact and unaltered (including the “about the author” info at the end), and you send a copy of your reprint or link to david@homebuildr.net