When I decided to start my own Mac repair business in a small town I overlooked one small detail. Macs do not break on a regular basis. While the PC folks would say that is not true and I should have plenty to do …. my lack of a current model mac or a sports car says otherwise.
Mac repairs is a very specific kind of service. While there is not another Mac computer service centre in the area …there are also not a lot of Mac users. This means I have to pull customers from other areas.
Facebook is good but only if you have your own website
If you are only planning on selling in the Lithgow area then a Facebook page is fine. It will allow you to reach your customers as long as you pay their reasonable rates. The problem is when you are like me and need to pull clients in from other areas. Then only having a Facebook page is no longer a benefit. It actually kind of hurts you.
Imagine going to a new town and looking for a place to have your car serviced. Are you going to be going to a place that only has a Facebook page? Do you think they are going to be professional? Most likely not regardless of how long they have been in business. Are you even going to search on Facebook? Most likely not. Then why would you consider only having a Facebook page for your business?
Pulling customers from outside of Lithgow
I have been working pulling customers in from other areas Like offering to do Mac repairs in Katoomba, Bathurst and other Blue Mountains areas. It did take some time to get the traffic but now a good portion of my business is coming from outside of Lithgow.
I make the point of asking my customers “How did they find me”. While in Lithgow proper it is almost always some form of “Word of mouth” referrals, but almost all out of town customers have found me through my website.
Content is key to pulling customers from outside your area.
One of the things that I have noted by having my own website is that it was really easy to take over Google for the search terms “Mac Repairs Lithgow” mainly because nobody else is taking the time to write blog posts on this topic.
I make a point to write at least one or two blog posts a month on the topic of Mac repairs, iPhone repairs or tricks for seniors learning how to use computers. Honestly, it is not hard to write blog posts that use your keywords. (Like this last paragraph ..Read it again and guess my keywords)
Why Blogs are better than Ads
While writing a blog post is almost its own art, it honestly does not take too much time. I spend about two hours a week working on the blog. While you might think that is too much consider this. “A blog post always works for you … unlike a paid ad that only works for a limited time”.
A blog post gets recorded into the search engines. From there anytime someone uses a phrase in that blog post (any phrase even this one) the search engine will show that as a possible match for the search. (Even if the rank is so low that nobody will ever find it) The trick is that if you write enough quality content the search engines will reward you with higher rankings. The more you write the more customers come to you…. as long as the website exists. I’m still getting people asking about a blog post I wrote almost two years ago.
Ads are great for a quick influx of customers. It only lasts as long as the ad is running. As soon as the ad is done people forget. Facebook and other platforms actually work hard to hide your old ads so they can make you pay for another.
While ads are important (I am running one right now) you need to understand how and why you should use them. For me with a limited budget blogging about Mac repairs is the way to go.
How often should you blog about your business?
The answer is simple … more than your competitors. If you find a reason to write 300 words a day then do that. My main competitors do not have blogs at all. They work most off ads. The advantage I have is that when starting this business during the covid lockdowns I had nothing better to do than blog about Mac repairs in Katoomba. In a short amount of time, my website was scoring on the same page of Google as my competitors and all it cost me was hosting fees and time.
The blog posts do not have to be as long or complex as this one. However, they do need to be generally about your business and be more than an excuse to stuff a page with keywords.
If Lithgow wants to be more than a sleepy town the businesses all need their own websites.
While I am pushing for everyone to get business websites it is not a service that I provide. Honestly, I’m so busy with other aspects of my business to focus on web hosting or design. Even if I had the time it is not something that I enjoy…. sorry.
I would recommend companies similar to https://easyflowwebdesign.com/ (This is not a paid ad, in fact, they have no idea I’m writing this)
I am however happy to teach a class on how to use a blog to improve your business. If you would like to get some help in that area I am more than happy to have a few personal training classes once you have your website up and running.
In closing
- Writing a blog about my business has been the best investment in my time.
- Having a business website is important to pull customers who are visiting the area
- Facebook is great but only if you already have a real website
- Write as much as you can.
- Consider having someone design your website.
- Learn how to blog.