Social media permeates most aspects of daily life. You can reach out to someone in another state or another country with the click of a mouse, but did you know that your business can reach out to its next-door neighbors with a special online platform?
What is Nextdoor?
Nextdoor is a social network that covers 90% of all neighborhoods in the United States and has 10 million users. It is a free, private app specifically designed for neighbors to reach out to neighbors. Nextdoor has proven to be a great way for users to plan community events, advertise a garage sale, find a missing pet and just talk with their neighbors about what’s happening in their local area. Nextdoor is also an excellent source for neighbors to find and hire local businesses recommended by others in the neighborhood.
Increase Community Engagement
Nextdoor can be an invaluable asset to small businesses. As the push to buy local is becoming more mainstream, it is crucial for neighborhood businesses to establish their brand through local advertising. Utilizing this app allows small businesses to communicate and connect directly with the people of their neighborhood. More importantly, Nextdoor allows the people of the neighborhood to advertise for the business.
According to a recent survey from Alignable, 85% of 7500 small business owners agreed that word-of-mouth referrals are the best way to acquire local customers. Through sponsored posts and verified identities, Nextdoor proves to be a brand-safe environment for local communities and businesses to connect and recommend trusted products and services.
Get More Reviews
By its nature, Nextdoor has a highly engaged user base. Who better than a local to recommend a specific product, service or service provider in their neighborhood? Scanning through Nextdoor, it is not unusual to see requests for recommendations for nannies, pest control services, local eateries and local food suppliers. According to the founder of the platform, 26% of the activity (approximately 4 million messages a day) involve recommendations. To accommodate its users, Nextdoor consolidated all the neighbors’ advice and added a tab called recommendations in the business section.
Because 92% of web users are accustomed to reading reviews and make their decisions based on the read reviews, it is essential for a business to ensure that positive reviews are on the recommendations page. This allows the business to communicate openly with the reviewer to fix an issue or appreciate their business. Unbiased reviews by the user base can also be used by the business to improve products and customer service, thus potentially increasing the business’ bottom line.
Distribute Offers More Effectively
To further aid small business within the neighborhood, Nextdoor includes a space for a business to post coupons and promotions specifically geared to the Nextdoor user. In a section of the app called Nextdoor Offer, a small business can post customized promotions and discounts to verified neighbors. This unique option allows the business to determine who will see the offer. Additionally, when the business sets up the ad, they can pick the radius around their location where the ad will be visible. The business can also provide terms, conditions and specific dates in which to run the ad as well as stock images or the option to add personal images. Through these customized and focused options, local businesses have the ability to increase online and in-store traffic to new and repeat customers.
Make Yourself Easy to Find
In just a few steps, small businesses will find using the Nextdoor app an easy and effective way to promote their local products and services. As a business owner, you must add or claim the business page by searching to see if your business already exists on the platform. If Nextdoor finds your business, simply click the claim button. Otherwise, set up a business page from scratch.
To set your business up from scratch, use the Nextdoor set-up wizard, which is easy to follow. The wizard allows for the addition of a logo. The logo should be high quality and square. Next, you can add a greeting from your business. Here is the opportunity for your business to be open, honest and welcoming to new and repeat customers by explaining what your company has to offer that sets it apart from others. Next, you’ll be prompted to add contact information, including your company’s address, hours, phone numbers, email address and website URL. You should be as specific as possible as this is how customers will find your business. Once the business page is set-up, monitoring and managing the page is how you will increase views, reviews and online and in-store traffic.
Small businesses must find unique and online solutions to help them stand out among the big box stores and online giants. The Nextdoor app offers the opportunity for your business to attract customers in your own neighborhood. This free social media site allows local businesses to engage the community, harness the power of word-of-mouth recommendations and customize offers, discounts, and deals to a specific demographic in a focused area. Through Nextdoor, neighbors can easily find the business they are seeking.
We build, manage, and support all of your IT needs. See how we can make your business better!