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In this article, learn: \nWhy repairing your online business reputation can be difficult and expensive\nHow small businesses can fix their business online reputation\nHow to flag reviews for removal\nHow to remove Google search results\nHow to improve small business SEO by creating content\nIf you’re reading this post, there’s a strong likelihood that you have suffered some setbacks because of a less-than-stellar online business reputation. The first thing you need to understand is you’re not alone. The harsh reality of our increasingly digital world is you have very little control over what people say about you or your business online. And the importance of a business’s online reputation is growing, even for small, local shops and one-person businesses.\nWhile local business used to rely solely on friendly service, a good product, and positive word of mouth to attract new customers, the new forum for that conversation is online. 97% of people read online reviews for local businesses, and the majority of people trust those reviews as much as personal recommendations from friends and family. \nEven if customers are sitting in a business's parking lot or standing on the sidewalk outside the front door, they will likely check their mobile device for “social proof” that there are no huge problems with the business before deciding to enter and buy.\nOnline review sites favor the reviewer, not the business\nFor a small business owner suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous customer reviews or other negative content online, this digital realm can feel a little like the Twilight Zone.\nOnline review sites like Yelp, Google My Business, Facebook, and TripAdvisor clearly value the input of individual reviewers and most make it extremely difficult or even impossible for business owners to remove potentially damaging reviews, unless they meet certain criteria, which we’ll outline later.\nIn fact, Google has stated that its priority is accurately delivering the search results people are looking for, whether or not those results are necessarily factual.\nThis could be viewed as somewhat of a “mob mentality” or “power to the people” approach, but since these companies make hundreds of millions or even multiple billions of dollars annually with their current policies, there’s very little chance of them changing anytime in the foreseeable future.\nRepairing your business online reputation can be difficult and expensive\nThere are several companies that may dedicate a team of SEO experts and/or content specialists to your online presence in the hopes of both improving your standing in search engine results as well as “burying” or hiding any negative content.\nThese approaches can be somewhat effective, depending on how bad your online reputation is to begin with, and—this is key—how much money you have to spend. Experts and specialists usually don’t work for free, and for the purposes of this article we are talking about the online reputation of small, local businesses who are working on very slim margins.\nSo, since it’s the rare exception for a small business to have the resources to dedicate to hire a team of reputation repair experts, let’s focus on the more cost-effective, realistic approach that small business owners can take to move the needle in the right direction.\nHow can small businesses fix a bad online reputation?\nThe first step in repairing a bad online reputation is to clarify and identify the actual source of the damaging content. When small businesses talk about repairing their online business reputation, they almost always mean “reviews.” Some businesses face attacks in other venues, however, so we’ll touch briefly on some steps you can take to remove other types of damaging online content.\nIf your business suffers a bad online reputation due to negative publicity, news stories, criminal or legal action, bloggers posting damaging—but factual—content about you, etc., then you may be in a position where you need to hire one of the professional reputation repair firms mentioned above.\nWhat kinds of content can be removed?\nAccording to Google, they will will remove results that contain:\nNational identification numbers such as U.S. Social Security Numbers\nBank account numbers\nCredit card numbers\nImages of signatures\nNude or sexually explicit images that were uploaded or shared without your consent\nConfidential, personal medical records of private people\nTo request such personal information to be removed, \ncontact Google here\n.\nTwo problems with trying to remove content from search results\nThe first is, even if you get Google to remove damaging content from search results, the actual content still exists on the web and can be found on other search engines, or if people visit the website where the content is hosted.\nThe second problem is, if the negative content doesn’t fit into one of the above categories, and is factual, there is no motivation for a news outlet or a blogger to remove it—quite the contrary. If people are searching for that content, the website that is hosting it benefits from that traffic, and the more the better. If you consult Google about removing such content, they will tell you to \ncontact the webmaster\n.\nHowever, if the story or content is outdated, no longer relevant, you may have some success contacting the webmaster and asking for it to be removed. You can also ask Google to remove results that direct searchers to content that has been removed (by a webmaster).\nIf the negative content \nisn’t\n factual and you can prove it is defamatory or libelous, you may choose to take legal action to have it removed. Again, bring money. Lawyers aren’t cheap. What’s worse, legal action almost always just draws more attention to the problem. (To request that Google remove content for legal reasons, \nclick here\n.)\nIf the negative content is pervasive and you can’t afford to hire a team of experts, the best you may be able to do is move on to the steps outlined below.\nHow to remove bad reviews\nStep one in all online review site engagement is to \nclaim your business listings\n on \nGoogle\n, \nYelp\n, Facebook, \nTripAdvisor\n, and all other applicable sites (such as OpenTable for restaurants). Click the links for detailed, step-by-step articles on that process.\nOnce you have claimed your pages, you can start responding to reviews and flagging any appropriate ones for removal.\nYelp and other review sites have similar policies regarding removing reviews, so we’ll focus on Yelp for this example. You can flag Yelp reviews for removal if they contain:\nSpam\nHarassment\nThreats of violence\nConflicts of interest\nIrrelevant content\nFalse/fake reviews\nPromotional material\nPrivate information\nTo report a Yelp review, click the three dots beside the content and select “report review.”\nHowever, there’s a harsh reality to this online world we live in: if a review appears to be from one of your actual customers, even if it’s what you consider “mean” or “inaccurate” or “unfair,” chances are, it’s there for good, unless you can resolve the problem and convince the reviewer to remove it. And even if they refuse, the best approach here is to respond appropriately to the public review and work to bet more positive ones.\nPlus, research shows that negative online business reviews aren’t necessarily as harmful as you might think. \nHow to respond to negative reviews\nWhen considering \nhow to reply to negative reviews\n, use the R.E.S.T. model: \nRespond quickly: A single bad review can cost your business 30 customers (especially if left unanswered). Replying in a timely fashion shows you take feedback seriously.\nEliminate emotion: Even if you’re being attacked unjustly, stay calm. Be the grown-up. Your reply is an advertisement to prospective customers, who will see that you are reasonable and civil.  \nSay you’re sorry: Apologizing goes a long way toward meliorating bad feelings. Even if you know you didn’t do anything wrong, even if you’re sure the review is fake or malicious, saying, “Sorry you had a bad experience!” can go a long way towards taking the reviewer’s guard down and helping potential customers see you in a more positive light.\nTake it offline: Don’t air your grievances or continue discussions online. Try to take the conversation private. Provide your contact information or direct them to your website and ask them to contact you to resolve the issue. \nIf a customer has brought up a legitimate problem that you have addressed, you should state in your public reply that the problem is now fixed as well as whatever other measures you’ve taken to make sure the problem doesn’t recur.\nYou might offer dissatisfied customers discounts, refunds, or other promotions to bring them back to shop with you—but do this privately. Be careful not to go overboard or make these offers public, or you’ll just be known for handing out free stuff in exchange for a bad review, which obviously is not a precedent you want to establish.\nIf you suspect the review is fake or malicious, but it doesn’t meet the review site’s criteria for removal, you can gain back some credibility by simply stating something like, “We have no record of this transaction. We take our customers seriously and we are sorry if we didn’t meet your expectations. Please contact us to resolve this issue.” \nEven if a review is very harsh or unfair, treating all feedback with professionalism will go farther toward improving your online reputation than arguing, insulting, or ignoring. \nUse negative reviews to improve your business\nAlthough it sometimes might feel like it, getting a negative review isn’t the end of the world. In fact, studies show that people don’t trust businesses if they have NO negative reviews. Like Cindy Crawford’s mole, it’s the slight imperfection that makes it perfect. However, if \nall you get\n is negative reviews, there’s probably something very wrong with your staff, product, services, or facilities. \nSee what you can learn from the reviews. Lots of big companies pay millions of dollars to know what their customers think. Online reviews give you useful insights into your customers, all for free. So have an open mind. Often times, reviewers are actually trying to give you helpful feedback to improve your business. Listen to them. Consider ways you can improve.\nStart to fix your business online reputation by getting more reviews\nThe best way to minimize the impact of negative reviews is to get a lot more positive reviews. Studies show 73% of consumers feel reviews older than 3 months are no longer relevant. So if you can start getting more good reviews from your happiest customers, the negative reviews will fade into the background.\nRead our detailed article on \nhow to get more reviews\n to learn the proper way, then simply ask. Don’t bribe or threaten, don’t ask for good reviews, and never try to buy good reviews. Simply tell your customers you value their feedback and put up official signage for Yelp, Google, Facebook, TripAdvisor, etc. \nGood, recent reviews have more impact than old, negative reviews.\nImprove your online business reputation by producing positive content\nIf your main concern isn’t negative reviews, but rather negative content posted elsewhere online, things get more complicated. \nFor small businesses with few resources and little knowledge of SEO, linkbuilding, improving rankings in local search, or similar techniques (best left to those with experience), the easiest way to start minimizing the impact of negative online content is to counter it with positive content. \nOne way that is approachable to most small business owners is to add positive content to your company website or start a blog. If you can produce high-quality, regular, relevant content, Google and other search engines will begin to put those results up higher and push the negative ones down. This is basically what may of the “reputation repair” companies do, only they have dedicated teams of writers and content producers working on your situation (that’s why they are so expensive).\nIf you have good writing skills or know someone who does, you may also consider writing an article for an online industry publication, or a guest post for a blog you find relevant, or content for a local news outlet’s Op/Ed page, but if you choose to go this route, make sure it’s not simply a “one and done” thing. For search engines to take your content seriously you need to produce more than just one piece of content. This can take a lot of effort, but over time your content can attract the attention and validation of more powerful sites who might link to it, which will improve its rankings in search results and push any negative content down.\nStart today and improve your reputation\nThe bottom line is there are no shortcuts or easy answers to dealing with a negative online business reputation, but there are definitely ways to start improving right now. Any movement toward the positive will be well worth it. \nA Cornell study found, for example, that a one-star increase in your star rating can increase revenue by 39%. And another study found that a half-star improvement in Yelp’s rating makes it 30 to 49 percent more likely that a restaurant will sell out seats during peak hours. \nSo get started today undertaking the steps outlined above. \nSources:\n
\nhttps://www.brightlocal.com/research/local-consumer-review-survey/\n
\nhttps://searchengineland.com/88-consumers-trust-online-reviews-much-personal-recommendations-195803\n
\nhttp://scholarship.sha.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1010&context=chrreports\n
\nhttps://www.reviewtrackers.com/blog/restaurant-review-sites/\n

How to fix your online business reputation

In this article:\nWhat are Google Alerts?\nHow to set up Google Alerts for your business\nReasons why you should be using Google Alerts\nGoogle Alerts can be a powerful tool to help you grow your business and online visibility. It may not be the most effective tool out there, but it’s a surprisingly useful, free tool to get you started in tracking brand mentions, competitor reputations, (some) reviews, and keywords.\nThroughout this article, we’ll guide you through the best uses of Google Alerts for your small business, how to get it set up, and how to create specific alerts for your business needs. \nWhat are Google Alerts?\nGoogle created a free system, Google Alerts, that allows you to set up notifications for specific mentions of phrases online. When Google Alerts find a mention of the phrases you set up, you’ll receive an email notification to let you know where that mention was found. \nGoogle Alerts can help your business in several different capacities, from tracking competitor activity online, to notifying you of negative reviews, to finding more link opportunities for your business. \nWe’ll guide you through these applications in a little more detail below. But first let’s go over how to get set up to use Google Alerts. \nHow to set up Google Alerts for your business\nFirst, we want to show you how to set up Google Alerts. As long as you have a Google account, you can sign in and use Google Alerts. \nIf you don’t already have an account, simply go to Google.com and click “Sign in” to create a new account. \nStep 1: Sign in to Google Alerts\nGo to google.com/alerts and click “Sign in.” If you already have a Google account, it may already have you signed in. If that’s the case, move on to Step 2. \n(Image)\n\nStep 2: Create an Alert\nOnce you’re signed in, you can easily start creating Alerts for your business. On the main page, Google will provide you with several suggestions, including “Me on the web.” These will be your personal or business name and email (depending on which Google account you are logged in with).\nIt’s always a good idea to see where your business is showing up on the web, so feel free to click the + icon next to your business name if it shows up. \nTo create your own alert, simply type something into the search bar that says “Create an alert about…”\nSeveral of the most recent search results with your phrase will be displayed below the search box, similar to a normal Google search. \nClick “Show options” to select the following options:\nHow often to receive notifications\nSources\nLanguage\nRegion\nHow many results\nWhich email to deliver to\nOnce you’ve filled all of that out, click “‘Create Alert.” And you’re done!\n(Image)\n\n(Image)\n\nReasons why you should be using Google Alerts\nNow that you know how to set up Google Alerts for your business, let’s talk about some of the reasons why you should and how Google Alerts can benefit your online growth. \nMonitor new content\nIf you are involved with content marketing (which you should be), then you are likely producing new content on your website on a regular basis. This could be blog articles, infographics, videos, etc. \nAs you create new content, set up a Google Alert with the name of your new page or article to see when other websites share or republish your content. \nCheck to see that these websites are giving you proper credit as the originator of the content and linking back to you. If not, you can ask them to properly credit you and insert valuable links to your site.\nTrack mentions and reviews of your brand and get more links\nBeyond new content that you post, you can track mentions of your brand/company name and specific branded services or products. Check these mentions regularly and see if they are being linked back to relevant pages on your website. \nexcited african american male getting google alerts on cell phone\n\nThis will help provide more value to the places that are mentioning your brand so that their readers can follow the link to learn more about you. It also helps increase your search engine visibility. \nYou can also create a search string like “[your brand or product] + review” to get alerts when blogs or websites post articles containing your company or product and “review” in the title or content.\nTrack your competitors to find new citation opportunities\nSee where your competitors are showing up online. You can create alerts for your competitors’ name, phone number, and address to find new opportunities for ideas for citations and listings to help improve your local SEO. \nQuick guide: \nLocal SEO: 15 free tips for better search rankings\nYou may also like: \n25 free business listings for your business\nSearching for your competitors could also help you find other link opportunities. Chances are if someone is linking to a related competitor they’d be willing to link to your website as well. \nFind new guest post opportunities\nGoogle Alerts can help you find new guest-posting opportunities for your business. \nGuest posting is a great link-building and content-marketing strategy that can help improve your online reputation. \nCreate an alert for phrases like “[insert topic] + write for us” or “[insert topic] + become a contributor.” Most websites that accept guest posts will have some kind of “write for us” page, so keep an eye out for those kinds of opportunities within your industry. \nMonitor your keywords\nAnd finally, you can and should be monitoring your own keywords that you want to be showing up for on Google. This will show you the places that are likely showing up well for these phrases and what kind of content they are producing. \nUse that to guide your content strategy and help your website rank better for specific phrases. 

How and why you should set up Google Alerts for your business

In this article:\nFree advertising ideas for retail shops\nFree SEO ideas for local businesses\nGet involved locally\nIs the cost of advertising your store bumming you out? It’s a tough gig to start a new business, get your name out there, and start acquiring new customers. But that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible, and there are even some free strategies that you can use to get started. \nThese strategies can help you advertise your retail business for free, and several of them will even help you show up better on Google and other search engines!\n1. Create and claim your online profiles\nTo help increase your store’s online visibility, it is imperative that you claim your major online profiles. Google and Yelp are the big ones here. When you claim these profiles, it helps these search engines and review platforms verify that you are a legitimate business and they are more likely to show your listings to customers. \nMake sure you add as much relevant information as possible to these listings so customers can get all of the details they need before coming into your store. \nCheck out our guides:\nHow to claim your Google My Business listing\nHow to claim your Yelp business listing\n2. Get more online reviews\nWhen you have your online profiles created, you can start getting online reviews. Reviews are a powerful conversion tool that will help sway consumers toward your store. \nTry these methods to get new customer reviews:\nProvide great customer service and ask for reviews\nPut signs up that encourage customers to leave reviews on your online platforms\nInclude links to your Google listing in email receipts\nInclude instructions to leave reviews on print and email receipts\n3. Respond to your reviews\nWhen you start getting reviews, it’s important to respond to them too. Develop a rapport with your online followers and customers by engaging with them when they leave nice feedback about your store. \nIt’s especially important to respond to any negative reviews that may come in. You want everyone to have a good experience with your store, so find out what went wrong and try to improve the relationship. This also shows potential customers that you are willing to resolve any issues that may come up. \nGo deeper: \nHow to respond to negative reviews\n\n4. Find more listings sites to post your store on\nBeyond Google and Yelp, there are tons of other free listings sites that you can use to advertise your retail business. When you do start creating these profiles, just be sure that your business name, address, and phone number (also known as NAP) are consistent across all of these. \nInconsistencies with your NAP info can make it difficult for search engines to verify your information, which could result in lower search result rankings. \nGet started with \n25 free business listing websites every small business should be on\n. \n5. Set up a free website\nWhile free websites aren’t always the most user-friendly (for the creator of them) they are a great way to get started if you’re strapped for cash. And every business should have a website. \nSome of the free resources we like for building websites include:\nWix\nSquarespace\nGoogle My Business\nThere may be some fees associated with owning your own domain and hosting the website, but these are usually very manageable and totally worth it when you consider the total cost of creating a website with a professional web developer. \n6. Boost your local SEO\nSEO, or search engine optimization, is how you get your website and business to show up in the search results on Google, Bing, and other search engines. Some of these methods we’ve mentioned, like setting up a website and claiming your online listings, can help you with this. \nWe also have \n15 free tips for better local search engine rankings\n that you’ll definitely want to check out. \n7. Start a blog\nA blog is another thing that can contribute to your SEO efforts. But it can do more than just that. A blog provides value to consumers without them having to purchase anything from you. It can help customers learn more about you and your business too. But remember, you need to keep posting new content regularly for your blog to be worth anything.\nHere are some ideas that you can use for your store’s blog:\nPhotos of new products as they come in\nEmployee features\nVideo tutorials (how to create the perfect budget outfit, how to use specific products you offer)\n8. Start social media accounts\nWhen most of your target customer base is spending at least 30 minutes of their free time on social media, it’s good to take advantage of that. Create social media accounts for your store on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter—whichever is relevant to your business that you can keep up with posting on. \nCreate lots of fun content that users will feel enticed to engage with. Here are some ideas to get you going:\nDiscounts and deals\nNew products\nOutfit pairings (for clothing stores)\nCustomer testimonials\n9. Partner with other local businesses\nGet together with other local businesses and partner with each other on social media. Share each other’s followings by doing a Facebook Live video together and tagging each other’s business page in it. \nMaybe you’re a clothing store that just got a new shipment of workout clothes in. Partner with a local gym to do a fun workout tip post. Get creative with this and have fun. \n10. Send out email newsletters\nEmail might seem like old news, but there’s still a lot of power in this. For retail businesses, send out emails that offer online specials or sweet deals. Use the subject line of the email to mention the deal and entice your customer to open it. \n11. Get involved with your local chamber of commerce\nYour local \nchamber of commerce\n is all about helping small businesses in their community succeed. Take advantage of their resources, like marketing materials and a free listing on their website. This will help get your business out in front of your community. \n12. Get involved with community events\nAnother way to get known in your community is to get involved in local events. Maybe there’s a 5k or a blood drive going on. Volunteer yourself and your employees to help out. Where your logo and display your branding to help spread awareness. \nYou might even offer some free swag to participants like pens, bracelets, or coupons for your store. \n13. Host an online Q&A\nDo you get a lot of questions from customers about the products in your store? Maybe you sell cleaning products and customers want the know what works best to get pet smells out of carpet. Or maybe you sell clothing and jewelry and customers are concerned about what goes best with their hair color and style. \nHost an online Q&A for customers to ask their questions or with a list of common questions that you hear from customers and answer them. Post this on your website, in your blog, and on your social media channels.\n14. Offer discounts and promotions\nWe all love to save a few bucks. Offer some sweet deals to your customers to entice them to come into your store and share those deals with their friends. Never underestimate the power of referrals when it comes to great deals. \n15. Start a loyalty program\nSpeaking of saving some money, loyalty programs are a great way to advertise your store and get customers to buy more items. Use a point system or punch card and after they spend so much money, give them some store credit. \nCheck out our guide: \nThe 6 elements of an effective customer loyalty program\n16. Make promotional videos\nMake promotional videos to share on your website, online listings, and social profiles. One resource we like for this is \nBiteable\n. You can create a free video that looks professional and shows off the great qualities of your store. \n17. Start a YouTube channel\nWhen you make your promotional videos, online Q&A’s, or video tutorials, share them on a YouTube channel. This is another great way to spread brand awareness, attract new customers, and build up your online reach. \n18. Put customer testimonials on your website\nReviews are powerful. And sharing a video testimonial that shows a customer who is genuinely happy with their experience at your store can go a long way. You can use these as a part of your promotional videos, add them to your social media accounts, and gain more opportunities to bring in customers. \n19. Post on the Facebook Marketplace\nTake advantage of every platform out there for putting your products in front of new customers. People are constantly searching for great deals on things they need in the Facebook Marketplace. Post popular items from your store in the Marketplace to get them in front of more people. \nYou’ll have to do this from your personal page, but customers want to connect with real people, so it’s really a win-win. \n20. Print out flyers\nSpread awareness of your store the good old fashioned way with printed flyers. Get a friend or local college graphic design student to create a professional-looking flyer with an enticing promotion and post those things everywhere! \nTest out these strategies to see what works best for your store as you’re getting started. Get new customers, and start growing your business!

20 free local advertising ideas for your retail business

In this article:\nWhat is Facebook Marketplace?\nWays to use Facebook Marketplace for business\nHow to list your inventory\nHow to sell individual items\nHow to set up a shop on Facebook\nFacebook isn’t just for funny memes and old-time friends anymore. It is a powerful marketing tool that businesses, sole proprietors, solopreneurs, microbusinesses, and all types of side-hustlers can and should take full advantage of. And a large part of that includes the Facebook Marketplace. \nWhat is Facebook Marketplace?\nFacebook Marketplace is a platform where individuals and businesses can buy and sell items via Messenger. Users can look to the Marketplace for specific items they are in search of (like a new vehicle, furniture, or clothing item) using filters and selecting categories, or they can browse the entire Marketplace. \nSellers have the ability to add the price and details of each product so that they are placed in front of those who are searching for it.   \nWays your business can use Facebook Marketplace\nUsing Facebook Marketplace is just another avenue to get your products and inventory out in front of customers in a place that they are spending a lot of time. With almost 2 billion daily active users, it’s worth the effort. \nThere are a few ways that businesses can use Facebook Marketplace to list their products or inventory:\nSpecific types of businesses, like auto dealerships, event venues, and real estate agents, can list their inventory on Facebook Marketplace by working with a Marketplace listing partner\nYou can advertise your store or specific items in the Marketplace, even if you aren’t directly posting there\nEligible sellers can also display items on their Facebook Page shop and add them to the Marketplace for free. If you’re not able to share your shop items in the Marketplace, you’ll need to contact Facebook’s support team to see if you are eligible\nHow to list your inventory in Facebook Marketplace\nIf you have an online retail store, it may already have the ability to integrate with the Facebook Marketplace. A number of ecommerce solutions can help you add the products from your online store to the Marketplace. \nHere’s the list of ecommerce listing partners that Facebook currently works with:\nadMixt\nBigCommerce\nCedCommerce\nChannelAdvisor\nCommerceHub\nDataCaciques\nFeedonomics\nProductsup\nQuipt\nShipStation\nShopify\nZentail\nIf you use any of these solutions, find out what their capabilities are for integrating your products with the Marketplace. \nNote, as of September 13, 2021, Facebook Marketplace has discontinued the distribution of vehicle, home rentals, and homes for sale listings from partner catalog feeds. Listings provided to Facebook via partner catalogs will not be displayed on Marketplace, including the homepage, category pages, browse experience or in search results. \nRead more\n.\nHow to set up a shop on your Facebook page\nYou can set up a shop on your Facebook page and then share those items to the Marketplace (if your business is eligible). \nWe’ll walk you through setting up your shop first. \nStep 1: Go to your Facebook page and click “Manage Shop” and move on to Step 3. If you don’t have the “Manage Shop” option, then go to “Settings” and follow Step 2. \n(Image)\n\nStep 2: After clicking on “Settings,” click on “Templates and Tabs” in the left menu bar. Make sure that the “Shop” option is toggled on. Go back to your page and click “Manage Shop.”\n(Image)\n\nStep 3: Click “Start Shop Setup”.\n(Image)\n\nStep 4: Choose where you want customers to complete their purchases: your website, Facebook or Instagram, or direct message. You also have the option to use a partner platform (like Shopify or BigCommerce) or an API. Click “Get Started.”\n(Image)\n\n \nStep 5: Create your shop. Go through Facebook’s shop creator. Choose the business page you want your shop to be on, choose or create a business manager account that will connect to the shop, choose the visibility you want your shop to have, and add your items. \n(Image)\n\n \nHow to sell an individual item on Facebook Marketplace\nIf your business isn’t eligible for adding a shop or you can’t connect with an inventory partner, you can always share products from your individual Facebook page. \nEvery Facebook user has the ability to add items to the Marketplace. Just make sure that you are following Facebook’s \ncommerce guidelines\n if you want your products to show up. \nStep 1: Log in to Facebook and go to Marketplace. \n(Image)\n\nStep 2: Click on “Create New Listing.”\n(Image)\n\nStep 3: Choose your listing type: item for sale, vehicle for sale, or home for sale or rent.\n(Image)\n\nStep 4: Add your photos and product details, including title, price, category, condition, description, and tags. \n(Image)\n\nStep 5: Choose your delivery method. Some items may be eligible for shipping. But you can also just have the customer pick up the product at your store. \n(Image)\n\nStep 6: Choose the groups that you want to list your item in and publish it! You can share your product to any buy/sell/trade groups that you are a member of. \nNow you can sit back and wait for someone to reach out about that product! 

Facebook Marketplace step by step: how to get set up and list items

In this article:\nWhy add your business to the BBB\nHow to create and claim your BBB listing\nWhat to do next\nThe Better Business Bureau (BBB) aims to provide consumers and businesses with a directory that promotes the trustworthiness of businesses. \nAdding your business to BBB will help convey to consumers and other shops that they can trust you and your business. \nWhy add your business to the Better Business Bureau\nBBB’s mission is to be a source of trust for consumers and businesses. \nBeyond the huge trust signals that BBB sends to consumers and other businesses, BBB is another online directory that helps improve your business’s online visibility. \nIt’s important to add your business to as many reputable online directories as possible in order to show up better in the local search engine results. \nGo deeper: \n25 free business listing websites every small or local business should be on\nHow to create and claim your BBB listing\nLet’s get your business listed on Better Business Bureau!\nStep 1: Create a BBB account\nGo to \nbbb.org\n and click “Login.” \nYou can add your business to BBB without a login, but you won’t be able to claim it unless you have an account. \n(Image)\n\nNext, go to the box on the right where it says “Create My BBB Login Account.”\n(Image)\n\nEnter your email and click “Email me Now.” If your email is not in BBB’s records, you will need to fill out your Name, Title, Email, Business name, and Zip code. Click “Register with BBB”. It will take up to 2 days for BBB to email you your password and instructions to finish setting up your account. \n(Image)\n\nWatch for an email from BBB, be sure to check your junk folder. When your email arrives, follow the instructions to set up your password and go to bbb.org and log in. \n(Image)\n\nIn the meantime, proceed to the following steps to see if your business is in BBB’s directory or if you need to add it. \nStep 2: Search for your business\nSearch to see if your business already exists in BBB’s directory. \n(Image)\n\nIf you see your business listed, proceed to Step 3 (Option 1). \nIf you can’t find your business, proceed to Step 3 (Option 2). \nStep 3 (Option 1): Claim your existing BBB business listing\nIf your business does show up on BBB’s directory, click on it. And then scroll down to the section that allows you to “Claim your listing.”\n(Image)\n\nThis is where you will need to be able to log in, so if you are still waiting for an email from the BBB you may need to wait a day or two to finish claiming your listing. \nAfter clicking “Claim your listing” when you are logged in, you will be brought to a page where you can verify your association with your business. \n(Image)\n\nYou can verify your business by phone or email. Choose the option you wish to use and click “Verify.”\nOn the new screen, you’ll have a place to enter your verification code that you received via phone or email. Enter your verification code and click “Claim.”\n(Image)\n\nNow you have successfully claimed your listing on BBB and will have full access to edit and make changes to it. \nStep 3 (Option 2): Add your business to BBB\nIf your business does not show up in BBB’s directory, click “Submit a request to add it to our directory.”\n(Image)\n\nYou’ll then be redirected to a form to add in all of your business information, including:\nBusiness name\nType of business\nBusiness start date\nAddress\nBusiness phone number\nWebsite\nBusiness email\nAny notes you have\nYour name\nYour contact email\nYour phone number\nClick “Submit your request.” It may take up to a week for BBB to approve your request. At that point, you will be able to go through the process of claiming your business. Go back to Step 3 (Option 1) to claim your business listing. \n(Image)\nAnd you're done!

How to get your business listed with the BBB

In this article:\nWhy use Crunchbase\nHow to create and claim your Crunchbase business listing\nWhat to do next\nCrunchbase is a platform where professionals can discover new technologies and innovative companies, connect with other like-minded professionals, and pursue new opportunities.  \nThey have a free online directory which you should add your business to. \nWhy add your business to Crunchbase\nFirst, adding your business to multiple online directories is super helpful for improving your online visibility and local SEO. \nGo deeper: \n15 free tips to improve your local SEO\nSecond, once you’ve added your business to Crunchbase, they have some awesome features that you can take advantage of:\nCrunchbase Pro to access company, investor, and funding data\nTools to identify new prospects and improve lead generation\nAccess to their market research to stay on top of the latest market trends in your industry\nThese additional features aren’t free, but they definitely have their appeal. \nHow to create and claim your Crunchbase listing\nLet’s get started!\nStep 1: Create a Crunchbase account \nThe first thing you need to do is set up a new account on Crunchbase. Go to crunchbase.com and click “Log in” in the header. \n(Image)\n\nThen click “Register” on the new window that opens and fill in your email address, first and last name, and password. \n(Image)\n\nClick “Register” and you’re done! Crunchbase will take you to a new page that helps you fill out your profile more in-depth, so you can continue that process or go back to crunchbase.com. \nStep 2: Authenticate your Crunchbase account\nWhen you are logged into Crunchbase, go to the top right corner and click your profile icon, then select “My Account.” \n(Image)\n\nThis will take you to your account where you will then click on “Social Authentication.” Crunchbase just wants to verify that you are a real person before allowing you to create a company profile. \n(Image)\n\nChoose at least one social network that you are on in order to authenticate yourself. When you click the profile you choose to use, Crunchbase will open a window for you to log in to that social account and allow them to access your information. Click “Allow” and then click “Done.”\n(Image)\n\nStep 3: Check to see if your company exists on Crunchbase\nSometimes online directories like this pull information from other databases or someone else created a profile for your company without your knowledge. \nSo it’s always a good idea to check to see if your company exists in any online directory before adding it. \nSimply go to the search bar in the top navigation and type in your company’s name. \n(Image)\n\nIf your company shows up in the list, proceed to Step 4 (Option 1). If your company is not in the Crunchbase directory, proceed to Step 4 (Option 2). \nStep 4 (Option 1): Edit your Crunchbase listing\nIf your company does exist in Crunchbase’s directory, click on it and select “Edit.” This will allow you to update all of your company’s information. \n(Image)\n\nA form like will appear that has some of your information already filled out. If anything is incorrect, be sure to update it, and also add any missing information like your website or customer contact information. \n(Image)\n\nWhen done, click “Save All Edits.”\n(Image)\n\nAfter that, you’ll see the following message: “Your edits have been submitted. They may take a few minutes to appear.” And your edits will be live. \n(Image)\n\nStep 4 (Option 2): Add your company profile to Crunchbase\nIf your company is not on Crunchbase, click on the menu icon in the top left of your screen and then click “Add New Profile.”\n(Image)\n\nSelect the type of profile you are adding to Crunchbase (this will likely be a “company” if you are doing this for your small business.)\n(Image)\n\nGo through the form on the next page and fill out all of the following information for your business:\nBusiness name\nDescription\nAlso known as (other names that your business goes by)\nLegal name\nFounded date\nNumber of employees\nCompany type\nWebsite\nSocial profiles\nContact email\nPhone number\nDetailed description\n(Image)\n\nAfter the form there are several additional types of information you can add to better complete your company profile. Fill out any that apply to you. At the very least, be sure to add your “Categories.”\n(Image)\n\nClick “Save all edits” and your profile will be added to Crunchbase. \n(Image)\n\nCrunchbase will make all of your information live after a few minutes, and there are no additional steps to claim or verify your business profile. \nNow that you claimed your Crunchbase business listing, what’s next?\nWhen you’ve completed your Crunchbase company profile, be sure to continue adding your business to other online directories. This will help improve your business’s online visibility and provide you with more opportunities to get found by customers. \nCheck out our list of \n25 free sites that every small business should be listed on\n. 

121 articles found in “Customer relations”

How to fix your online business reputation

How and why you should set up Google Alerts for your business

20 free local advertising ideas for your retail business

Facebook Marketplace step by step: how to get set up and list items

How to get your business listed with the BBB

How to create and claim your free Crunchbase business listing

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