So my brother, Sam, just bought a bar. Sam knows that I'm pretty savvy with computers, and that I'm taking a class on web design. He has come to me for advice on creating a digital presence.
The first thing we did was sit down and discuss what he hopes to get out of his online presence and what his options are. We had to take into consideration Sam's return on investment, as well.
To help guide Sam along, I showed him a list of online presence options from my Web Design Tools class and we discussed each.
Types of Digital Presences:
Brochure - This is just a simple web page that can help people find his bar. It would offer basic details about his bar, like how to get there and when they're open. This kind of information needs to be on Sam's site, but I think he needs more.
Informational - This site would keep people updated with frequent information, like a blog. I don't think most people want to hear what their local bar owner thinks, so this isn't much help to Sam on its own. It sure would be nice to keep people updated on ongoing events, though.
Media - This kind of site displays video, audio, or pictures. I think this could be a good complement for Sam's site, but doesn't do much for him by itself.
Data Gathering - These sites want you to sign up just so that they can learn information about you and try to sell you something, or sell your information to someone else. Sam wants people to buy his food and alcohol, so our goal is getting them into the bar. Sam has no use for a data gathering site, although collecting certain data can be very helpful. If Sam knows a customer's birthday, why not invite them to celebrate their birthday at his bar?
Interaction - This is a site that allows users to interact with each other or the site. I think we could do something with this. We want customers to feel like everybody knows their name at Sam's bar.
eCommerce - This is a website where you buy stuff. Right now Sam doesn't sell anything but alcohol. He can't sell that online.
Promotional - We're all about promoting Sam's bar, so this is a must.
After going through our options, we decided it was best for Sam to set up Business pages on Google+ and Facebook. Both of these sites are free to setup and maintain. Because Sam is family, I told him I would create both for free. He's a busy bar owner, but he's single, so he can update the sites in his free time. With their robust content management systems, even Sam can update these pages.
Using Google+ will ensure that people searching Google or Google Maps for a bar close to them will get plenty of information about Sam's bar. Facebook allows people to "like" his bar, spread the word to their friends, and interact with each other online.
Sam can post the same content on both sites, so that it doesn't matter where someone finds the bar, they'll get plenty of information!
Between these two websites, we cover all of the digital presences Sam and I discussed, except for the eCommerce, which wasn't important to Sam.
The last thing I recommended to Sam was to purchase a domain name and setup a redirect. Sam purchased www.cheers.com (wow, it wasn't taken!) and I will help him redirect it to his Facebook business site. If his web presence needs to expand in the future, he can always build a site of his own.
Overall, Sam is spending very little money on his web presence (just the cost of his domain), so his return on investment is high. Sam and I agree that this is the best approach for his bar.
No comments:
Post a Comment