If you feel like you are addicted to the Internet or your Smartphone, you are in good company. Online reports show that in 2011, Smartphone users processed 89 percent more data than they did in 2010.

Online communities are thriving—Facebook has more than 845 million users, while 300 million people have Twitter accounts. An article in Time Magazine estimates that in a single month, Americans spend 53 billion minutes on Facebook, the equivalent of 100,000 years. And that’s just one social network—it doesn’t include the 17.2 billion minutes people spend on Yahoo, or the 12.5 billion minutes we spend Googling information.  The list of what we do online is endless—from reading the newspaper and compiling research to watching videos on YouTube.

People spend a massive amount of time on the Internet, so savvy business owners looking to raise brand awareness or boost their business should be paying close attention to increasing their online market share.
The easiest way to drive new business to your store or restaurant is to keep your website current. If you are showcasing products you no longer carry or have a Christmas dinner menu posted in May, then it’s time for an update. Also, exchanging links is an easy way to draw traffic to your site. The more sites that link to a website, the more traffic the site will attract and the higher it will rank in online searches.

Blogging is also a way to attract people to your website. By periodically posting blogs about products, services or general information about your industry or business, you can guarantee a boost in the number of visitors to your site.

Consider initiating a direct email campaign to customers. These emails will ensure that information about sales, coupons and other messages will be read by people who have visited your store or restaurant and encourage them to come back.

It’s free to start a Facebook page or to open a Twitter account for your business. Both of these vehicles will enable store and restaurant owners to communicate directly with their customer base.

pcAmerica offers point of sale solutions that you can incorporate into your online marketing plan by leveraging social media. Call pcAmerica at 1.800.722.6374 to find out more.