How Small Retail Shop Digital Marketing Helps You Compete With Big Online Stores

Small businesses are competing with large online retailers throughout the GCC, but the good news is that even the smallest business has the capability to be competitive through smart and simple digital marketing strategies. Today’s consumers will often conduct research online before they visit a store, so the presence of a business online will have a direct correlation to the number of customers coming into a brick-and-mortar location and/or making sales.

The initial step in implementing a digital marketing strategy is establishing and optimizing a Google Business Profile. When consumers type “mobile shop near me”, “bakery near me”, or “gift shop near me” into their search engines, Google will display nearby options on Google Maps. With a fully populated Google Business Profile with quality photographs, hours of operation, customer reviews, and regular updates about the business, stores can find themselves near the top of local search results, ultimately resulting in potential customers visiting their location.

Social media is also a wonderful place to showcase products and build a relationship of trust with potential customers. Sharing product images, special promotions, behind-the-scenes content, and testimonials from satisfied customers can help a small shop gain more trust from potential customers and generate more online traffic to its website and/or brick-and-mortar location. Instagram and TikTok are particularly useful digital marketing platforms for small retailers as consumers frequently discover new places, trendy products, and exclusive offerings through visual content.

Local SEO is also important. A simple website featuring details about your store, the types of products you sell, and the ability for customers to order via WhatsApp helps to make your store visible in searches on the internet. With the addition of location-based keywords such as “in Dubai Marina”, “in Riyadh” or “in Doha”, you have a better chance of being located by potential customers who are nearby.

WhatsApp marketing is very effective for local retailers. Sending out information about new products and sale information (i.e., festivals) to your customer base leads to repeat orders. Retailers that communicate well with their customers usually end up creating many loyal customers who shop with them regularly.

Through various digital strategies, even the smallest of retailers can out-promote larger, established online retailers and become prominent competitors. When done properly, a retailer can create a store that is more easily found, more trusted, and more closely connected with their most important customers.