Subject: Landscaping Service

Hi _______,

You probably don’t know me, but don’t worry, I am not selling anything here. 

I’ll get right to the point:

I found a really effective way for Roofers to get lots of new customers online at no cost at all (really), and I figured you’d like to check it out.

I share this freely with other Roofers because everybody wins. I promise, there is no cost and no catch. 

I’ll send the info to you in the next day or two, unless you hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. No harm no foul.

Enjoy the day,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. 

Subject: Following up – Part 1

Hi again _______,

I recently sent you an email regarding an effective way to attract new customers online for zero cost.

I’m talking about real customers who want to spend money with you right now.

If you missed that first email, please be sure to look for it.

I share this freely with others because everybody wins. I promise, there is no cost and no catch.

*****
What I’m about to share with you is like pure gold for your business or firm.
*****

I encourage you to take this very seriously if you want to run circles around your competition… and best of all, it’s free.

All you have to do is “set it and forget it” and watch the new business roll in.

So what is this secret sauce?

It is taking advantage of the many major business directories that are on the internet, just waiting to send you new business at no cost.

What exactly is an online directory?

Online directories are like the “Yellow Pages” of the internet, where potential customers land when they search for products, services and businesses.

These directories ALREADY appear at the top of search engines, so when consumers search for products or services, businesses that have good listings in these directories will be presented to them.

These directories contain business listings that tell potential customers the most important information about a company. The name, address, phone number, and website address of a business are normally included in every listing.

Some directories allow business owners to include even more information, such as their hours of operation, photos, videos, and more.

Google, Bing, and other major search engines KNOW that consumers are going online to find the businesses they want to get information on.

All the major search engines have created online directories, and lots of other consumer-oriented websites have also started to create their own directories.

As the popularity of online directories continues to grow, business owners will have even more opportunities to promote their business to customers.

The more directories you can get your information in, the better your chance of driving new customers to your website or physical business.

It is AMAZING to me that most businesses have no idea about the power these directories hold.

They literally will send you new customers on an ongoing basis.

Watch for my next email which will show you how to get your business in all the right directories.

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 2

Hi _______,

This is Part 2 – if you missed Part 1, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

Are business directories worth it?

Just like anything else they do for their business, business owners often wonder if business listings are worth it before investing time into them.

The answer is a resounding “Yes!”

While it may not be worthwhile to have a business listing in every single directory (there are hundreds of them!) it will definitely be worth your time to have a listing in at least a dozen or more.

The three largest online directories are Google Business Profile, Bing Places, and Verizon Small Business Essentials (formerly Yahoo!).

Not only are these the largest, they are also run by search engines, meaning your business will appear high in the search engine results page (SERP).

Setting up a listing is easy, too. As long as you know your business information, it will take just a few minutes to create each listing.

Perhaps more importantly, businesses that don’t create listings at all could be losing out on business to their competitors who do.

Read that last line again!

More than 80 percent of Internet users today research a company online before making a purchase.

When they can’t find information about your company, but they can tell a lot about your competitors, they’re likely to head there to make a purchase instead of your business.

Every business or firm will benefit from being in at least a few that don’t even cost money to list in so, yes, they are definitely worthwhile.

Watch for my next email, Part 3…

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 3

Hi _______,

This is Part 3 – if you missed Part 2, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

What businesses should use online directories?

Online directories are often referred to as ‘local’ directories, which leads some business owners to think that perhaps online directories aren’t appropriate for their business.

But the truth is, any business, whether you sell online or take in walk-in customers, can benefit from using online directories.

This is because no matter who you’re selling to, they are customers. And just like all customers, they’re going online to do some research before they make a purchase.

When they perform that a search, you likely want your product, service, or great blog post to appear in the search results above your competitors.

In order for that to happen, Google, Bing, and the other major search engines will need more information about you in order to display results to the user.

If you are not in their directory, they will likely return a competitor’s listing to the user instead.

No business owner wants to hand over customers to their competition.

And this is why you should definitely use online directories.

Watch for my next email, Part 4…

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 4

Hi _______,

This is Part 4 – if you missed Part 3, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

Important things to remember when creating an online listing

The directories you use will usually remind you of several of the things you should include.

So, while it’s not likely that you’ll forget to include an address or phone number, there are other mistakes that are often made when creating a listing.

To avoid them, there are two important things to remember.

The first is to always make sure the information is entirely filled out, and that the entire listing is complete.

An incomplete listing can turn off potential customers.

It does not provide enough information for the customer and makes the business seem unprofessional.

An incomplete listing may also not be shown to as many customers as complete listings.

Having an incomplete listing can be just as bad as not having a listing at all.

Just as it’s important to have complete listings on directories, it’s equally important that the listings across those directories are consistent.

This will help build your brand, as customers will become familiar with your company profiles as they’re browsing online.

When a business has different information on different directories, it confuses customers.

They’ll likely head over to the competition simply because they can’t keep your information straight.

To help keep the information consistent, it’s helpful to write down the information as it’s filled out.

This allows you to look back and see the information you’ve provided so every listing appears the same.

It’s also helpful for updating your listings in the future.

Watch for my next email, Part 5…

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 5

Hi _______,

This is Part 5 – if you missed Part 4, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

Your listings may already be out there!

Maybe you’ve already heard about the benefits of using online directories to promote your business.

Maybe though, you’re still not convinced.

Perhaps you still truly believe that having no listing is better than having ones you’d need to maintain.

If you’ve ever thought that, consider that your listings are probably already out there, as some directories try to enter your info, often incorrectly!

You just don’t know it. And that means you can’t control them.

Google Business Profile and other directories want to be able to return as many results as possible to Internet users.

More listings mean more options for the customer, and that means they’ll go back to that directory when they need their next product or service.

In order to get that variety, the directories will take information from wherever they can in order to fill complete a business listing.

They may take the information from your website, your blog, or anywhere else it may appear online.

They’ll use that information to create a listing, even if it’s not accurate.

Users can also post reviews without you even knowing it if you haven’t claimed the listing created by the directory.

Positive reviews will be left without gratitude from the business owner.

And negative reviews will not show that you’re trying to fix the problem, because you’re simply unaware of it.

These are just two things that can happen when business owners don’t claim their business and create a new listing for it.

It’s not a matter of ‘not having a listing’ when you don’t create them, it’s a matter of having listings that you have no control over.

Watch for my next email, Part 6…

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 6

Hi _______,

This is Part 6 – if you missed Part 5, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

Which online directories should you use?

There are hundreds of online directories out there.

As a business owner thinking about listing in them, that can be intimidating.

Of course, you’ll need to narrow that number down.

But how do you do that? How do you choose from so many, and still know which ones are the right ones for your business?

Start with the three biggest online directories run by search engines…

– Google Business Profile
– Bing Places for Business
– and Verizon Small Business Essentials (formerly Yahoo!)

If nothing else, make sure your business is listed in Google Business Profile.

Google is where customers most often go when they want information.

However, Bing Places for Business and Verizon Small Business Essentials also offer very good services, and listings here will still appear in the search engines.

All businesses should be listed in these three, first and foremost.

I will be providing you with a short list of the other ‘best’ directories in an upcoming email.

Once the main listings are created, you can then venture out into review sites such as Angi Ads (formerly Angie’s List), and Foursquare.

From there, perhaps you want to research some niche-specific sites.

While the audience for these sites may be smaller, the searches will be more tailored, helping the user as well as your business that wants to step out from the crowd.

As you become more comfortable with online directories, and creating listings within them, you’ll be better able to determine which ones are right for your company, and which are not.

Watch for my next email, Part 7…

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 7

Hi _______,

This is Part 7 – if you missed Part 6, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

How often should I update my business listing?

Creating multiple business listings can be a tedious job.

And once those listings are created, the business owner’s job is not done.

Those listings need to be kept up to date at all times.

When they are incorrect, it can actually hurt the business.

Growth in a company is inevitable, and there’s no stopping change.

There’s little chance that the information within a listing will remain current and relevant over the duration of the company’s life.

So, how often do business listings need to be updated?

Firstly, any time there is a change in the company, the business listings should be reviewed.

If staff members named in a listing have left the company, the business listing needs to be changed to reflect that.

If the business moves to a different location, that absolutely needs to be changed across all business listings.

Any of these changes, and more, call for a detailed analysis of the business listings to ensure they are accurate.

Even with no changes to the business, listings should be reviewed every four two to six months.

This will give you the opportunity to confirm that the listing is still accurate, if there are new reviews, and if changes need to be made.

Updating the listings is the only way to make sure they are doing the job the business owner intended.

Watch for my next email, Part 8…

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.

Subject: Following up – Part 8

Hi _______,

This is Part 8 – if you missed Part 7, please be sure to check your inbox for it.

Conclusion…

WHY LIST YOUR BUSINESS ON ONLINE DIRECTORIES?

There are literally hundreds of online directories available on the internet.

These directories are designed to help online users locate the location of businesses, their websites, customer reviews and other information they are looking for.

Online directories are a great way to help your business:

– Get discovered more often by more people, more easily
– Increase foot traffic
– Increase phone calls
– Build credibility with great reviews
– Boost your Rank higher in Google
– Improve your online presence
– Strengthen your business reputation
– Improve brand awareness
– Boost SEO so more people can find you organically
– Most are FREE!

OTHER BENEFITS OF LISTING YOUR BUSINESS

Getting your small business registered in the top online directories can result in the following (results may vary and are not guaranteed):

– Increased website traffic
– Increased sales/revenue
– Increased SERP rankings
– More reciprocal links to your website
– Greater brand recognition
– More interactions with customers

The ability to share deals, promotions, press releases and other special events with customers.

A better and more comprehensive online appearance.

Here are some of the best directories to use:

Google
Bing
Verizon
Yelp
Merchant Circle
Yellow Pages
Super Pages
Apple Maps
MapQuest Business
FourSquare
NextDoor
Angi
Chamber of Commerce
Manta
Better Business Bureau
CitySearch
HotFrog
Meta for Business

This is the last Part in the series. I hope you’ve enjoyed the information and allow it to generate lots of new business for you.

Sincerely,

Your Name
Business Consultant
https://IndioRoofing.com

P.S. This is a personal message from me to you, and is not in any way a solicitation. But if you have no interest in this, just hit reply and tell me to go away and not contact you any further. I’m easy to get along with.