This is part 2 of the series "Before They Decide"
Last week, I wrote First Impression, about how the first impression no longer happens at your front door.
It happens long before someone walks into your business.
Customers are scrolling through social media, watching videos, reading reviews, and comparing options before they ever visit. By the time they arrive, they've already decided you're worth their time.
Think about the type of the customer. The person that happens upon your shop may come in because their interest is peaked and they will shop around a bit. Now take the person who has seen your ads, knows what you offer, and enters with anticipation. They enter the door to purchase. This can make or break a bottom line. Especially when it’s a restaurant. Think 90’s classic burger commercials with the stacked bacon, cheese, and dripping sauce. The birth of the high priced restaurant style burger. Nobody complained.
This raises an important question.
For many business owners, the answer is, "I'll post on Facebook."
Posting is important. It keeps you connected with the people who already know you.
But if your goal is to reach people who have never heard of you—people who are still deciding where to eat, shop, stay, or spend their money—posting is not the right tool for the task.
Posting on social media has an important function. It's how you stay connected with the people who already know your business, reinforce your brand, and nurture those relationships over time.
Advertising is a different tool for a different job. Think of posting as a screwdriver where advertising is a wench. The tools are not interchangeable yet in many builds you need both.
Paid ads will introduce your business to the people who haven't met you yet—the people who are still deciding where to eat, shop, stay, or spend their money. In their searches when your posts and website match your ads, it will let them know that you care, you are legit, and their trust matters.
That's where paid advertising fits into marketing the puzzle.
Too many businesses treat advertising as optional. They budget for rent, payroll, utilities, insurance, and supplies without hesitation. Then they ask whether they can afford to advertise.
I'd suggest turning that question around.
Can you afford not to?
If your competitors are showing up in front of potential customers while you're waiting to be discovered, they've already gained an advantage.
Advertising isn't an extra expense you add when business is good.
It's one of the investments that helps keep business good.
If your customers are making decisions before they ever reach your front door, ask yourself one question:
Are they seeing your business before they decide?
If the answer is "maybe," then advertising isn't optional.
It's part of doing business.
If there is a topic you’d like to hear more about, by all means comment below or direct message, and I’ll do my best.
Nothing better than a good question to jump into.
Reach out for a talk over coffee or a hike. tgold@bigwaterci.com
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Trina Gold
Master Creator
