Digital Ads Should Attract Local Shoppers, too

With the expansive world that we inhabit, technology has allowed us to transcend miles and distance to communicate with friends and family, and even brands and celebrities, regardless of where we—or they—are in the world. Generally speaking, location is less and less of a hindrance to the purchase journey between brands and customers. With this ease of access, digital marketers often overlook location-based aspects of their campaigns, which can leave a crucial audience sector out of your messaging—your local shoppers.

Some of your best customers could be closer than you think and there’s a chance they’ve never heard of your brand. Quite often, unless there’s a specific promotion or location-specific campaign, the precise physical location of a target audience can be an overlooked detail in the planning stages of a campaign. And that’s a mistake!

Did you know that 90% of consumers used the internet to find a local business in the last year? With this statistic in mind, it stands to reason that your initial connection with some of your geographically closest customers will take place online before they even notice you offline.

Shopping locally has had a resurgence with increasing consideration being placed on the effects of global warming, the emissions of fast fashion, the effects of shipping goods around the world, and supporting corporations vs. supporting local businesses. In fact, according to smallbusiness.com, 93% of shoppers prefer smaller, possibly local retailers for their goods.

So customers want, and even prefer, to shop locally yet are most likely to connect with brands, even local ones, online first. The question then becomes how to best advertise to these customers to gain their attention and trust.

Tailor your Messaging to Local Shoppers

There are a few key differences as to what messaging will grab the attention of the locals in your digital display ads.

According to the study from smallbusiness.com, the three most cited benefits to shopping small and/or local are:

1. Unique products – over 61% of shoppers cite local shopping as a favourite because they can find products that differ from the product offerings of bigger, more commonplace box stores.
2. Community support – shopping at local stores bolsters the local economy! It keeps local people employed and allows local entrepreneurs a chance to own their own business and compete in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.
3. Broad product offering – local shops’ products are often the result of the community they’re surrounded by. As such, they often offer a broad assortment of various products that differs vastly from the usual selection.

Having messaging that focuses on any or all of these factors is a great way to bolster your visibility with your local audience. Emphasizing elements that draw in local shoppers, such as a unique product offering or an innovative brand experience, will place your brand at the forefront of their mind next time they’re browsing the neighbourhood for the latest wares!

Any community incentives, contributions, or campaigns your brand is running would also warrant a mention in your digital display assets. Rather than the lure of far-away goods, local shoppers want items that reflect their experiences in the community they’re residing in.

A slight re-focus of your digital display assets for your local community will help make your brand an un-ignorable presence for local shoppers—as well as the rest of the commercial world!