Increase Your Notary Business—Part 3
by Sharon Hassler, President, Go Get Experts
Free Ads Can Increase Visitors to Your Page
You may wonder why you should post to other web locations if you’re already in several good directories, but think how directories work. A visitor lands on the directory’s homepage, does a search and receives a list (possibly a long list!) of notaries. Some directories offer “premium placement” if you pay premium fees ($$$!), but, even with the extra cost, there’s no guarantee you’ll be the one chosen from that list. No matter which directory you’re in, even ours, there may be instant competition in search results. If you’re serious about your business, you can invest a little time to help potential customers find you without paying additional fees. Remember, having more “needles in the Internet haystack” increases your odds of being found… Or, like many other notaries reading this article, you can remain passive and hope for the best.
Important: Do not post your email address on these free sites. Unscrupulous companies scan them for email addresses to use in spamming.
Craigslist.com — Here’s one popular website where you can place an ad for free that can send traffic directly to your page and bypass the competition. You may find other notaries in your area advertising in Craigslist, but you probably won’t find more than one or two, if any, who have a live link to another web location. Having that link makes you look more professional and lets potential customers learn more about you. It gives you an edge. (See Part 1 of this series for tips to ensure your web page makes a great first impression.)
(One of our members, Rubi Kawamura, placed her ad in CraigsList right after she created her GoGetNotary page. She included her web address as a live link and received 28 visitors to her web page within 15 days. That’s an incredible result from a free ad and a few minutes of effort. Rubi is in a big city (San Francisco), so I can’t say you’ll have such outstanding results, but isn’t it worth trying?)
- Visit Craigslist.com and look for your city in the list on the right side.
- If you find your city, click on it. Or select the city nearest you.
- Select “post to classifieds” in the upper left corner.
- Select “services offered,” then “legal services.”
- Post title - this is the headline for your ad. Be sure to include your service in the title, notary public, mobile notary, loan signing agent, etc.
- Post description - this is the body of your ad. Repeat your services and add others not in the title. Include other info: your service area, days/hours available, fees, experience, bilingual, and so on. Contact info, of course, your phone and your web address. Include the complete web address, such as: http://www.GoGetNotary.com/Get/Sharon or it won’t be a live link.
- Enter your email address so CraigsList can confirm your ad.
- Decide whether you want your email
- displayed as the reply-to,
- anonymous and emails will be relayed to you,
- do not show any email address.
- Decide if it’s okay for others to contact you about other subjects. Leave blank if you don’t want to receive solicitations from salespeople.
- Select “continue.”
- Review your ad for accuracy and enter the 5-letter verification word. Select “continue” if it’s okay or “edit” if you want to make changes.
- Review terms of use, and select “accept” - if you accept.
- Check your email. You’ll receive a confirmation. Click on the web link to confirm, then select “publish,” “edit” or “delete” depending on whether you’re ready to post or want to edit your information.
The expiration date of your ad will depend on the size of the city you’re in. Mark your calendar and rerun your ad. It will be easier and faster each time you post, and it’s worth the few minutes it takes to keep it going.
You can find lots of places to post free classified ads, such as USFreeAds.com, INetGiant.com, and BackPage.com. A Google search for “free classified ads” will give you pages of websites where you can post more “needles” to help customers find you. Don’t forget to ask customers how they found you so you know which efforts are working.
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©Copyright Sharon Hassler. All rights reserved. Sharon Hassler is president of Go Get Experts, LLC, owner and operator of GoGetRealEstate.com, GoGetLoan.com, GoGetNotary.com and GoGetEscrow.com. A former loan officer and real estate agent in Southern California, she served as Communications Manager for First American Title-Arizona for 11 years. For more about Sharon, visit GoGetNotary.com/Get/Sharon.