Nowadays, everyone is online. Whether you do business online or not, your customers are looking (searching) for you there. They want to know as much about you and their potential experience as possible before they walk in your door or pick up the phone. They want to interact with you via social media or email or another platform. Your customers are also looking for information, sometimes even from the front door or parking lot of your shop. If you don't provide that information, it will come from either generic search results or your competitor.

By creating a strong website that provides information about your business and your industry at large, you'll gain greater access to your audience and the ability to communicate with them directly. Your website should educate your clients about the experience they will have with you and the products and services that you offer. Whether you sell online or not, a website is always an opportunity for education.

Once you have a website presence, you can also collect emails to communicate with your potential customers on a regular basis. Even if your customers do not come to your location every week, you can communicate with them every week via email. Write regular newsletters that provide helpful tips or offer exclusive discounts or event invitations. Email is one of the best methods to communicate with both your current and potential customers. You can even personalize the messages for each group. According to MailChimp, users open over 20% of the emails they receive across most industries and nearly 3% click on a link. That's a captive audience who is genuinely interested in your marketing messages.

Finally, you can create social media profiles for your company. Choose only the platforms that make sense for your business. If you are an interior designer, you will probably focus heavily on visual platforms. You might create Pinterest boards for each of your projects and use the mood board as each board Cover. You might also share your 'behind-the-scenes' images and your final products on Instagram. Even though you're not selling anything online, you can use these social media platforms to direct potential clients back to your website and capture leads, either through a form on your site or via email.

Use digital marketing to enhance your business. Educate potential clients and show them the value they'll receive if they pick up the phone or schedule an appointment.