Locksmith Marketing is Online

Once upon a time, a locksmith was a fairly manual and had nothing to do with information technology. Tradesmen had their own shops and advertised in Yellowpages. That did the job.

Being a locksmith is being all hi-tech today. You need to generate leads for new business using online ads, websites, SEO, and various online platforms and tools. You cannot ignore review websites either.

Yellowpages advertising is long dead. The Internet is the primary mode of reaching customers. One has to live in a fast-paced world where you find your customers online. People still walk to your shop, but you need to have a very strong presence online too.

 

The Online Challenge

Today, all serious locksmiths have their own websites. It has to be kept in great shape, thanks to search engine giant(s). The search engine traffic is critical to locksmith business. You need to comply with all the whims and fancies of search giant(s).

For the start, you need a website that's modern.

In the 2000s, you could create simple websites using HTML editors such as Frontpage (by Microsoft). For more adventurous, learning basics of HTML didn't take more than a few days. You could easily create you own website in a couple of days. Once you had your website, you just uploaded it to your web hosting.

Today, you can make a HTML website, but there are too many technicalities to take care of. You don't make a website for computers today. You make websites that can be viewed by users numerous devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and more.

Making websites to work great on all types of devices is a challenge in itself. Also, people expect more features with modern websites.

That's not all. Google and other search engines now have more complex mechanisms for data sharing. You have things like Schemas and structured data. You need these for letting search engines know about your content.

In addition, you also need to keep your website updated.

Social Media & More

As if managing your website wasn't a challenge in itself, you need to stay active on social media too. You have Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Instagram, Pinterest and many more platforms. You have something called Google My Business too.

With the rise of visual media, you need to be good at crafting attractive messages with great images, graphics and videos.

What are the chances of a locksmith being skilled at all the tasks of staying active online?

Locksmith Marketing Experts

With a lot of tasks at hand, one has to spend many hours each month to maintain websites, stay active on social media, and optimize website SEO for ranking in Google & Bing.

One can start doing all of it. You just need to learn and keep learning (like, forever). Learning isn't a challenge for locksmiths. We spend our life training for latest locks and security devices. However, learning the art of web design, SEO, social media and digital marketing is a different ballgame altogether.

Do you work as a locksmith or turn into a full-time digital marketing guy?

Over the years, I have learnt to live with the changing dynamics. Instead of trying to DIY with websites & SEO, it's better to delegate the job to an expert. You have to spend dollars, but it leaves you free to earn more money.

A good web & SEO expert helps you grow. I am happy to have discovered one early on. With zero involvement, my locksmith websites and online marketing keeps working for me. I don't know how many hours I save each month. My guess would be like 30-50 hours. Staying on the first page of search helps bring me money. So I look at locksmith marketing as an investment.

Internet is going to drive and affect your locksmith business. What choice do you have other than embracing the change and grow your business online? Things aren't going to revert back to old days. Best of luck with your business!

Losing Keys After A Fun Morning

Losing something is a really bad thing! It can ruin your day, especially if it is the key to your house.

Today, I had loads of fun in the morning. I went out cycling with a bunch of friends. When the world is speeding to their offices on the roads winding by the green belt with cycling tracks, it feels good to be spared the agony of waking up every morning and rushing to work. Being a freelancer has some advantages. What if you have to live with an uncertain source of income? If you are good at what you do, you are sure to make a decent living. Of course, it won't be a steady stream of income, but sudden spikes in income has its own joys. It sure does compensate the lean periods. At least, that's what i have seen.

Back to the cycling track. So, our small group of friends enjoyed the morning racing in the green belt until the sun went high up in the sky and all of us were tired and sweaty. Two hours of cycling and having fun as a group. How many joyous moments did we share! Poor Jerry did find himself embarrassed being the only one who could not perform the front-wheel-up trick. Nothing that merits being ashamed, but he wasn't really comfortable being in the position. Except for that few moments, even he enjoyed the morning.

At noon, I reached my apartment. With the cycling helmet in my left hand and my head and forehead covered with a big kerchief, I wiped sweat off my eyebrows to prevent them making way into my eyes. I wiped by wet hands on my pants and placed by right hands in the back pocket of my jeans for the apartment keys. Nothing to be found.

Did I lose my apartment keys? Or did I just keep it in my other pocket. I wasn't sure. So I put the helmet down on the floor and checked my other pockets. The key ring was still missing. My backpack didn't have the keys either. Now it was confirmed that I had lost my keys.

Was it any good to retrace my path back to the park and then inside the big park in search of my keys? It didn't seem like a good idea. First, the park was 2Km from my apartment and the green belt was itself big enough to make such a search a difficult task to accomplish. So I reached my phone and searched for a local locksmith on Google.

A smiling and courteous locksmith (Chula Vista) was at my apartment door within 20 minutes. I didn't even have to go through the trauma of having to wait for help as I was busy informing my friends about this little incidence and seeking updates. Hendrik was quick to pick my apartment lock and let me in. However, it took him a while to replace the lock with a new one for better safety of my apartment.

After a fun morning, a few minutes of trouble being locked out of your apartment. It wasn't that bad, but it did cost me some money. Maybe, I will skip one night-out to compensate for the unplanned expense.

Security Guard: A Tough Job for Tough People

Jogging can be a fun way of meeting new people. I have been a regular jogger for quite some time and recently made a new fiend in the park. He is a magnificent personality with a broad smile always sparkling on his face. He's John Grasim.

After having bumped into each other for a week on the same jogging tracks, we finally took a breath and made acquaintance of each other. He has been working as a professional security guard in San Diego California for the past 5 years.

He spends about 1 hour everyday jogging in the park and then heads over to his gym for an additional 30 minutes of exercise. He says the physical fitness is the topmost priority in his career. Being physically fit also helps him stay alert, which is the part of a security guard's job profile.

Until now, I had been thinking of security guard job as a simple job where one just has to man his station. However, this isn't as simple as I thought. One has to pass a training and also get an arms training for being eligible to carry security weapons.

You cannot slack after getting your security guard license. One has to keep taking refresher courses and stay updated. Every year one has to get the license renewed. One also has to take lessons every year and pass the exam.

The job demands high level of physical and mental alertness. There is no scope for slacking if one intends to make it their career and succeed in it. I guess I have started respecting security guards more now.

Long-Lost Friend & Amateur Locksmithing!

Ha! After a long, long time, Ageel is back to his small corner on the Internet. For around an year, I didn't even thought of adding my views and opinions here. It seems to be my perennial problem.

At some point of time, I plan to do something, like maintaining an online journal here. Many people do not take action, I do. So this space was created almost instantly after having decided to have my own little corner on the ever-expanding space. After just a few days, I got busy with my regular, mundane life. (I didn't lose any keys or locked myself out of the apartment till now. Pretty good performance, huh!)

 Today having read someone's online journal about how he was ripped off by a local scam locksmith, I recalled of my article that I had written. So I came back to check if it is still in order.

Yes, my little corner is still reserved for me. I am now thinking of keeping it more active and lively here. Hopefully, I will be able to stay rock-solid on this idea now.

For now, I have also resolved not to lose any keys when cycling. Just to let you know, I have been more regular with cycling that writing. I intend to train for a marathon and participate in the local charity marathon that is organized in December every year. Do you think I should be able to finish the marathon in just few months of physical training?

Given that I just learnt how one of my acquaintances was cheated by a locksmith, I also intend to  learn the basics of locksmithing. I will refer to some trade magazines and books in the public library. A visit to the local bookstore is also pertinent here for getting some books for locksmithing trades. For spares and tools, the local hardware store should be able to get me going with my amateur locksmith training tool kit.

Hope to stay in touch with you more often! Will keep you posted.
Stay fit. Cheers and enjoy your life!

Find Genuine Locksmiths in Chula Vista

Source: Wikipedia

Chula Vista is the second largest city in San Diego metropolitan area in California. With a population of around 250,000, the city is the 77th largest in the United States. A large population means lots of people will actually need services required for day to day life. One of such services is that of locksmith.

You need a locksmith not just when you lose your keys. You will need a locksmith when moving to a new house. When you buy a house, it is necessary to get the place rekeyed for your safety. Who knows who had keys to the previous locks?

Apart from rekeying, you also need to install additional locks in your homes, offices and shops. Industrial establishments require a more sophisticated locksmith service.

A large population means that a lot of people start offering services such as locksmithing service. So it is only obvious to find a large number of people offering locksmith service in Chula Vusta.

Can you trust all the people who are working as a locksmith in Chula Vista, California? No. You need to find a Chula Vista locksmith who has adequate professional training and experience as a locksmith. You also need to have a business establishment with proper Locksmith License and insurance.

When looking for a locksmith, you should always check if the individual or business is qualified to handle your assignment. Do they have the license to operate in the area? Also, if they are not insured, you might face issues if anything goes wrong.

When you search for a locksmith website in Chula Vista, you get a lot of results. Many of the websites that show up are not even real businesses. Such websites are merely trying to get your information and sell the lead to some other locksmith operating in the area. Such websites might not even be operated by Americans. Many foreigners have created networks of locksmith websites to tap into the huge market for locksmith service. Beware of such websites!

You should only hire a locksmith with a real business in your area. Try to verify their business credentials, physical location of their establishments and licenses. One of the easiest ways of finding a genuine locksmith business is to check if they are accredited with the BBB (Better Business Bureau). Though the BBB accreditation is purely optional, most genuine businesses get it to instill confidence in their customers.

So next time you need a locksmith in Chula Vista, do not just call anyone. Be wise and verify the business credentials of the locksmith before hiring. Stay safe.