How to Get Your Business Above the Fold

In the Same Place as the People They Trust

Open the messages on your phone. Look at the conversations you find there.

Your spouse asking about dinner. A friend working out a tee time. Your daughter sending a picture of the grandkids. Your son asking if he can borrow the truck Saturday.

Now imagine your business has a conversation in that list, too. The lighting salesperson helping someone finish their foyer. The lawn company checking on a dry patch. The daycare sending a photo of Gus making a new friend.

Your business is reachable in the same place the customer talks with the people they know. That is a valuable place for a business to earn.

A different kind of visibility

In a newspaper, “above the fold” meant the part you could see before you unfolded the paper. On a website, it means what appears before you scroll. Businesses put considerable effort into being seen there.

For many customers, messages are a familiar part of everyday life. Being present there offers a different kind of visibility: becoming familiar and easy to find at the moment the customer has a question.

A website helps someone discover your business. A useful text conversation gives them a direct way back to the person who helped them.

Think about the next question

Suppose a couple leaves a lighting showroom after half an hour with a salesperson. They have a few fixtures to consider and some measurements to take. That evening, they stand in the foyer and wonder whether the one they liked will be too large.

If they already have a text conversation with their salesperson, the next step is easy. They take a picture and ask. They do not need to search for the store, navigate the website, find the phone number, and explain their project again. The conversation is already there, along with the photos and details they exchanged.

That is the value of being in their messages. You have made the next question easier to ask, and that question may be what helps them feel comfortable buying.

Earn the invitation

A place in someone’s messages starts with a reason to connect, offered by a person who has just been useful:

“Can I text you my contact card and the dimensions of that fixture? Then you can send me a picture when you get home.”

The customer knows what to expect and why it helps. Use a clear and compliant opt-in process and invite them to save the card. Saving a contact and agreeing to receive messages are separate steps. Future calls and texts from that saved number can appear under a name they recognize.

The first useful exchange gives that contact a little history. You are the person who listened in the showroom and helped with the measurements afterward.

Keep earning the place

Once a customer welcomes your business into that space, keep giving them reasons to value the connection.

A heads-up about tomorrow’s service helps them plan. A photo of something you noticed shows care. A reminder about a form can save them time.

A thoughtful check-in can be welcome, too: “Hi Susan, how did those fixtures look once they were installed? I’d love to see a photo.”

You remember the project and care how it turned out. There does not have to be a deadline or another sale behind every conversation.

Before sending, ask: Why would this person welcome this message today?

Let the answer guide what you send and how often you reach out. Stay within the permission the customer gave you and honor requests to stop. The goal is to make their day easier and the relationship stronger.

Sometimes the best way to help is simply to answer when the customer starts the conversation. Be easy to reach, listen carefully, and follow through.

Someone has to be listening

Imagine receiving a helpful update, replying with a question, and discovering that nobody is on the other end. The invitation loses its meaning.

When your business offers texting, someone needs to own the reply, and the team needs a way to help when that person is busy or away. Let customers know when they can expect a response.

Captivated text-enables a business’s existing number or an employee’s direct desk line. The customer connects with a familiar person through a business-controlled number. The business keeps the conversation history, a coworker can pick up with context, and a manager can see when a customer needs attention.

That support helps the team deliver on the promise made in the first conversation: you have someone here who will help you.