Reach Customers in More Ways than One
In today’s digital world, there are several ways that your business can connect with customers. Each of these marketing methods has its own inherent strengths and weaknesses, so it is best to use at least a couple of them. This way you can ensure that your message is reaching your target demographic. Here are a few different marketing avenues for your to explore.
1. Email Marketing
Email marketing is one of the older forms of digital marketing but it is still very effective because of how direct it is. It is one of the few forms of digital marketing that allows you to reach out to potential customers directly and speak to them as individuals. The only caveat associated with email marketing is that people need to voluntarily share their contact information with you, which can take some effort.
2. Social Media
Social media is an absolute powerhouse for digital marketing. Its primary strength is that it allows for two-way communication with your audience. A business is able to market to customers and customers can publicly respond to the business. Social media also offers companies some of the largest audiences available. For example, Facebook alone has over a billion monthly users worldwide. Another advantage of social media is that it is free to use. You can make a profile for your business at no cost to you and begin building your community. Social media also gives you the opportunity to partner with influencers to give your product a boost in coverage.
3. Content Marketing
Content marketing is an organic method of digital advertising, which means that it is longer-lasting than paid advertisements. The most common form of content marketing is a blog on your company’s website. Content marketing will also help your website rank higher on search engine result pages which will lead to an increase in traffic.
Focus on Developing a Strong Workplace Culture
Strong workplace culture can have many benefits for your company ranging from improved productivity to increased brand awareness. Responsible consumers will take extra steps to support companies that they believe take good care of their workers and care about the same issues as they do. Communication is key in building a solid workplace culture. Always communicate clearly in the workplace and ensure that everyone on your team is on the same page.
If your team struggles to communicate effectively, then you could consider investing in a leadership development plan. This will help educate your senior workers and leadership positions on how to effectively communicate with their team.
Develop a Strategic Plan
Every good marketing campaign begins with a strategic plan. Developing a strategic plan can be difficult, but it is crucial in defining the scope of your marketing efforts. To begin making a good plan, you need to first create a set of goals that are SMART. This is an acronym that means specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. An example of a SMART goal for a marketing campaign would be to increase the number of webpage visits by 20% by the next quarter. This goal is specific about what the desired outcome is and gives a way of measuring your campaign’s success. It is also relevant to your company’s performance, is able to be reached, and gives a deadline for when the goal should be reached. Having SMART goals will keep your team on track as they develop a strategic marketing plan.
Site Optimization and Advanced SEO
Search engine optimization, or SEO, is an organic form of digital marketing that aims to help your website rank higher on search engine result pages. This is done by aligning your website’s structure and content with Google’s criteria for determining the value of a webpage. For example, Google has recently taken a mobile-first approach to ranking web pages. This means that you can begin ranking higher than other websites simply by ensuring that your website is usable on devices of all sizes.
Website optimizations can also improve your business’s efficiency and overall performance. Let’s take the example of a hypothetical eCommerce business that ships a large number of products. This business could optimize its site by including a USPS shipping API that streamlines the loading and delivery phases of its service. This will save the business time and money that would otherwise be spent on labor.
Create Great Content
Creating content that is informative, entertaining, or interesting to your audience is another great way to promote your business. This content could come in the form of online videos, podcasts, or even simple blog posts. Whatever form it comes in it is important that your audience will want to engage with the content and share it with their friends. The content you make for your company’s website is another organic method of generating traffic and increasing brand recognition.
