When the corona virus hit early this year, it was a wakeup call for many businesses that they need a digital footprint. As a result, companies are jumping into digital marketing without knowing how it really works.
Where do I begin? This is the million-dollar question many CEOs and business owners are asking themselves. There is a lot of advice out there for beginners, but not everything is guaranteed to work.
Since you’re here, you likely need a quick and comprehensive guide on digital marketing. We’ve put together a little free advice for all businesses that are new to digital marketing.
Understanding the State of Digital Marketing
Marketing in today’s digital era has taken a new form compared to the marketing strategies of the past. Every business today needs to partner with a professional digital marketing agency. Having a digital footprint is a key component for any company that wants to be successful.
For most companies, establishing a strong online presence was not that essential because business was moving along just fine. The mass ‘stay at home’ from different governments due to COVID-19 has jolted such business to a sudden halt.
As you rethink your internet marketing plans, make sure you’re not doing this because of the corona virus. Like any other pandemic, it is bound to pass, and life will get back to normal.
Of course, the importance of digital marketing in this age cannot be overstated. However, making your products and services more accessible for online shoppers should be a long-term plan. Digital marketing allows you to cast a wider net and penetrate new market segments.
Do You Know What your Customers like and who they are?
The best place to begin when you’re working on digital marketing strategies is by putting yourself in your customers’ shoes. The secret to attract customers is to understand who they are and what they like.
Why do your customers keep coming back? Is it your business location? Your customer services? The products you offer or maybe a combination of all the above?
When you understand what about your company interests your customers, you can easily satisfy their needs. This will give you the insights you need on how to zero in on different demographics. Winging it might work, but when you’re specific with your strategies, you achieve more success.
Types of Digital Marketing to Invest in
Beginners need to know the right marketing strategies that align with their brand. Here are effective marketing strategies you should try;
Social Media Marketing
If you’re not yet using social media marketing services, it’s about time you did. Social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, LinkedIn, and TikTok ensure that you position your brand where your customers spend most of their time.
Did you know that the average person spends at least two hours on social media each day? Promoting your business on social media helps you gain more customers as well as get insightful feedback from your customers.
You can use social media influencers and leverage their large following to boost your bottom line. This works excellently because most people trust brands that are vouched for by popular macro-influencers.
Search Engine Optimization
Search engines contribute to the success of your business because they rank brands based on what they can offer for customers. Search engine optimization ensures that your site appeals to Google’s algorithms.
PPC
Pay-per-click ads are what search engine users see besides search engine results. You can also use PPC ads on your website as well as on social media. The beauty of pay-per-click advertising is, you only pay for them when you get clicks. It’s a cost-effective way of ensuring you broadcast your brand message across all internet networks.
Content Marketing
When you’re creating content for your website and social media pages, make sure it is aligned with your brand message. The tone you use on your content should be consistent as well; otherwise, customers will be confused as to what you stand for.
When you’re creating content, every other digital marketing strategy you’re using comes to play. Your content marketing plan should be aligned with your SEO, social media marketing, PR, and email marketing efforts.
Affiliate Marketing
Finally, we have affiliate marketing, which is a unique type of digital marketing because of how it operates. It is a system that distributes the responsibility of promoting your business to third parties.
The catch is, the affiliate marketer shares the vendor’s sales proceeds. For this system to work, each party needs to understand their role clearly.
- The creator (Vendor)- this is the owner of the business that shares sales proceeds with affiliates.
- The affiliate (Publisher)- this can be an individual or a business entity that advertises the vendor’s produces and services. They get a percentage of the sales generated.
- The consumer- the customer buys products from the creator via an affiliate marketing channel.
Conclusion
Digital marketing places an essential role in the success of all businesses today. If you’re new to digital marketing, the first step is to understand who your customers are and what they need from your business. Once you know how to target your ideal customers, everything else will fall into place.