Digital marketing has to be in your mind when starting a business, thirty years ago the internet and online marketing strategy would not have come into your thoughts when setting up a business. These days it has to be the primary thought on advertising and marketing. Even if you preferred to use old fashioned marketing styles of adverts and leaflets you would not get anywhere near the amount of engagement that you get by having a presence online.
- We know that mobile channels are the way to acquire and retain customers, so a plan is needed to make this process streamline and this can be a challenge, some people do not even know where to start. You do not need to produce a huge report a summary, a few researched strategies and a time map are the key elements.
- Surveys have proven that the more detailed marketing plan held by a business the more success they are guaranteed, from starting out. It is still believed however than just less over half of companies have a digital marketing strategy. Without this strategy you will have no direction online, your posts will be a mish mash of information whereas they could be a strict strategically planned attack on your target audience. You need to build up the presence, so you can build deeper relationships with existing customers as well as attracting new ones. You also need to have dedicated resources for the job, otherwise it is the first job that will be neglected once you are busy.
- Some research into who your target audience are and where you fit into the marketplace will increase your ability to hook them. The dynamics will be different to other types of advertising and how you promote your business will also be different to anything you have known before the internet. You can use online tools to define your level of customer demand and you can also monitor the effectiveness of your online marketing. Again, it should be factored into your strategy that you need to check how effective your posts are, you can also check the best times and days to post about your business in the different formats. Again, this in line with Facebook, Twitter and blogs should form part of your research that should then be put into your digital marketing strategy.
- Your strategy should include a feedback tool, so that you can identify your weak points as a business and or social media. This should then either be answer and explained to whoever left the feedback or you should look for ways to include what they require or desire into your business or business strategy.
- Some people think companies are either too big or too small for a strategy but without one big companys will see different members of staff posting on social media in conflicting ways. Small companies may not allocate enough time to digital marketing without it being in a strategy, business plan and also part of someone’s job role.
- The final tip is never be afraid of your online presence, it is an area where it pays off to be risqué, down to earth and funny. This is how your clients will remain loyal to you.
