“If your business is not on the internet, then your business will be out of business.” When asked about network marketing, that was Bill Gates’ response. Now more than ever, this rings true because life happens online as much as it is offline. Everything, from the latest TV shows to social justice movements, is now online. As for the business sector, the e-commerce industry is booming, search engine developers are developing algorithms to help users filter through millions of search results, and online ads are all over the place. This only goes to show how much the internet has shifted the way business is done. In order to succeed, you need to adapt your marketing plan to a world where success is defined by likes, shares, and followers. This article will show you how to promote your business and get the traffic you need to generate a buzz for your business.
Social Media
Social media can be a very powerful marketing tool. If you haven’t realized that by now, then you’ve been looking at the wrong examples. Take a look at how Spotify used its #yearwrapped campaign to engage users all over Instagram and Twitter. At the end of 2019, Spotify compiled each user’s most played tracks into one playlist. The streams recorded from these playlists were just under three billion. Of course, social media platforms don’t welcome just about anyone with open arms. To generate a social media following, you need to post little bites of highly attractive content that engages your followers.
Your two main goals should be: making content that generates an organic following through users voluntarily interacting with your posts and getting people to visit your website. Both goals can be fulfilled by piquing people’s interests through posts, captions, stories, and videos. Along with your posts and in your profile, provide your link. By making yourself accessible to interested users, you’ll be massively increasing your conversion rates. Remember to keep your content short and entertaining enough for users to stay engaged. How many seconds do you have until you lose a user’s attention? Let’s just say that the average attention span of a Millennial is 12 seconds. The younger the user, the shorter the span.
Email Marketing
It’s not as flashy as social media marketing which is why people underestimate its power, but this doesn’t change the fact that email marketing is one of the most effective marketing tools. Here are some numbers to get you excited. According to the Direct Marketing Association’s Marketer Email Tracker published in 2019, email marketing has the highest recorded ROI which is $42 per $1 spent. As for the open rate, 76% of businesses recorded a steady increase. Keep in mind, the key to success here is constantly adapting your emails to the changes in consumer trends.
Email marketing is all about personalized communication and well-crafted messages that offer specific valuable content to prospects. Given that there are several platforms available on the market, this shouldn’t be hard. Many platforms offer useful features, from webinars to attractive interfaces for easier campaign management. Once you’ve figured out your message and the tone that accurately reflects your brand image, you can use a platform to arrange your mailing lists. Better yet, you can personalize emails based on a prospect’s information, and automatically send out scheduled emails.
Blog Articles
Articles serve two main functions. The first is generating leads in the awareness stage of the marketing funnel. Most businesses nowadays fill their websites with blog articles related to their industry. Software development companies post blog articles about the pros and cons of one software over the other. Law firms post articles that help people understand how and when to take legal action. When a user searches for their topic of interest online, these related articles come up, directing them towards a business’s website. By offering informative content, articles generate web traffic and contribute to a company’s brand image by showing off its expertise and professionalism. An added bonus here is that when a search engine’s algorithm sees that a website is providing useful content and is getting many clicks, it automatically places it above the rest and closer to the top of the page, thus easier for a user to find.
The second function is nurturing leads during the following stages until prospects get to the intent stage. Let’s say, you own a business that sells phone accessories. Capitalizing on the coronavirus pandemic, you created a Facebook post that stresses the importance of keeping a clean phone screen. How do you get the reader to go to your website and stay there? By providing valuable content. In this case, a good example would be a how-to article about cleaning phones where you mention your selection of cleaning kits in passing. This will keep the people coming your way interested in what you have to sell. They may not buy from you the first time around, but they will note your potential value and keep a close eye on your content.
These are the three most powerful online marketing methods, but to achieve success, one needs more than knowledge of the methods. Now that you know the available tools, you need to prepare a solid marketing plan that takes into account the market trends, your target audience, brand image, and company goals. Combined with the platform you intend on using, your target audience should dictate the type of content you post. Younger audiences, for example, respond to flashy graphics and dynamic videos. Older audiences respond more to simplified information. If you’re going to market yourself on Instagram, you’ll need to rely heavily on pictures. Meanwhile, email is text-based, so you need to hone your writing skills, or hire someone with the relevant know-how. The true power of marketing lies in the ability to control how people see you. Before you start posting, make sure you have a good grasp of what you want to tell people about your business. That’s all there is to online marketing. Once you put in the effort, you’ll start seeing the results. What’s your next move going to be?