Whether you’re promoting your own website or that of your clients, we take a look at seven great techniques and strategies to take your digital marketing efforts to the next level!
Start small and be consistent
With so many social networks, free SEO tools, paid advertising options and conflicting advice out there, many digital marketers feel they need to try and tackle every angle if they want to outperform the competition. Unless you have a huge marketing team, this is almost always a mistake. Rather focus on a few aspects – at least as first – so you can accurately gauge whether they’re right for you or not. Once you have a solid grounding and are able to deliver consistent results, then consider expanding your reach and strategy – after you’ve done your research.
Don’t neglect Local SEO
Did you know that 82% of smartphone owners, and 92% of Millennials have used their smartphones to perform a “near me” style search when looking to make a purchase? The lesson here is obvious – make sure your website and ad campaigns are optimized for mobile and local searches. This is especially important if you’re working on a campaign for a retail client, someone in the hospitality trade, or any company which provides local services to a well-defined area.
On-page SEO – Dot your i’s and cross your t’s
As a (generally) creative bunch, digital marketers tend to be drawn towards brainstorming, putting together new content, and getting involved on social media rather than the more technical aspects of SEO like metadata, indexing, sitemaps, broken links, redirect errors, etc. If the scope of a technical SEO audit terrifies you, then it’s probably better to reach out to an experienced SEO company to help you out. It’s definitely well worth doing though, as silly, easily fixed errors could be undermining all your other efforts.
Build an email list
No-one likes getting spammy emails, which is why despite its status as one of the most effective digital marketing strategies, people are reluctant to use email marketing, thinking it may alienate and irritate their subscribers rather than engage them. One way to avoid this is to tailor your email campaigns to a specific segment of your email list, such as different ages, spending patterns, or geographical locations. The more relevant to each individual an email is, the more likely it becomes that you’ll get the response you want.
At the very least, you should separate out customers who have actually purchased from you in the past – which gives you further insight into their preferences and the things they might be on the lookout for – from individuals who yet to make a purchase and could still be on the fence about what you’re selling. Your approach to these two groups will be very different.
If you’ve compiled your email list by giving out a freebie such as an eBook on a specific topic, it makes sense to tailor your email campaigns around the topic they’ve already demonstrated an interest in.
Not sure what’s working and what isn’t? Experiment!
Would you get better results if you publish two short blog posts every week, or one longer one? What time of day do you get the most engagement from your Facebook fans? Have you considered using A/B or split testing to gauge your website visitor’s reactions to a different landing page layout? Do you get more retweets on your Twitter feed if you include images? Do your website visitors leave more comments on videos or infographics?
While doing thorough research is always a good idea, every audience is different, and there are some things you can only gauge accurately by testing them!
Learn how to build credible links
Getting high quality backlinks from reputable sites is good for SEO, and it’s also good for boosting brand recognition and growing your online presence. But for it to work correctly, you need to make sure you’re reaching out to the right sites with quality content that will benefit both parties. This takes time and patience, but getting a backlink from a really high authority site is worth the extra effort. Make sure to include the link back to your site in a natural manner, ideally in the form of a longtail keyword which corresponds to the exact page you’re promoting; as well as linking to other relevant sources outside of your site in the article so the resulting content is comprehensive and informative.
Encourage and highlight good reviews
If a potential customer about to make a purchase has narrowed their options down to you and one other competitor, having some great reviews and testimonials can easily swing them in your direction. Never let a sale be the end of your customers’ journey. Send them a thank you email letting them know you’re there to assist if they need any help or guidance, and politely asking for a testimonial or a review on your Google My Business (or similar platforms you appear on) if they were pleased with your service.
