Ask most marketers what digital marketing strategies they are using, and they will probably say SEO, content marketing, or paid advertising. Nothing is wrong with these strategies, except we are all using them and creating fatigue among potential customers. They are finding the same story everywhere.
Without a differentiator, prospects can easily look you over and settle for your competition. So, how can you stand out from the crowd? What can you do to create a buzz and recapture your customer’s interest?
Here are five digital marketing strategies you can infuse into your strategic plan to shake up those campaigns.
Digital Marketing Strategy #1: Collect and Use Data
Data provides a 360° view of your sales and marketing operations, allowing you to identify opportunities for growth and weak points. Since data is factual, the decisions you reach will not be based on intuition or guesswork, but on what actually works. How can you use B2B data to boost sales?
- Use B2B data in lead generation. Most marketers are so caught up in generating leads they fail to look at the relevance of these leads. It is possible to funnel in a hundred leads every day, but the question you need to ask yourself is, “how many are likely to convert?” Historical data can help you learn and predict audience behavior, ensuring you zero in on audiences with a greater propensity to convert.
- Use B2B data in research and analytics. From risk analysis to market growth, product development, and competitive analysis, data is beneficial in helping companies draw research-backed decisions. By analyzing data, you can pinpoint where your business is, where you want to be, how to get there, and what your competition is doing. Your findings can help you add new services, improve operational efficiency and client service efforts, or optimize marketing campaigns. These initiatives will be geared at providing better value for your customer, potentially increasing revenue.
Digital Marketing Strategy #2: Remarketing
People abandon processes for various reasons. Something or someone grabs their attention, the cost is prohibitive, or they do not have enough information to proceed. How do you get these visitors back to finish the process? Through remarketing, of course. According to research, remarketing can convert up to 50 percent of traffic. That is plenty if you ask us, and you do not have a plan to win back previous visitors, you will be losing income.
Here are remarketing strategies you can try out:
- Come up with remarketing lists to target users at every stage of the sales funnel. The aim is to nurture them with relevant campaigns based on the positions they are in along the consumer journey.
- Create fresh landing pages. Avoid sending visitors to the same page they were at the last time since they did not convert on it. Provide new landing pages with more information that will guide them towards making a purchase.
- Match new audience profiles with existing customers. Map out similarities between target audiences and the customers already in your books to get an idea of interests and behaviors.
- Come up with action-based rules for moving users down the sales funnel. People who view your products/services pages can be added automatically to a remarketing list where you can entice them to come back and buy. Those on the abandoned cart remarketing list can be encouraged with limited-time offers, discounts, or excellent product features to come back.
Digital Marketing Strategy #3: Create Lead Magnets
Lead magnets are attractive free downloads that provide highly relevant information to prospective customers in exchange for their contact information. Lead magnets allow you to identify real people visiting your website and the level of interest in your products/services. They also help reinforce your brand’s value and establish your authority as a helpful resource for buyers.
Examples of lead magnets include product demos, educational videos, ebooks, case studies, white papers, downloadable guides (templates, checklists), and webinars. When you create lead magnets that are aligned with what people are searching for, your content is more likely to show up in search results. This helps increase awareness and attracts new visitors.
How do you craft effective lead magnets?
- Be specific. Generalized lead magnets rarely delve into the specifics that customers are looking for, reducing their overall value. Narrow down to topics you can cover all-round to convert more leads.
- Create lead magnets that are easy to follow and visually appealing. Use shorter paragraphs, add bullet points, and break walls of text with images.
- Make them actionable. Let your lead magnets deliver something actionable. Whether it is a checklist or guide, users should receive all they need to act straight away.
- Demonstrate thought-leadership. Meet your visitors’ expectations by providing content that is factually correct, demonstrates your expertise on the topic, and inspires trust.
Digital Marketing Strategy #4: Cold Calling
Most sales teams focus on making as many cold calls as possible, but few stop to benchmark the effectiveness of this campaign. According to saleshive.com, a leading B2B cold calling agency in the US, tracking calls allows you to identify what is working, what is not, and which areas need improvement to generate better returns.
Here are tips to help you monitor your cold calling strategy:
- Look at the volume of closed records. By closed, we mean the number of calls you have marked as “won” or “lost. It allows you to check productivity and performance.
- Measure the calls that convert to sales over a specified period to know the efficiency of your sales calls.
- Check your ability to qualify contacts. What happens when you cannot reach a prospect? Is there a “leave a voicemail” plan or email follow-up? How do you deal with prospects who do not seem interested?
- Monitor your average handle time. The time spent on calls may indicate the quality of the sales call. Low handle time may be a sign of low quality calls where you are unable to capture the prospect’s interest. High handle time may indicate talking too much instead of focusing on providing specific information or lack of closing skills.
- Analyze the quality of the call. Are prospects satisfied with the information they receive? Randomly review conversations with clients to know if your opening line and the information shared are producing the desired outcome.
Digital Marketing Strategy #5: Take Up Podcasting
This marketing discipline is quickly gaining popularity among customers with up to 74 percent stating that they turn to podcasts to learn new things. It is an excellent platform for educating audiences at different stages, maximizing brand awareness, and showcasing thought leadership.
Best practices include:
- Consistency. Starting a podcast may sound exciting but do you have the topics and stamina to maintain that momentum six months down the line? The ability to keep going is what will separate you from the competition.
- Defining your intended purpose for the podcast. Ensure the topics covered revolve around this intent. Send your guests an outline of the discussion, and encourage them to listen to an episode or two to get a feel of the podcast series.
- Striving for a full guest lineup beforehand so you can put out new episodes consistently. If you have difficulties finding guests in the beginning, consider featuring knowledgeable employees in your team or willing customers.