Digital marketing has become an invaluable strategy used to grow businesses. This follows the fact that almost everyone in the world owns a device or two that they use to connect to the World Wide Web. The lingering effects of the Covid disease are also keeping people stuck at home leaving them with no other choice than to shop online.
So, if you’re wondering when the perfect time to start your digital marketing is; the answer is NOW.
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The Power of Digital Marketing
Many are still skeptical about the influence of digital marketing on consumers. They stubbornly stick with the traditional methods of advertising in newspapers or handing out flyers, not knowing what they are missing online. While their competitors have gone far ahead in the game and enjoying bigger profits, the unbelievers are left behind facing the risk of seeing their business going down the drain.
Digital marketing works. According to recent research, there were 5.44 billion UNIQUE mobile users recorded by the end of this year. Now, imagine capturing the attention of all these people. Of course, that is ideal, but imagine connecting with at least 1% of that population. You get to reach 52 million new leads! This is something that you can never achieve by using traditional marketing methods.
But with digital marketing, it is highly possible!
Just look at this man named Gary Vaynerchuk. He started as a co-owner of a wine store in New Jersey. The business grew into a multi-million dollar business as it gained attention online through Gary’s Wine Library TV, a video blog on the subject of wine. Today, his business has grown global engagement and he is now one of the in-demand speakers in marketing workshops and events.
And you can be the same! By launching your video channel, blog, email marketing, podcast, or social media page and supporting them with some SEO and PPC campaigns, you definitely will.
So, how do you start your digital marketing journey and how can it help your business grow?
How Digital Marketing Can Grow Small Businesses
1. Increased Brand Awareness and Reach
All digital marketing strategies are done on the World Wide Web. This means anyone from anywhere in the world can see your campaigns. So, when you go online your reach is no longer limited to your local neighbourhood. You are now global and more people will finally know that your business exists. For a small business owner, this is an advantage, although for starters it will be wise to target a local audience first.
Use different digital platforms to share about your brand, products, and services. Boost them using both paid and organic methods to keep up with the competition. Leverage your social media accounts to get more people to follow you. Once others get to know about you and liked the things that offer, they are likely to become a part of your buying funnel.
Tip: Invest in your organic web search campaigns and social media campaigns if you are starting with a tight budget. Not all startups have the budget to do extensive digital marketing but you always have a chance through SEO and social media platforms. Asking friends and your existing network to share your page and posts can help you start your digital marketing success.
2. Increased Conversion Rate
Gaining business success using digital marketing methods doesn’t stop at getting people to know you. More importantly, you need to convince them to buy from you.
To do that, always include a CALL TO ACTION (CTA) in your contents, ads, emails, and even your videos. It would be useless to write the most appealing content if you won’t lead your readers to the place where they can avail your offer. Something like “Click here to read more about my one-time offer” or “Click the button now to get the exclusive promo rate” that links to your shop or landing page will be a good way to lead them to buy.
Tip: Always focus on how your product or service can solve the problems of your target audience so they’ll be tempted to try your offer. If they feel like you can’t do much for them on your content, they will automatically leave your page to find another offer.
3. Chance to Stand Out Beside Big Businesses
The battle online is won by those who remain consistent in their digital marketing stints and those who are creative in coming up with campaigns and offers. It is no longer a battle between the big brands alone. Small businesses now stand a chance to become as successful as their pioneers in the field.
MVMT, a watch company started by two young, then-aspiring entrepreneurs, is a classic example of a startup turned successful online business. They started by crowdfunding their business on Indiegogo and took advantage of influencer marketing to make a lot of people notice their simple but modern wristwatch. To think, there are already a lot of established watch brands that sell the same design calibre. However, MVMT recognized the power of influencer marketing to gain the opportunity to succeed. And look at them now, popular among Gen Y and Z watch lovers.
4. Customized User Experience
Many online platforms support digital marketing techniques. This allows you to customize your campaigns according to your target market’s needs and taste.
For instance, moms who need to cook daily for their family shop for cooking lessons online. To capture their attention, you can launch your campaigns on Youtube and social media to know that you are offering cooking lessons. To convince them to buy your lessons, even more, you can offer free cook ebooks that contain two or three of your unique recipes that they can receive only when they subscribe to your email campaign. Compile your recipes using the best PDF editors to make your ebook more presentable. Hire a graphic designer if you need to so you can make your ebook looking exquisite.
Another example is targeting industry owners to buy your compressor. You can write relevant content and post it on Linkedin and Google My Business to capture the attention of professionals.
Tip: It’s just a matter of finding the right target market, the right platform to use, and the right type of campaign material to use to attract leads.
5. Guided Marketing Campaigns
What’s more interesting about doing digital marketing is that there are so many tools available online to help you succeed even on your first try.
Google Analytics, for instance, is an all-around metrics tool that helps business owners in their research on the right target market to address. It also has a keyword research tool to find out what kind of questions their target market is asking on search engines. And when launching a campaign, it can track the performance of your ads and their conversion rates.
And note that the values you get are accurate.
Tip: Use campaign metrics to help you determine which of your efforts are working and which are not. That way, you can focus on the market and campaigns that are showing conversions so you can put your eggs in the right basket that will gain you sure profits.
Should Your Business Do Digital Marketing?
There’s no rule on who can do digital marketing and who cannot. Anyone who wants to make money from a legit product and service can use the strategies offered by digital marketing.
The only requirements to start are for you to understand your business to find the right target and have a clear plan on how to do digital marketing: are you going organic or are you using paid campaigns. The next step is to identify the appropriate digital marketing strategy for the kind of business that you have. You may need to experiment with the different methods and it may take time to see the results, but once you find what works for you, expect to see the best outcomes.
And finally, accept the fact that you cannot do it alone. The scope of digital marketing is so wide. You will need experts in the field for your efforts not to go to waste. Hire copywriters to work on your web content, press releases, social media copies, ad copies, and email marketing content.
Get a graphic designer to work on your visuals as they are important in capturing the attention of social media users. Web designers and web developers are best at creating the most effective landing pages where you’re leading all of your audiences from all of your campaigns.
And finally, you need SEO and PPC specialists to make you rank online.
With all these tips and the decision to start today, you’re sure to make it big online too.
