Digital Marketing And Execution
Everything is done over the web in today’s busy world. People just don’t have the time to hop from store to store, nor is there really a reason to. Purchases are made online and research is conducted online. Even if someone does buy something in store, he/she will have a very good idea what to get and where to get it from due to online research. Because of today’s buying habits, you, as a business owner, must focus heavily on digital marketing and execution.
There are seven facets to digital marketing and execution. Executing each of them in some capacity will enable your business to reach larger audiences, which means increased exposure, which means an expanded customer base.
Here are the seven facets:
Web Design
Digital marketing and execution, starts with a website. After all, you can’t digitally market without one. Your business website needs to be taken very seriously, as it will make or break whether or not you convert a sale when someone visits.
The good news is the vast majority of website work can be done up front. Once you solidify a design, lock down responsiveness and create the content, the heavy lifting is done. From there, it’s all about maintaining, monitoring and tweaking.
In the initial website set up, responsiveness, easy navigation and site speed are crucial. All three play a major role in visitor satisfaction.
Responsiveness ensures your website can be easily accessed through laptops, smartphones, tablets and desktops. The formatting should be consistent through each technology platform and all links should work just the same throughout as well. Any seemingly minor oversight can result in visitors clicking out of your website.
Speaking of an oversight, don’t underestimate the importance of site speed. Surely, you’ve given up on a website before because it took too long for the pages to load. Even a one second improvement in site speed can work wonders for your business’ revenue. A loss of a second, on the other hand, will be sure to hurt revenue. Thus, be sure your site is up to speed!
Lastly, easy navigation makes for a smooth visitor experience. Some business owners feel it is necessary to cram every bit of information into their website. While that can work in some circumstances, simplicity is the best route to take. Don’t make it to where visitors have to try and bite off more than they can chew. The last thing you want is for a visitor to be overwhelmed by information overload.
Business Local Listings
Once your site is on par and up to speed, it’s time to move your focus to being found. The first step…verifying your business with Google My Business.
Business local listings will make it easier for your business to be found through search engines. It will be part of google maps and advertisements. Your business could also populate as with a knowledge panel and as part of the local 3-pack.
The knowledge panel is the section of noteworthy information that shows up on a results page when you search a company name. It typically includes a business name, address, phone number and reviews. The local 3-pack is the three rows of businesses that show up on results pages when you search basically any product or service. It isolates three businesses that google feels will be most beneficial to a searcher.
We cover all of this extensively in our “Business Local Listings” page.
Every person has a talent, but it’s finding a way for that talent to be discovered that’s the tricky part. In digital marketing and execution, there are a number of ways to increase your website’s chances of being found. One of those ways is through business local listings.
Search Engine Optimization
In digital marketing and execuction, SEO is another way to make your website findable. Though, it’s a much more of a commitment than verifying your business through Google My Business.
SEO is executed by establishing keywords within your website content for search engines to pick up on. As an example, you might use “engineered hardwood flooring” as a keyword for a blog post if you own a flooring company. So, when someone searches “engineered hardwood flooring” in google, your blog will show up somewhere in search engine results.
The goal is for your site’s web pages to show up on the first page of google results pages for a number of keywords or phrases. Of course, the higher your website ranks on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages), the more people that will come across it. You’ll have to play with keywords, determining which are most successful via trial and error.
It’s also about making your website presentable to searchers. You want everything to look just right on SERPs or else someone may scroll past your website and click on another. Creating the best meta information will help. The meta title, meta description and URL will be shown on SERPs.
The idea is to stay within the character limit to ensure the title and description for each page or post will be see in its entirety from google. This way, nothing is left up to imagination and the searcher will have a great idea as to what to expect from your link.
Pay Per Click
PPC will get more immediate results than SEO. The kicker, however, is PPC does cost money. You would have to set aside a budget to pay the publisher whenever one of your business ads are clicked. PPC does not cost very much and you should more than make up for your expense through online exposure, or digital marketing.
PPC compliments SEO. How so?
You actually pay for advertising under specific keyword searches. Low volume keywords are less expensive, while high volume keywords are more expensive. The tricky part is deciding which keywords you want to advertise under. You certainly don’t want to waste any part of your PPC budget by paying for worthless advertising.
That’s why you don’t want to put all of your marbles in one basket, at least to start. Find which keywords gain the most traction through advertising and capitalize on them. Just like with SEO, there is a trial and error aspect to it that your business will need to work through in the early stages. The good news with PPC is you’ll find out what is working and what is not working rather quickly.
Branding
Branding is very important for digital marketing and execution. People often associate branding with clothing lines, car manufacturers and beverages. They think of brands like Nike, Toyota and Gatorade. It’s not so much that those three industries are more prominent than others; it’s that those individual companies have done such a tremendous job of marketing their brands. Tremendous branding brings attention not only to one company, but to an entire industry. You want to be the company responsible for bringing attention to your entire industry.
The importance of branding goes without saying. With the current power of digital marketing, establishing a catchy business name and creating the perfect logo will have a great influence on the millions of people who come across your business online. Though, those two things are much easier said than done.
That’s where a digital marketing agencies like Click4Corp comes into play. We have tons of design experience for digital marketing and execution. Our experts know how to assess a business and a business plan, and create a perfect design logo. We will draw up a handful of logos and let the business owner make the final decision on which one he/she prefers for the business.
Introducing a logo to the world is no basic, indifferent task. An impactful logo will give your business the push off the starting blocks that it needs. Logos can be tweaked and adjusted down the line, but you always risk hurting your business when playing with its identity.
That’s why we recommend for small and medium sized businesses to seek the assistance of a professional digital marketing firm.
Social Media
Digital marketing and execution runs through social media as well. Frankly, if your business is not active on social media then it is missing out on a big piece of the pie.
Social media is supposed to be fun! For the most part, people go to Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to find entertainment and to laugh. If your business can find a way to contribute to someone’s entertainment, it will without a doubt be seen in a favorable light.
Everybody loves a sense of humor, and, with businesses, a sense of humor is rare. Just think about it. A business has the connotation of being serious, intense and competitive. Those characteristics aren’t fun! So, any lightheartedness that your business can show would be appreciated by those who follow your business. And the best way to show lightheartedness and a sense of humor is through social media.
All you have to do is post memes, funny images and cool videos to your social media pages. You can also get creative with text. On occasion, toss in an informational post about a promotion or sale for your business and you’ll have all of your bases covered.
It’s not just Twitter, Facebook and Instagram either. You can create social media accounts on Pinterest, LinkedIn, Google+, Snapchat and YouTube.
Email Campaigns
And lastly, digital marketing and execution can be done also in email campaigns. It’s always a good to provide an option for customers to subscribe to email campaigns. You may roll your eyes at the hundreds of promotional emails you receive from various businesses; however, a lot of the time those emails work.
Many customers want to know about specials, upcoming promotions, big sellers and sales. People are always keeping an eye out for a bargain. What better and more effective way to inform customers of bargain opportunities than through a simple email?
Just as with all digital marketing aspects, presentation is key with email campaigning. It helps to determine a target audience and to write engaging content (include a call to action). Keep the text brief and be sure the text and design are formatted in a way that highlights the important information.
Also, be sure to update the newsletters/emails appropriately. You don’t want your subscribers to mistaken emails for spam and you don’t want them to become bored with the same design. Make subscribers want to click on your business emails!
Click4Corp
Click4Corp in Allen, TX has expertise in all facets of digital marketing and execution. For 19 years, we’ve helped businesses of all sizes reach new heights in customer reach. We know every nook and cranny of digital marketing, and it’s our knowledge and commitment that leads to success. We strive to grow your business!
To learn more about our services, please visit www.click4corp.com. Also, check out our blog to learn all sorts of useful digital marketing tactics.