Why Small Businesses Need to Embrace Digital Marketing
Almost half of all businesses don't have a digital marketing plan in place. Is your company among them?
If so, you need to make some moves. Small business digital marketing is essential for scaling your business in 2018. Advertising is on its way out, and digital marketing is taking the world by storm.
Want to learn more about digital marketing for small businesses, and how to create an effective online marketing plan? Read on to learn more about the importance of digital marketing strategies for small businesses.
It's the Way of the Future
83% of businesses report that their digital marketing tactics are working to grow their business. There's no denying that we live in a digital economy today. Smartphones are so pervasive that people spend 24 hours per week staring at their phone.
In the twenty-first century, you'll find people on digital outlets more than anywhere else. In the past, car passengers would certainly read bus stop benches as they zoomed past on the highway. Now, they stay occupied by the phones in their pockets.
Same goes for other popular forms of advertising, like newspapers, for instance. Every major news outlet has an app now, so people turn to their phones to get the latest news. It's easy, digestible, and usually free.
Even magazines are turning more and more toward digital publication. You'll find fewer places to place print ads in 2018. Those ads won't get beneath nearly as many people's eyes as digital strategies, either.
Connect with Your Ideal Client
One of the most potent uses of digital marketing strategies is to connect you to your ideal client. Digital marketing offers ways to market directly toward the exact demographic you're trying to target. Traditional advertising methods don't allow this direct targeting method.
Here's a social media marketing example. On Instagram, you can find hashtags that your ideal clients are searching on the app. Once you see these hashtags, you can begin to use them on your posts to reach that demographic.
Here's another example relevant to content marketing. By writing a blog and hosting it on your website, you can attract organic leads that are interested in what you have to say.
With some light research, you'll be able to find the questions your client base is asking online. From there, you can even tailor your blog topics to answer those questions directly. With some search engine optimization, this can land your potential clients right onto your website.
Your Small Business Digital Marketing Plan
Digital marketing is the only way to scale your business in 2018. As old traditional advertising methods die out, small business digital marketing has become a much stronger alternative. It's also the best way to reach your target demographic directly.
Want to learn more about how to dive into online marketing for small businesses? We can help there.
We specialize in inbound and video marketing, two of the most significant branch of digital marketing today. Get in touch to find out how we can help you scale your business!
5 Ways to Use Video to Better Your Social Media Marketing
According to Social Media Today, video posts on Facebook have 135% greater organic reach than photo posts. Videos yield crazy engagement on social platforms...and there’s no slowing down. More people are consuming videos from their mobile devices at alarming rates, so it’s critical you position your brand to capitalize on this movement.
Adding video to your social media marketing offers huge benefits such as increased brand exposure, better follower engagement, and more opportunities to drive traffic to your web pages. Your audience will appreciate the variety you bring to their newsfeeds while giving an alternate approach to engaging in your content.
So, give the people what they want more—video!
Five different ways to incorporate video into your social media marketing
#1 Your Story is Important. Share it!
Storytelling is a time-tested tactic that works great at pulling your audience into your brand message. People connect with you through your story. It helps you establish common ground with your followers, making you relatable and real. Stories also separate you from other brands which give you that competitive edge in the industry.
Humanize your brand by communicating its story on video. Delve into the “why.” Who do you desire to inspire and what problems are you solving through your products? What charitable contributions do you make to your community? Share what motivates your team to get up and go every morning. Sharing your story will add greater meaning and purpose when people do business with you.
#2 Offer Short Instructional Videos for Your Followers
An excellent move to promote your brand with social video is to create short, instructional videos demonstrating how your products can be used to solve a problem for the viewer. How-to videos are beneficial because you’re showing people how to achieve a specific result. As a result, you’ll keep viewers engaged while strategically placing your brand in front of your social following.
Reduce your video to the most basic steps of the process then speed up your video in production (editing), so it only lasts for about 30 seconds. These social video snippet can be product-related or simply something relevant to your niche. The beauty is they quickly solve a pain point for users.
#3 Answer Questions
Consider the FAQs that often hit your inboxes or are typically prompted by your prospects. These are excellent content pieces for your blog, email campaign, social media posts, and of course, videos. You see, you’re giving the people exactly what they want because these inquiries derived from your audience. By addressing their questions, you’ll boost thought-leadership and be viewed as an expert in the industry. Plus, it gives you endless content to share across your marketing platforms.
Enhance your credibility by posting videos that highlight one question then offers an in-depth response. Since many social users are leveraging search as a way to connect and discover new brands, be sure to include keywords or hashtags that your audience is actively searching for. Whereas hashtags reign on networks like Instagram and Twitter, keywords perform better on Facebook, YouTube, and Pinterest.
#4 Go Live!
Live-streaming platforms such as Facebook Live, Periscope, and Instagram Stories are driving tons of engagement on social media. There’s something special about connecting with someone in real-time. People get to see and experience the real you! Live videos quickly build trust and can accelerate your brand’s presence fast on social media.
Use these tools to your full advantage. Invite followers into your world by taking them behind-the-scenes at the office, in the field, or company event to share a taste of your brand’s culture. Host live Q&A sessions where you give your audience a chance to ask you anything industry or product related to getting on-the-spot responses. Report breaking news and share your insight and opinion of the matter...give your followers a chance to do the same to foster conversations.
Commit to making live-streaming a regular content strategy in your social media marketing. With consistency, you’ll experience a significant boost in engagement and followership.
#5 Highlight Fan Content
Did you know that 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation? Positive testimonials and reviews are killer ways to foster trust with your audience especially those who haven’t heard of you before. Prospects want to see if your products or services genuinely bring results. Sharing others experiences with your brand is a great way to show it!
With that said, use your fan’s content as a form of an online review. User-generated content can be creatively compiled into one video as a promotional tool or multiple videos to build up your content vault. Give users credit by mentioning them in the post. Growing this strategy can prove to be a valuable tactic in your inbound marketing as you highlight your customers and give social proof that you’re making a difference.
Don’t Get Left Behind
The numbers and stats prove that people enjoy videos on social media. Its popularity has caused brands to tailor their social strategy accordingly to meet the demands of today’s consumer. Use these tips to better your social media marketing and give the people what they want!
Ready to amplify your social media marketing with video? We know how to create compelling video marketing campaigns that humanize your brand and gives you the slight edge. Reach out to us today and let’s chat!
3 Outdoor Brands To Inspire Your Inbound Marketing Strategies
The most successful companies today aren't creating siloed marketing strategies. They're combining inbound and outbound marketing to get the best of both worlds. This one-two punch gets your business in front of your target audience and then earns their full attention by providing them with the valuable information they want. Inbound marketing is especially important for niche areas, like the outdoor sports industry, which is packed with enthusiasts and experts. These customers frequently make purchase decisions based on a first-hand experience and trusted advice from other practitioners. They're loyal customers who are unlikely to be sold by advertising alone.
To support marketing dollars going toward paid ads and print promotions, forward-thinking companies are also providing their target audiences with valuable information to educate and inspire. That way, customers feel more confident buying from brands they can trust after performing their own due diligence. Here are three examples of brands that are embracing inbound strategies to offer buyers more value and stay ahead of the competition:
Therm-a-Rest - Engages Enthusiasts with Social Media
Therm-a-Rest has a healthy mix of written and visual assets on its website to offer a behind-the-scenes look at its camping mattress technology. In addition, it has strong social media presences on Twitter and Instagram that go a step further to engage its audience. How? The company posts pictures of rustic campsites and tents perched alongside striking landscapes. It offers camping tips and asks followers to write in with their favorite destinations.
http://www.cascadedesigns.com/therm-a-rest/blog/rickshaw-south-dispatch-3-no-fools-errand/
These kinds of posts establish Therm-a-Rest as an authority in outdoor adventures, but also give customers a reason to follow the brand organically. Prospects and customers want to be a part of the conversation and they want to stay connected with the company.
BioLite Energy - Content for Every Stage of the Sales Funnel
BioLite Energy is a newcomer to the outdoors scene. It's a startup that produces wood-fired stoves for biofuel and off-the-grid cooking. The company has a mature marketing plan, however, and a blog that's rich with content to addresses readers at every stage of the sales funnel.
- Traffic: 5 Reasons to explore your own backyard
- Engagement: What's your food philosophy?
- Lead Generation: Inside the Technology
- Conversion: A wildlife Biologist Puts the SolarPanel 5+ To the Test
- Loyalty: Backpacking in the Moravia Woods with BioLite (A user story)
This is how inbound marketing works. You grab readers' attention with general-interest material and then follow up with educational pieces that show how products work and why they're the right solution.
Patagonia - Storytelling to Inspire Loyalty
In the past couple of years, the outdoor clothing company has gained attention for its serious approach to sustainability. It all started with a full-page ad placed in The New York Times on Black Friday. The Worn Wear program asked customers not to replace used Patagonia gear with new items, and instead, promised free repairs in order to extend their lives. To support this campaign and recognize patrons equally dedicated to wasting less and getting outside more, Patagonia now publishes stories that follow them on their adventures. It's an inspiring series that puts the customer in the spotlight, and it also establishes a narrative where the brand can easily talk about its focus on high-quality materials and environmentally friendly practices. Altogether, these messages generate a lot of interest in the brand and foster hard-core loyalty among users.
It's an inspiring series that puts the customer in the spotlight, and it also establishes a narrative where the brand can easily talk about its focus on high-quality materials and environmentally friendly practices. Altogether, these messages generate a lot of interest in the brand and foster hard-core loyalty among users. To be successful in a marketplace where consumers research first and buy later, companies can't afford to leave marketing opportunities on the table. Inbound strategies give businesses the chance to nurture prospects with the right information at the right time - until they're ready to make an educated decision about what to purchase.
Are you ready to take your marketing to the next level? Contact us to learn more about the best-in-class strategies we build for our clients to harness the power of both outbound and inbound marketing.