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!
4 Tips for Creating a Strong Video Marketing Series
Many people think of marketing videos as one-off commercials or testimonials. They will hire a video marketing agency to shoot a few specific pieces and then move on. However, this is overlooking a massive potential to build on the success of their video content.
More and more companies are discovering the value of an informative half-promotional video series that shares exciting information on a regular basis with their customers and website visitors. A video series has the potential to become a popular monthly or weekly event for people who are involved in or curious about your industry or the content you've chosen to provide, creating a compelling video marketing strategy.
Here are a few tips to building your series:
1. Choose An Engaging Topic
Pick something, anything, in your industry that your customers are interested in. While you may be tempted toward product highlights or service descriptions, go for something that more directly connects to your target audience. How-to's, day-in-the-life, and customers stories are more likely to be the kind of content you're looking for.
When choosing your topic, also consider how long each video will be and what kind of attention span you're preparing for. We can use two parallel examples to give you a good idea of the concept:
2. Be Casual and Genuine
Connect with your future viewers through the camera as if you were speaking to them in your living room or personal workshop. Being casual and friendly with your customers allows you to invite them to your video content.
Most modern consumers have been tuning out television and radio commercials for their entire lives and have become resistant to the 'radio announcer voice.' Instead, stay as genuine as possible, up to the point of keeping a few 'bloopers' in to show that you're a real person. This will make you inherently more relatable to them, and they will want to learn from you because you're not an actor hired to speak empty lines.
3. Innovate with Every Video
Don't let your content go stale, make sure you are covering the new and interesting ground with every new video. This is what keeps viewers coming back and sharing with their friends. You want your viewers to be excited wondering what you will show next, then fulfill that anticipation with another installment of high-quality content. Strong content themes are great, but you want to avoid posting similar topics that share content too close together.
4. Keep the Formula Consistent
Once you've got a hooked viewership, they are coming back to see you almost as much as the content you create. This means staying yourself and maintaining the video layout and style is essential.
Feel free to improve, of course, but don't stray too far. The formula is, in fact, the glue of your video series. It gives you a way to hold on to viewers even if you run out of good variations for a single topic. This means that if you started as, say, a camping survival guide, you could transfer into segments on wilderness sports like rock climbing by merely introducing your viewers to it from one video to another.
The Right Formula
Strong video marketing skills rely on a combination of content, charisma, and responsiveness to your audience. Make sure to read the comments on your videos and invite viewers to leave feedback. Anytime you have anew idea for your series, just run it by your videographers and let the cameras roll.
For more information about video marketing or to schedule a consultation, contact us today!
4 Unique Ways to Boost Website Traffic Using Video Marketing
One of the most common challenges businesses face in digital marketing is driving visitors to their web pages (Source: Hubspot). Traffic generation is the start of any successful inbound marketing campaign; the more quality visits you have, the more opportunities created for lead conversions and sales.
Video marketing has proven to increase website visitors, foster engagement, and elicit users to action. Video drives a 157% increase in organic traffic from search engine results pages (SERPs). This is huge considering search is a top tool for consumers to locate brands and find solutions to problems.
If you’re seeking ways to drive more people to your web pages or want to amplify your video marketing, here are four unique tactics for boosting website traffic using video in your digital strategy.
#1 Leverage Video in Your Email Marketing
A video is the fastest way to communicate quickly with your audience. And since they increase engagement and conversions, it makes sense to use video in your email marketing campaigns to create optimal results.
Your email strategy is crucial to converting leads into customers and customers into raving fans of your brand. It’s a top channel for increasing revenue, therefore, using tools that improve list engagement is vital to your overall business goals.
Use the following tips to leverage video in your email marketing and promote traffic generation:
- Reduce customer service cases by creating FAQ videos versus text. Add the video in your email message and mention the full-length website or blog post link for more detailed instructions
- Repurpose a favorite blog content into a video series, using each subheading as a new video. Create an email campaign around this topic, sharing a video daily over a period. Include the blog link in each email for recipients to obtain the original article
- Using the word “video” in your email subject line has been proven to increase open-rates
- Share customer testimonials with your subscribers. It’s an excellent way to foster trust and get new leads to do business with you
- Practice email segmentation to send personalized, tailored content to your recipients that speaks directly to their needs and interests. This is one of the best ways to increasing open-rates, clicks and shares
#2 Include a Video on Your Landing Pages
Videos are persuasive and authentic. It draws viewers into your message, quickly building trust and establishing common ground. This is why videos are ideal for your landing page content.
How does this relate to traffic generation? Wordstream notes that having a video on a landing page makes it 53% more likely to show up on the first page of the SERP for your keyword. Many consumers are experiencing your brand for the first time on search. Introducing your business via video creates trust and ways for people to connect with you.
Do a split test of your landing pages, having a video on one and full text on the other. Measure your results to discover which is producing favorable outcomes concerning traffic and lead conversions. In the video, be sure to state a clear call-to-action that tells viewers to opt-in and what they can expect in return.
#3 Post How-To Videos on Social Media
Another way of boosting website traffic using video is through instructional content. How-to videos perform exceptionally well on social media. Typically, these videos need to be short (about 30 seconds long) to keep your followers engaged. Doing product demonstrations or illustrating how to achieve a specific result on your audience highlights your brand as an authority and go-to source in the industry.
Produce a series of how-to videos to edit for social media. The goal is not to sell your product but demonstrate its uses, so viewers understand the benefits and features. You want to boost your credibility and the value you bring to newsfeeds.
Additionally, address common problems in your niche. Show followers a better way of reaching a result by demonstrating the process on video.
#4 Optimize YouTube Videos for SEO
YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine, boasting 1.5 billion logged-in monthly users. With only 9% of U.S. small businesses using this medium to reach their audience, there is an excellent opportunity to separate your brand from competitors and get in front of your consumers. This is a unique channel to increase website traffic using video because viewers are more likely to follow instructions from video than other sources.
The key, however, is leveraging YouTube SEO tactics to boost visibility.
Here are a few pointers to optimizing your video content to rank on YouTube:
- Optimize your title by including your longtail keyword. Make it descriptive by mentioning the benefit viewers will gain from the video. If feasible, try to have your keyword as close to the beginning of the title as possible
- Create a full description, naturally sprinkling your keyword throughout. Be sure to add your website or blog post link to access your content easily
- Encourage engagement in your video. Ask viewers to subscribe,like, and click. These are key ingredients to improving your overall video SEO
- Make your video awesome. Follow an outline, so you hit on your major key points and avoid rambling. It’s important to get to your topic quickly to keep people on your video...another factor for SEO
- We can help you create amazing videos that get in front of your audience, captures attention, and entices viewers to take action. Reach out to us here to discover how we can help amplify your video campaigns.
Conclusion
Implement these tactics to being increasing website traffic using video marketing. Not only will you experience a surge in site visitors, but you’ll also notice a boost in engagement and conversions. The benefits (and results) are too compelling to ignore!
How to Use Video to Better Your Social Media Marketing
Engaging videos are highly sought after on social media. Viewers share, engage, and discuss videos that speak to them. So, give the people what they want - more video! Here are five different ways to incorporate video into your social media marketing and create better experiences for your followers.
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. People are consuming videos from their mobile devices at rapidly increasing rates. It is key 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 webpages.
Your audience will appreciate the variety you bring to their newsfeeds while giving an alternate approach to engaging in your content.
Five Ways to Create Video That Engages Consumers on Social Media
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 extremely effective 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 Your Viewers' 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. Hashtags reign on networks like Instagram and Twitter, but 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. This gives 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 or Influencer 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 actually bring results. Sharing others' experiences with your brand is a great way to show it! Content featuring influencers and brand ambassadors has a similar effect.
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 influencers 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.
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!
Climbing Gym Marketing: Improving Your Inbound Marketing
One of the biggest problems in climbing gym marketing is that their social media efforts do not bring them the results they expect. They take beautiful, interesting pictures for Instagram and Pinterest, but don't get traffic to the gym. This does not mean that the pictures are bad, it just means you need to make minor tweaks to your posts. Here is how:
Write Good Descriptions
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but no one will find your picture without a description. If you are using social media solely for climbing gym marketing, your post needs to be keyword rich, but engaging. Don't just post a bunch of hashtags or keyword phrases, either. Write an interesting comment and include a strong call to action with every post.
Reply to Comments
It's not what you say, but how you say it. Once people find your pictures and comment on them, you need to take a moment to convince them to take the next step. This should be done naturally and uniquely. For example, don't write "Thanks for the like, visit us in person to see more." Instead, try something more personal, "Tammy, I'm glad you like the technique we are using. If you contact us, we can show you how to do it at the gym."
Include Links
Not everyone will want to pick up a phone to contact you. If you have a website, take advantage of it. Include a link to every picture. This will allow people to easily gather more information about you as a climbing gym, making them more prone to buy.
While taking one-of-a-kind photos or videos for social media is a great first step, it takes an effort to make the perfect inbound marketing campaign. To learn more techniques that can help your climbing gym grow, contact us today.