In today’s marketing landscape, there is no running away from the digital space. Social media, viral campaigns, all of that form the modern battlefield for consumers’ attention and spending power. No matter what kind of industry you may be in, chances are, there is room for improvement and transformation when it comes to marketing, and that can be achieved with the help of a digital strategy.
However, it is clear that not everyone is on board the digital train. For many businesses, it can be hard to understand or see the value of a proper digital marketing strategy. You definitely need to put in loads of time, resources, and a significant chunk of your budget. However, the rewards are most certainly worth going after.
Think about younger generations. Almost all of the marketing they see is online. And they are the largest consumers of ads and video marketing, making millennials and gen Z the people who are most likely going to see your ads. Without any digital marketing strategy, you skip over this group entirely and miss out on a huge opportunity to make money.
Reaching your target audience effectively is only a small part of why you need to invest in digital marketing.
Why Invest in Digital Marketing Strategy?
First of all, unless you are a well-established and recognized brand, chances, no one is going to know your existence without some outreach.
In order to generate awareness, bring in leads, and convert your target audience into paying customers, it is absolutely vital to have a digital marketing strategy that encompasses all of that. People get most of their entertainment and information online now, making it a great opportunity for advertising.
More importantly, cohesive digital marketing strategies help business owners keep track of everything they need to do, understand the results they are getting, and refine the process.
This way, your effort counts for more.
No more wasted marketing budget and time on failing marketing strategies or waiting until the next quarter to see how your business marketing plan did. You can get immediate results that show how your potential customers are responding to your strategy and what needs to be improved.
So why invest in digital marketing strategies or digital marketing packages?
Take a look at the following reasons that can really pay off for your business:
Highly Visibility on Search Engines
SEO is extremely important as a ranking factor when it comes to search engines. If you want to beat out the competition in the same industry, then SEO is your best friend. By paying attention to your SEO, you are also ensuring that your website is regularly crawled and re-indexed. This will enhance your chances of moving up the ranks if you are doing things right.
The better your SEO, the closer to the first page results you will be. Most people do not scroll past the first page, and very few make it past the third. So you really want to make sure you are on that first page of results to have a real chance of being seen and have a better online presence.
More Traffic
By establishing yourself in a better position on the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs), you are increasing the chances of more traffic to your website. The more traffic you have, the more potential leads and conversions that might occur.
With every click, you are increasing your chances of a sale. If you choose your words and article set up correctly, you can end up being a blurb to answer questions related to your product. That means easier, more streamlined experiences for the potential customer, and more eyes on your site for you.
More User Friendly Website
With good technical SEO in place, this would mean improvements overall when it comes to your site’s security, speed, and user experience. The fewer the users that want to leave your pages, the better. Having a great user experience also matters to the search engines, so bear that in mind.
Improved and More Cohesive Content Marketing
When it comes to content marketing, it is not just about a few blog posts here and there. This particular aspect of marketing is more than that.
Content is everything – we are talking about videos, podcasts, images, articles, and even memes. The list is exhaustive, and the returns are quite enticing, to say the least.
With great content marketing forming the foundation, your website will be loved by the search engines. It also represents a great way to spotlight your expertise, and build brand authority amongst your consumer base. Here’s how proper content marketing can contribute to your cause:
You can use social media sites, create a blog, make podcasts and videos, or even be highlighted on other people’s projects by doing interviews or being part of online challenges. The possibilities are endless and you can use preexisting sites like YouTube and Instagram to host your business’s projects.
Also pay attention to content synergy. Content is also great to help tie everything together. You can reuse it on social media marketing, or extend into other mediums even with the same topic. There are so many uses for it, and how you can repurpose every piece into the marketing machine. At the end of the day, it is about driving traffic to where conversion takes place.
Better Lead Generation
With the right target audience coming in, you can be sure they are looking for the right solution. By providing relevant and sometimes, gated content, the opportunity for more leads is there for the taking. You have already hooked them, now is the time to reel them in.
Harnessing the Power of Social Media
Another important pillar of digital marketing concerns social media. It is more than just looking good and talking a good game, social media provides another outlet for you to extend your reach, showcase your company, build engagement, and helps build up SEO. Basically, it is quite indispensable in the digital landscape.
Think about how much time do people spend on their phones. Most people sleep with them right by their side, or even under their pillow. Smartphones are literally on most people at all times. All that time spent on their devices, the majority of it is on social media. By neglecting to have, and properly use your social media, you are missing a huge opportunity to market your business.
Targeting the right social channels can go a long way, and is a great way to enhance other aspects of your marketing and online presence.
Increased Brand Awareness
Not every company is going to be as recognizable as Google or Facebook. That means it is important to invest in digital marketing and get your name out there in as many ways as possible.
The more active your social media profiles are, the easier it is for consumers to find your brand. These can be through relevant hashtags, organic discovery, or even posts from family, friends, and influencers.
By building up your social media marketing plan and going online, you can help more people get to know your brand.
Interact with Customers
Social media is also perfect for engaging consumers. This close relationship can help brands gather feedback organically and quickly, lead to user-generated content, help with customers’ queries, and create a community of brand advocates. The more you put into it, the better the potential rewards.
Customers do not want to feel like just another sale. They want to feel like a business wants them, needs them, to buy their products. They are also far more likely to buy something when they see the company more as a bunch of people, rather than just a corporation. Consider Wendy’s twitter account and the massive amount of success the business saw when the twitter account responded back to people. Feeling like they are a part of something makes it all the more special to potential customers.
Broader Social Search
Google is not the only way to discover brands. There are other avenues, such as a YouTube video, a Google My Business listing, or even a Yelp review. By making sure you have a proper, consistent presence in all areas, you can control the first impressions of any interested consumer. That alone can lead to more traffic and conversions.
Gather Reviews
Reviews are absolutely crucial for any company to best tell just how well they are doing. With a whole list of honest reviews at your fingertips, you have a list of treasured words from customers to show or if you do have the occasional bad review, it’s also a helpful learning process to improve your business.
With a digital marketing plan, you can easily gather reviews from customers. Whether it’s through sites like Yelp, Facebook and Google Business profiles, or through customer tagging you on social media, you now have an easier avenue to collect reviews.
Final Verdict
It should be abundantly clear how important it is to invest in digital marketing. Once you are able to implement the various aspects of it and see the results rolling in, you will be wondering just how you could do without it in the first place.
Stephan Boehringer is the CEO of Get The Clicks, a web marketing company. Stephan has over 20 years of experience in the field of web marketing, and has been a speaker and consultant for many years. Stephan is passionate about web marketing and helping their clients be the best they can be.
Stephan Boehringer graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services.