Effective marketing is a vital component of a brand’s long-term success. However, the marketing world is constantly changing and evolving, usually due to technological advancements. Staying on top of all the changes in the ever-shifting marketing world is quite a challenge. As a result, many brands will hire a digital marketing agency to create impactful campaigns using all of their up-to-date industry knowledge and expertise.
This article outlines our top marketing tricks to set you up for success. We’ll also tell you about some marketing mistakes you should steer clear of to ensure your strategy is impactful.
The Good
Embrace paid advertising
PPC platforms, such as Google Ads, Bing Ads, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest are incredibly popular with marketers. However, some brands haven’t yet embraced paid ads. Brands should embrace paid social for several reasons. First and foremost, brands should engage in paid ads because organic growth is becoming much more difficult.
However, the good news is that paid advertising on these platforms has improved over the years as marketers have more control over targeting. Research by Hootsuite suggests that brands are planning to spend more on social media ads this year, and marketers will need to get creative to stand out from the crowd.
For instance, if you are running a private school or a similar educational institution, you can use paid ads to target potential parents in your local area. You can show them the benefits of choosing a private school for their children and showcase your facilities to entice them. You will however need to learn about private school marketing to ensure that your ad campaigns are effective and impactful. Or, you may leave this task to a digital marketing agency that specializes in the education sector, as they already have the necessary knowledge and experience.
Appreciate brand advocates
A brand advocate is an individual who speaks positively about your brand to others. Even in the age of digital marketing, word of mouth still greatly impacts how consumers perceive a business. Some brand advocates will also speak positively about your business on social media, which exposes your brand to potential new customers. To make the most brand advocates, develop marketing campaigns to incentivise them to spread your brand message to their followers.
Create educational content
Educational content helps to nurture high-quality leads and build trust with your target audience. Content that is educational, relevant and authoritative will be perceived as valuable by potential customers looking for information. As a result, they will likely view your brand favourably and may even buy your product or use your service.
Create an SEO strategy
If you don’t already have an SEO strategy, it’s time to form one. An SEO strategy is a process of maximising the opportunity to gain organic traffic from search engines. Instead
of creating content and landing pages you think your target customers will like. An effective SEO strategy will ensure you create content that people are actually searching for.
First, do keyword research around your industry and your competitors, and list all of the keywords with their search volume in a spreadsheet. This will highlight what your average user is searching for, and the pages you should be building based on the most searched for topics. Next, you’ll need to build pages for each topic targeting your main keywords in the content and headings – with a best practice landing page layout including everything Google looks for when ranking your website for usability, structure, and relevance. Keep in mind that SEO best practices change, so you’ll need to stay up to date with all the latest industry developments.
The Bad
Focus on visuals
Some have suggested that marketers should focus much of their attention on the visuals of a marketing campaign, but words really do matter. People don’t just look at visuals; they also read copy. That’s why you must put thought and attention into the words you write. While a great graphic might capture attention, the copy will influence consumers to take action.
Too much focus on selling
Marketing that focuses too much on selling is off-putting to consumers. A sales-focused marketing strategy is fine, but it mustn’t go over the top. Think of it like this: if someone was repeatedly asking you to buy something in the street, you probably wouldn’t want to buy anything from them. Often, light-touch soft selling is considerably more effective at generating new leads and sales.
The Ugly
Overpost on social media with no planning
While social media is a huge asset to brands of all kinds, posting too often may have a negative impact. Especially with no thought or strategy behind your content and scheduling. Brands that post too often risk losing followers, as people may choose to unfollow brands that saturate their social media feeds with content that they do not perceive as valuable or interesting.
Buying email lists
While purchasing email lists will get your emails in front of lots of eyes, there’s no guarantee that the people who receive them will be interested in your offering. You may spend hundreds or even thousands of pounds to receive negligible results. The best way to improve email performance is to create lists organically. If someone has provided your company with their email address, they are likely interested in your products and services.
In Summary
An effective marketing strategy is absolutely vital. The last thing you want is to make a marketing blunder, such as posting too often or not creating content for your audience that they deem valuable. By following our top marketing tips, you’re sure to run effective campaigns that engage target audiences and lead to more leads and sales.