So you’re starting a new business and your business strategy is set to roll. You have the skills and your product or service is new and fresh, so all you need now is the customers. Sadly they’re unlikely to come knocking unless you tell the world about your new business.
The most cost effective way to do that is through digital marketing.
What is it?
Digital marketing encompasses all the online tools available to market your business. This includes your website, social media, blog posts and email newsletters to name a few.
It all starts with a holistic marketing strategy, competitor analysis, target audience breakdown and good branding. This is all important because there are hundreds of other start-ups out there, and even some who are most likely doing exactly what you do.
You need to set yourself up for success by getting the basics right and using the online tools available.
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So how do you stand out?
The best way to stand out in a crowd is to market yourself better than everyone else. In the digital marketing world this means having interesting, valuable content aimed at the correct target market with consistent branding and messaging.
It also entails continuing to create this content on a regular basis so that you can build up a good fan base and an online reputation.
Do you need help?
In any business, start up or established, it’s important to play to your strengths. Unless digital marketing is your main thing, it’s a better idea to hire someone or work with a marketing agency to run your digital marketing efforts than to spend time doing it yourself. If you do it correctly it can become a full time job.
What does it cost?
Considering it’s a full time job, you should allocate at least one person’s salary to your digital marketing budget. If you’re lucky enough to find someone who can do it all, then hiring an in-house digital marketing person is a good start.
The alternative is to hire an agency, who will likely charge a similar fee but you get the best of a strategist, copywriter, designer, marketing manager and community manager for just that one person’s salary. However, in addition to this you will also need to allocate some money towards advertising costs.
There is no rule about how much budget to allocate to social media advertising but 10% of your total marketing budget is a good place to start. Some people get results from just a few hundred Rands a month, others need to spend a few thousand in order to get some good leads and convert to sales.
Remember to calculate the value of a sale, and work it back to the value of the individual advert that you are running. If you get just one conversion from the advert, was it worth the spend – did you get a good return on investment?
How long until you see results?
As with anything in life, good results take time and patience. Even if you’re doing everything right, it can take between 3- and 6-months to start to see the results of your efforts.
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In that time it’s important to constantly measure and tweak your messaging, see what works and then try again until you get the desired results.
What else can you do?
In addition to digital marketing there are other media options to consider such as press releases to relevant magazines, newspapers or online publications.
While technically Google Ads does fall under the digital marketing banner, people sometimes forget the value of using this platform to get leads. What’s important with Google Ads however, is to ensure that each ad sends the potential client to a very specific landing page on your website.
Trends and platforms to consider:
The platforms and types of content that you use to market your business all depend on the type of business that you’re in, but below are a few pointers to keep in mind.
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- Facebook: Keep your community in mind when creating content for this platform as Facebook users want engaging content that adds value to their lives.
- LinkedIn: Become a thought-leader in your industry and engage with like-minded business owners and clients.
- Twitter: Send short, punchy informational Tweets that are topical and join the conversations happening here.
- Instagram: Share your personal journey, culture and day-to-day workings using Stories and IGTV.
- Pinterest: If you have an online store, adding the products to a Pinterest board can be invaluable for your future sales.
- YouTube: You should be using video on all platforms but create a library of content where customers can go to learn more about your products or services.
At the end of the day, it’s about focusing on the platforms where your customers are, creating quality content and analysing the results of your efforts so that you can continue to learn and improve. Make this a priority and your digital marketing efforts will add real value to your business.