Successful Marketing Efforts Employ Multiple Techniques

Content marketing and social media are the hottest trends in marketing these days. This is no surprise given the success businesses have found using these channels to market their products and services as well as to promote their brand.

What may come as a surprise, however, is that most marketing experts will advise against relying solely on content marketing and social media. That is because adding other forms of marketing to the mix – especially tried and true methods – can help businesses reach new customers while retaining current ones.

So what marketing strategies are still worth your time and marketing dollars?

  1. Pay per click (PPC). Perhaps due to a change in how Google is now displaying ads, PPC spending is on the rise after a period of decline. Display ads are now more difficult to distinguish from organic results so PPC is worth exploring again.
  2. Link building. It was in 2011 that link building’s popularity began to decline as more businesses started to focus on content marketing. But link building is still an important part of luring search engine traffic. What is important to keep in mind is that today’s link building should encourage people to click on links from relevant sites. Links should not be used merely to compile clicks for the sake of getting a higher ranking on search engines.
  3. Telemarketing. Recent studies show that when it comes to leads, telemarketing leads rank in the top 10 for return on investment. The personal connection of telemarketing is what experts say keeps it so relevant.
  4. Postcards. Postcard marketing has taken a hit because of rising postage costs and less expensive online advertising techniques. What many people are not aware of, though, is that direct mail still has a lower cost per lead than even most online methods of advertising. And of all the direct mail options, postcards remain the most affordable.
  5. Tradeshows. While tradeshows can be expensive due to cost, they are still a very popular and effective marketing channel for new business and sales leads. That’s because tradeshows, like telemarketing, offer a type of personal interaction that online marketing cannot achieve. While the popularity of tradeshows has been on the decline, it is still one of the top five marketing channels.

Content marketing and social media are great ways to market your business. However, that doesn’t mean that you should rely exclusively on those two methods in your quest to attract new customers and retain current ones.

Are You Marketing to the Wrong People?

No matter how big or small the business, marketing is essential to its success. And no matter how large its marketing budget, no business wants to waste its time or money on pursuing dead-end leads.

In his article, 7 Ways to Avoid Marketing to the Wrong People, AJ Agrawal tells us that if you are marketing to the wrong people, your business is unlikely to succeed. Of course, figuring out who exactly you should be marketing to can be a difficult task. Especially when you are just getting your business up and running.

Thankfully, Agrawal has some helpful tips to help. His first tip is to avoid casting your marketing net too wide.

 It’s tempting to go for the biggest audience, but working in a niche is more effective. Defining your target market will provide a solid foundation, as well as strict parameters that will focus your efforts. Try not to think of it as exclusion, but a way to simplify and streamline campaigns.

He also encourages businesses to – among other things – align content strictly to personas, segment marketing databases, and look at reconverting existing customers.

Agrawal cites ProOpinion, a professional network that promotes success in business, which says that 39 percent of small business owners don’t invest in any type of marketing.

That’s despite the fact that effective marketing is their main profit driver. These businesses need to look at ways to allocate a small budget to marketing, and use that budget with laser-guided precision to achieve high ROI.

At GoLeads, we help businesses of all sizes get the most out of every one of their marketing dollars. We do this by helping these businesses identify their target audience and develop the strategies to get noticed by that audience. We’d love to do the same for you.

Social Media vs. Website: What’s a Small Business to Do?

Small businesses with tight budgets are understandably cautious about where they invest their limited marketing dollars. This leaves many business owners wondering if they are better off skipping the costs of investing in a website and instead concentrating only on social media.

What many business owners do not realize is that a website can be as simple or as sophisticated as their budget dictates. And even if you start with a very basic design, you can build on that design as needed or when more marketing dollars become available.

Many people believe that they can make up for not having a website by increasing their social media presence. While the best case scenario would be to have a website and a social media presence, if you must make a decision between the two, a website is in almost all cases the best way to go.

Social media is appealing to businesses with very little money to spend on marketing because social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, are simple to set up and are free. Further, they allow businesses to engage with their customers without worrying about the overhead of a website.

The problem with diving into social media with no website to link it to is that you are at the mercy of the social media provider’s terms and conditions. You also have few options when it comes to layout. Further, the fact that social media sites encourage back and forth means that you may have people posting things on your social media accounts that you do not want posted.

While developing a website costs more to create and maintain than social media, it is well worth the effort. Here are some other advantages of a website for your business:

  1. In today’s digital world, savvy consumers are leery of businesses that don’t have a website. Such businesses are seen as behind the times.
  2. You own your website. Unlike social media sites, you can personalize even the simplest website to make it uniquely yours.
  3. You have space to market your business and obtain sales leads. You can include videos, customer reviews, testimonials, and promotional offers on your website without worrying about meeting your social media provider’s terms and conditions.
  4. While a website requires an upfront investment, it can actually save money in the long run. Many customer service tasks can be taken care of on the website, reducing your overall operating costs.
  5. Your business will be open 24/7.
  6. You can expand your customer base – exponentially. Billions of people are on the Internet every single day. Without a website, you have little chance of connecting with them.

It is always difficult to decide where your marketing dollars would be best spent. Creating and maintaining a website is one decision that is almost always in the best interest of your business.

 

Quality Content is More Important than Ever

Producing quality content is becoming more and more important for companies looking to market their products and services, generate sales leads, and get noticed by the search engines. Unfortunately, producing such content is proving increasingly difficult as the marketplace becomes more crowded and the competition gets tougher.

So how can you make sure that your content stands out from the crowd? What follows are some helpful tips and small changes you can make to ensure that your content doesn’t get overlooked.

  1. Make sure that all images attached to your content are relevant. While experts have told us for years that images make a huge difference in attracting readers, slapping up just any picture won’t reflect well on your copy. Also, make sure that all photos are formatted and optimized to avoid slowing load times.
  2. Make your posts as reader-friendly as possible by including bullets and lists. More than the look of your content, however, it’s important that your content uses clear, simple language. Unless a sentence adds real value to your post – get rid of it!
  3. Include influencers. Readers respond to industry leaders. Quotes from authorities on a subject matter always add credibility to posts.
  4. Tell secrets. Let’s face it, readers want to learn something they won’t hear anywhere else. Make sure when readers finish reading one of your posts, they learn something new – an insider tip. This type of information is what will keep them coming back for more.
  5. Don’t always play it safe. Got a controversial point of view on a particular topic? Don’t avoid it, embrace it. Even if readers disagree with what you have to say, they will respect you for having the guts to say it.
  6. Get emotional. There may be no crying in baseball, but when it comes to writing content it’s OK to get a little emotional once in a while. When readers feel that they can relate to your struggles and even failures, you will gain their trust. Open yourself up a little and you will be surprised at what happens next.

Many businesses believe that getting their content noticed involves making huge, sweeping changes to their posts. The fact is, sometimes just a small amount of tweaking can make a big difference. After all, when it comes to content, the way you are saying things can be just as important as what you are saying.

 

 

The Many Benefits of Quality Content

Changes in the world of search engine optimization (SEO) mean that quality content is more important than ever. While keywords were once the major factor in getting high search engine rankings, today it is engaging, shareable content that is the name of the game.

If you have spent a great deal of time and resources creating content that contained as many keywords as possible, these changes may seem daunting. In truth, the shift to writing quality content is good news for businesses. Why? Because now you can focus on giving your customers what they really need instead of just trying to get noticed through the use of keywords.

So what is considered good content? It is content that communicates with customers and prospects. It brings people the information and advice that they need to succeed in their industry. It solves problems.

It connects, educates and inspires.

One thing good content is not is a sales pitch or an effort to get sales leads. Instead, it is valuable information that people and businesses need. When you consistently provide your target audience high-quality content you will come to be recognized as a thought leader – and ultimately someone who they will want to do business with. In other words, you will increase sales without selling.

Another benefit of great content is that it will encourage people to share your content and engage with you. And when this happens, your audience will grow even more.

Remember, good content:

Solves a problem.

  • Every business faces problems. Your content helps to solve these problems. That helps you to become the go-to person or Thought Leader when people need answers.

Engages.

  • When people read your content, they want to weigh in. They may agree or disagree with you and want you to know why. They may have a follow-up question. You get the idea. And remember, the search engines love this type of back and forth.

Provides value.

  • If a person is looking for information on a particular topic, he or she isn’t going to waste time on fluff pieces. Instead, your content will always be filled with credible and substantial information that isn’t available anywhere else.

Is consistent.

  • Once your target audience sees you as a thought leader, they will come back again and again so make sure you always have fresh content available. If you don’t, they will look for it somewhere else.

Finally, no matter how important the topic, no one is going to read your content if it puts them to sleep. A great story must keep a reader’s attention. And while it is admittedly tough to make certain products and services sound like great literature, you should try your best to make your content as interesting as possible.