7 Steps to Get Started with Digital Marketing

By Jim Beck

June 26,2019

7 Steps to Get Started with Digital Marketing

Digital Marketing

Today, digital marketing is a major component of any successful marketing campaign. Consumers and businesses spend an enormous amount of time online, so it’s important to have a marketing plan to connect with them in this arena. So with numerous digital marketing tools available, how do you choose the most effective ones for your business? No matter what type of business you have, the marketing tools below will be extremely beneficial to your company. Message Match Your Domain Name The number one rule of opening a brick-and-mortar business is “location, location, location,” and your website is no different. Experts agree that an easy-to-remember domain name is critical for the success of your online presence. Just like the outside of a traditional business, your domain name is the first thing customers will see. A name that is not precise, or does not relate, can make a bad first impression and turn customers away. A concise domain name with specific keywords is also critical for search engine optimization (SEO) and brand-name recognition. Your domain name should also be easy to read, type, and pronounce. It is important to avoid hyphens and numbers. When creating your name, think long-term because your name will define your company for the present and future. Choose the Right Hosting Platform Choosing the right hosting platform can make or break your business. WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, and Shopify are all easy to use and require no special skills to start and manage your site. You simply register for an account, and the technical skills are handles for you. Wix is considered the best website builder, but its vast selection can be overwhelming. Also, your website theme can’t be changed once you publish it. Squarespace is ideal for creative businesses and has beautiful templates. The drawbacks are the platform can be difficult to use at first and the plans can be expensive. WordPress has unlimited customization and access to a wide variety of third-party plug-ins. The cons are that coding skills are required and you have to set up your own web hosting. Shopify is considered the top e-commerce platform and allows multi-channel selling on social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram. The drawbacks are that monthly fees can be expensive with apps, and transaction fees are charged for alternative payment methods. While doing it yourself can save you money, it can be very time consuming and requires coding knowledge. A professional designer will simplify the website-building process. Content is King It is important to remember that quality content always starts with the reader. Your goal is to add content to your site that will benefit your customers and your company. The key is to keep their attention and keep them coming back for more. When delivering content, Google evaluates expertise, authoritativeness, trustworthiness, or E-A-T. Simply stuffing your content with keywords in hopes of high rankings can do more harm than good. You can get ideas for content based on your industry, customer feedback, by monitoring customer behavior or doing research. Ideas include checklists, how-to articles, buying guides, and listicles. Your most important attention-grabbing content should be placed at the top of your page (above the fold) to ensure that customers will read it and hopefully scroll down for more. Get Social Starting a social media marketing plan can be overwhelming for a small business, but it is a crucial tool for businesses of all sizes. The majority of people use social media, and it’s one of the best ways to connect with current and potential customers. Before you jump into social media marketing, it is important to have a plan and to define your audience. Two of the best ways to attract customers through social media is by paid advertisements and quality content. Keyword Search Keyword research is very important in any search marketing campaign. Monitoring and adding keywords to your content has numerous benefits, including driving more traffic to your website and giving you a better understanding of marketing conditions. Basic keyword research involves checking out the competition and using keyword research tools. Many of these are inexpensive or free. Remarketing Remarketing involves advertising to people you have established connections with. This could be people from your social media sites, email database, or visitors to your website. This is a great way to gain new customers. Email Auto-Responders When you ask people to sign up for things such as newsletters or bulletins, it is important to thank them immediately to show them that they are valued. It can also help build a trusting relationship, which can lead to new customers. The digital marketing tools above are critical to the success of businesses of all sizes. They will help improve branding, drive more traffic to your site, and build relationships with your customers.

Jim Beck