[PODCAST] Don’t Just Sit There! Develop A Digital Marketing Strategy

I hope I don't need to convince you how important it is for you to create a presence online if you're running a business in today’s digital world. Your target audience, would-be clients, existing market, and potential community are online. It's logical and efficient for you to connect with them right where they are. It provides business owners like yourself a non-invasive, more welcoming, and comfortable venue to reach them and interact with them.

All you have to do is get in front of a computer or mobile device, and you have a powerful marketing tool at your finger tips. In this episode of The Digital Slice Podcast, we'll look at how to develop a digital marketing strategy.

You may already have built your business a Facebook page, an Instagram account, a LinkedIn Company Page, or a Twitter handle. However, you may be wondering why you don't have many page likes, reactions, comments, or engagement. Could it be you need a digital marketing strategy in place to make everything work to your advantage? Here's a few ideas on how you should go about it:

Starting Out With Digital Media

Going back to the question of why you aren't getting any attention on your social media accounts, you have to ask yourself, how many people actually know you have all these accounts? Aside from family, friends, or colleagues, have you made any effort to let your target audience know about your existence online? If your answer is no, then you know what you need to work on first.

The awareness you create about having this online presence is key to leading your potential clients to your social media accounts. It's also key to letting people know about other equally-important digital platforms including your website, blog, and video channel.

Meanwhile, you do not have to be all over the place and be on every social platform. You only have to be on one or a few of these, depending on where your target audience hangs out. Find your target audience and the digital platforms serving your business purpose or your type of business.

Keep in mind, quality is more important than quantity- the number of likes or amount of engagement you get on your page from people who are genuinely interested in your business is more important than thousands of likes you garnered because you paid for them (Don't ever do this!).

Checking Out Your Current Digital Marketing Strategy

The first thing to do while developing your digital marketing strategy is to check whether you actually have one. This has to be in black and white. From here, you can revise and rebuild to suit and tweak your various digital assets according to your short-term and long-term goals.

If you don’t have anything written down as a strategy, you may already have some practices in place. It may be you are already implementing a strategy without realizing it. If you don't have a digital marketing strategy, then it's time to make one.

In creating such a strategy, it is important to realize how content is the most powerful driver in digital marketing. There are many ways to get an idea to include in your digital content. Frequently asked questions from your clients are a good source of information. You may tire of answering the same questions over and over again, but it does give you an idea about what is often on their minds, what their pain points are, and what kind of solutions they are typically looking for.

Start with a list of their frequently asked questions and build content around it. You'll see how your audience will be drawn to content answering the questions they've asked. Another type of content which can make them stick to you and follow you is one providing value to your audience. This refers to content that is highly informative, useful, practical, and helpful. This doesn’t always have to be original content from you. It's also good to share other people’s content on your social media accounts to establish yourself as a thought leader in your particular niche.

Digital Marketing Strategy Basics

It cannot be denied, marketing is simply a necessity in this digital age. If you don't have a strong marketing strategy, you are sure to get left behind. Be sure to set a budget for digital marketing. Every time you see this line item on your Profit & Loss Statement, it will remind you to implement your marketing strategy.

Don't forget, there are many options and tools available for your use for free or for a nominal amount of money. The key is to be able to test your strategies to find out which ones are most effective. As for your Return On Investment or ROI, some digital strategies can be specifically measured via analytics while others do not have a direct monetary effect but instead build your business from the inside. Brand awareness should not be ignored.

Under the umbrella of your digital marketing strategy are your marketing goals. Marketing goals serve as your guide to implementing your digital strategy. These goals shouold follow the S.M.A.R.T. acronym and be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely. It is not easy to implement a marketing strategy, but if you can make your goals S.M.A.R.T., it saves you time and makes your strategy highly effective. It also allows you some flexibility in the event you need to modify your strategy, you can adjust your goals to make that a reality.

Be sure to listen to this episode of The Digital Slice Podcast to get the scoop on developing a digital marketing strategy! And, if you like it, leave a rating and a review!

Please note: The Friedman Group is an inbound marketing agency based in Denver, Colorado, and we work with professionals and business owners across the U.S. Our digital marketing services include: inbound marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, and digital marketing strategy and implementation.