Are your current online marketing tactics generating measurable ROI? If not, they should be.
There is a massive window of opportunity that exists right now for all industries to take charge of their presence online. Measuring your results makes marketing a science rather than a fluffy, feel good world of unpredictability.
Whether you are just getting started or looking to overhaul your existing strategy, we’ve rounded up a list of the top mistakes you might be making. It’s time to stop leaving money on the table and start putting solid strategies into place.
Save Both Time & Money with Inbound Marketing!
Top 10 Digital Marketing Mistakes
- Lack of a solid strategy.
Without strategy, you have very little insight into what you want to do, how you are going to get there, and what metrics you will use to measure results. Aim for a cohesive “smarketing” (sales & marketing) initiative. Develop personas and a create a digital content strategy that engages and feeds your buyers. Have a digital execution plan based on your strategy, and build a solid foundation for addressing online leads, closing sales and continuing to delight your new customers.
- Not understanding the power of content.
Have you heard content is king? You better pay attention because content rules the digital marketing world. You need to have good content that is organic (original) and educational – not self-serving! Your consumer is much savvier than you think. They research, read, watch and learn about the product online before they purchase. But also note, there is a lot of noise out there. You must make your message rise above it! Not only do you need to blog, but you need to engage in other forms of content like podcasts, video, slideshare and infographics to diversify your content for your customer. Different content types can address the pain points of the customer in many different ways that help them see the benefit of your product or service.
- Not utilizing social media.
Learning to optimize your social media is just as important as optimizing your website. Optimizing your social channels helps you be identified by the search engines as useful and valuable when people are searching for products like yours. Many businesses set up social profiles and forget and abandon them. Your social media should pull people to your website, and your website should reinforce your social brand presence. You need to post the right content, in the right channel, at the right times.
Social media needs to be a marriage and not a one night stand. If you want to build a relationship with the consumer, you need to take time and interact with them in your social channels.
- Posting the same content across all your platforms.
If you post the same content across all your social media platforms, not only will Google dock you, but you will also lose credibility with your target audience. As mentioned before, the consumer is different and wants original and educational content to help them decide when, what and where they will purchase a product or service.
- Not using email marketing.
There are a lot of experts out there who suggest email is dead. In fact, they couldn’t be more wrong. Statistics show that 95% of consumers online use email and 91% of online consumers check their email at least once a day. The key with email marketing is to gain trust. Don’t buy lists, don’t spam and most importantly, don’t send too much! Share things that matter to your audience. This can include sales, events and tips that will make their lives easier – basically anything that hits the pain point of your audience and provides a valuable solution.
- Not incorporating SEO.
Google is constantly changing how search rankings work. In a single year, it can have numerous updates to the algorithm, which means businesses need to have internal or external talent that understands the fluctuations and can make adjustments accordingly. Properly executed SEO will make your company stand out online and become recognizable to customers and the search engines. SEO is really about addressing the needs of the customer and building more intuitive websites that bring in new leads. Your brand is a valuable asset that can be effectively enhanced online with well-executed SEO.
- Not integrating your campaigns.
Business owners and marketers must avoid the trap of binary thinking. They are often inundated with data that pushes them into one method or form of marketing over another. The truth is, a combination of multiple marketing tactics will best maximize the potential of both your online and offline efforts. The most important thing you can do when developing an integrated campaign is understand who your buyer is, how their buying behavior has evolved and make sure you appeal to them through various forms of media.
- Not following the trends.
The world of inbound marketing is constantly changing. It’s not enough to have a “set it and forget it” attitude about your online lead generation campaign. Constant learning, research, A/B testing and analysis of your results will allow you to adapt your strategy to match the ever-evolving digital landscape.
- Not utilizing analytics correctly.
Analytics is crucial to your marketing strategy. Even if you just have a website with no blog, no social media presence or updated content, you need to know how to access your analytics. Google does an amazing job of creating great insight into how your online strategy is working with their analytics feature; however, it’s no good if you don’t understand how to use it toward your goals. For example, you just saw that 1,500 people came to your site this month, but where did they all come from? Was it email, social posts or an AdWords campaign? Analyzing and understanding how the numbers, your tactics and strategy all fit together is crucial to meeting your goals and continuing to grow.
- Not having the right resources.
You need to invest in creating and executing an inbound marketing strategy because inbound marketing is here to stay. The internet has changed the way we buy products and services, and the digital world is only going to continue grow. There is no better time than now to invest in an inbound marketing plan that shows and grows your ROI!
Whether you can relate to all or just a few of the common mistakes we have listed above, our talented team of inbound marketers, strategists and technicians can assist you in putting the right digital marketing strategy in place. Ready to build some serious ROI and grow your business? Contact Marketing Essentials today! 419-629-0080
