The benefits of digital marketing for small business
Aside from creating a new business website, working on a strategy for your digital marketing campaign is the next big step towards online success. In this article, we will cover the benefits and the role digital marketing plays for your online visibility. We will also talk about the different forms of digital marketing available to you. Finally, we will give you our tips about the best course of action we suggest for your small business. Let’s unleash the power of online marketing!
Table of contents
- Content Marketing
- PPC Campaign
- Social Media Marketing
- Email Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Affiliate Marketing
Often overlooked, digital marketing has great untapped potential. Not only is it cost-effective, but it is very specific and specialized. Instead of printing paper flyers to hand out at your local fair, the entire world is your marketplace. You can use your knowledge about your business and your clients to acquire more of the same customers. You can also track your ad performance. This makes it very manageable for small business owners and entrepreneurs to gauge if their strategy is effective. You have the flexibility to pivot and adjust early on in the game. This saves time and capital.
Benefits:
- Easy access to a global market
- Cost-effective
- More control over your marketing campaign
- Track efficiency of your campaign with real-time results
- Flexibility
Many people are not aware of all the tools available to use for their marketing campaign. The key lies in understanding what options you have and from there establishing your strategy. We will list all the different kinds of digital marketing available and help you figure out which best suits your small business.
CONTENT MARKETING
Content marketing is an umbrella that defines the style of your marketing material. The strategy behind “content” marketing is using your marketing campaign as a way to bring value and inform your customers. Instead of simply selling the old way, large companies like Microsoft to starting entrepreneurs have adopted this new strategy. Its success is due to their ability to create something that customers actually want to read and engage with. By doing so, you capture your customers’ attention and establish credibility and trust.
Content marketing can be as easy as the following example. Imagine you are a Pilates instructor and you are looking to sign people up for your classes. A good content strategy campaign would be to create a pdf file informing your customers of something that might be of interest to them. For this example, our instructor would write something like “10 Easy Exercises to Tone Your Arms”. You would then advertise your free guide on a social platform of your choice. Potential and interested customers then visit your website and subscribe to your email list. You would then send them their free copy of your Pilates poses and also keep their emails to inform them of future classes you will be providing. By giving your potential customers something that they want, you are also receiving something in return. Using content marketing, your relationship to your customers is more personal and more focused on the people that are truly interested in what it is you have to offer.
Content Marketing campaigns can be the basis for the following e-marketing tools we will talk about next.
PPC Campaign ( Pay Per Click Campaign )
The first and probably most recognized digital marketing campaign is Pay-Per-Click or PPC. A PPC campaign is a form of advertisement. GoogleAds is the most popular and efficient route. It consists of paying for each click of your advertisement that redirects a visitor towards your website. To focus your campaign correctly, you have to choose a set of keywords that your ideal customer might be searching for. Google then auctions each keyword depending on how much demand it has. Popular keywords are more expensive, because you have to compete with other businesses who are also wanting to advertise for it too. A successful PPC campaign starts by choosing the correct set of keywords that is specific to your audience and is not too competitive. Your goal is that each click of your advertisement leads to a sale. Choosing the right keywords that will bring your ideal clients is a big part of the process.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is the advertising available on social media websites and platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, among others. Each channel has a diverse range of settings to help you narrow your audience and target your ideal clients. You can make use of your published content to bring customers to your website, your social media page or even get them to engage and send you a message. Another great advantage of this form of e-marketing is the ease to share your content. People can easily “share” and spread your content like “word of mouth”. Depending on the nature of your small business, you can take advantage of this more personal approach to finding new customers.
Email Marketing
Email marketing is more important than many people think. In a world where we create social media profiles and we try to acquire customers using PPC campaigns, email marketing promises a little more. The advantage of acquiring customer’s emails is that this information is yours to keep. Unlike using a platform to advertise, email marketing is your own real estate. A potential or actual customer has given you their personal information because they are already interested in what you have to offer. We suggest considering your audience when planning your email campaign. Create a captivating title that captures the attention of your audience. You want people to open your email and actually read what you send. The idea is for them to read your message and for you to retain them as a customer or encourage another sale.
Sending emails too frequently might lead to an “unsubscribe”. Use email marketing to create trust with your customers. Send them a useful email about your business or your industry; use this opportunity to give your customer something of value! You can also use email marketing to announce a sale, a new product or send a customer service survey.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO is an investment. It is an investment of money and of time. Having a clear strategy of what keywords are important to your small business helps you organize and focus all your digital marketing campaigns. SEO should be a part of your routine website maintenance and design. With time, SEO will correctly catalog your website within the search engine to direct the right traffic to your site. Creating this established online presence will bring more and better traffic towards your website. ( Learn more about SEO →).
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is another way of advertising and selling online. The way it works is an “affiliate” markets your product or service and earns a commission with each sale. A good example is when you are reading a blog and someone talks about a certain product they use. They then provide you a link to purchase it on “Amazon” or another website. Some people are explicit about receiving a commission for each purchase , while other affiliate campaigns are more discrete. The concept is about spreading word about your business by using someone whose credibility a potential customer trusts. Affiliate marketing is mostly done on commission for sale, but there are other options that can be negotiated with the affiliate 3rd party.
We are here to help
Now that you have read about why digital marketing is important, you are now ready to plan your e-marketing campaign. Airodigital is equipped with years of professional experience in the website maintenance and digital marketing realm. Do not hesitate to contact us!.
