Digital marketing can be defined as marketing that uses online channels. And it’s a very broad area that covers but is not limited to email, websites, search engine optimisation (SEO), and social media. The purpose is to engage current and prospective clients. And it is definitely your friend when you use it correctly.

Using digital channels enables you to connect with your target audience where they are, in front of a screen. It is worth remembering that the internet has an incredibly long memory, and it is essential as a brand to be careful about what you put out online.

It can hurt you as much as it can help when it creates a negative impression of your business. Let’s look at how you can benefit from digital marketing a little closer:

Broaden Your Global Reach

Using digital marketing literally opens up the world for you. Remember when you used flyers and newspaper ads to advertise your wares? With digital channels, there is no limit to your reach. With the right content and combination of funnels, you can reach people around the globe. The possibilities are astounding, are exciting.

Expand Your Local Audience

Digital marketing doesn’t just help you reach across the globe. It also increases your local visibility. Targeted ads and local SEO helps bring people looking for a local business to your bricks and mortar shop.

And again, it’s much more efficient than the traditional flyer or newspaper ad.

Reduced Costs

Digital solutions tend to be cost-effective regardless of the reach you are looking for. It allows small players to compete with the big companies simply using a targeted strategy. It evens the proverbial playing field.

Cost and ROI will depend on your strategy, the digital solutions you choose to employ, and your marketing goals.

Easy to Get Started

Digital marketing has many moving parts and lots to learn, but getting started is an easily achievable goal. It becomes more complicated when you build goals, and ROI expectations and scale into your campaigns.

You may need help from a professional to create the right strategy for your budget.

Targeting Your Audience

Your digital marketing activities can help you determine your target audience. One of the undersold features of a digital presence is that it is an invaluable source of data that you can automatically collect and analyse to grow your business.

You can target your demographic using:

• SEO – Search Engine Optimisation
• PPC – pay-per-click
• Social media tracking

The tracking you have available to you with your digital campaigns gives you a wealth of information that enables you to tweak your messaging to reach your customers and prospects by understanding the changing behaviours.

Not Just One Strategy

The key to your successful digital marketing is understanding what strategy best fits your business profile and brand. By analyzing the results from each digital engagement, you can create a flexible approach to adapt quickly to fluctuations in the marketplace.

Vary Your Content

Keep your brand fresh and relevant by using the different types of digital content available to you. Build effective online campaigns using:

• Whitepapers
• Quizzes
• Social media posts
• Webinars
• Visual content
• Infographics
• Blogs
• Podcasts
• Emailers
• Ebooks

With digital platforms, modifying the same material to fit the different channels is easy. Seamlessly offer consistent messaging on brand to everyone that you engage.

Leadership Sets the Pace

The last thing I will discuss here is probably the most critical: the leadership you provide to your team as a business owner. You must provide the direction and develop the framework from which all digital marketing will evolve.

How do you determine what that should be? Start with these four things to enable your strategy to succeed:

• Value proposition and customer segmentation will give the team a great foundation for content topics.
• Target customer acquisition cost to make everything measurable.
• A pre-approved monthly budget ensures you have the funds to implement your digital strategy effectively.
• Overall business model and sales funnels allow your marketing team to establish the best possible dissemination models to generate contacts and leads.

I am Here to Help

Are you confused about digital marketing? Do you want to know more? Get in touch, and we can talk about how I can help you streamline your business.