Each company is different – successful online marketing strategies require a tailored approach.
With so many online marketing strategies to choose from, it’s not always the easiest of tasks for someone launching a new online business to decide what direction to take. Thankfully most online marketing activities like SEO are adaptable and have the flexibility to make tweaks during your campaign and are not set in stone. To make your task a little easier, here are seven questions to help you find the right approach for your company.
What Is Your Budget?
Your online marketing strategies may be restricted by budget but keep in mind the old business adage that you need to spend money to make money – it is an investment in your company’s future. At the start, a small business may want to focus their efforts on tactics that require little outlay such as Social Media marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), email marketing, membership programs, and so on. It’s important to understand that it is an integral part of your business and not just a ‘nice to have’ addition.
Who Is Your Target Market?
Your target market is a big determinant in the online marketing strategies you will undertake – the approach you use to promote your products and services to business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C) companies can be very different. You then need to drill down further into different demographics such as gender, age range, location, income and so forth as this will influence what online tactic you choose.
Where Is Your Target Market?
Once you have determined who your target audience is, you need to find out where they are hanging out online and how they are using the medium. For example, you may have a target audience that loves interacting on Social Media platforms, therefore you will need to dedicate more time and resources to those mediums by trying to encourage engagement and interaction, running exclusive promotions, doing surveys, posting discussions and so forth.
What Products And Services Are You Marketing?
The products and services you are offering will of course impact on your internet marketing strategy and may have different target markets (see above). If you’re selling one product, you may want to adopt a niche strategy like SEO and social media marketing but if you are aiming at a mass market, you may want to use a tools such as online catalogs, reseller programs and affiliates that that will reach a wider audience.
What Are Your Current Strategies?
If you already have strategies in place, then it’s an opportune time to analyze these tools and find out what’s working and what’s not. Do you need to completely change your marketing plan or does it just require a few improvements? When evaluating an online campaign, you need to keep in mind that certain strategies such as SEO may take at least three to six months for you to start seeing results (see below).
Local, National Or International Strategy?
This will greatly influence what type of online marketing strategies you choose. For example, if you are a company that wants to reach the local market, then you may decide to put a large chunk of your budget into strategies such as local search campaigns that can target localized keywords. If you are promoting your products to an international audience then a broader, a wide-reaching SEO strategy may be more relevant.
How Much Time Do You Need?
Some online marketing strategies such as SEO and article marketing may take longer for you to be able to see results than Pay-Per-Click advertising (PPC) for example which has a cost per click but will give you instant gratification. When trying a new marketing tactic, give it at least six months. Some strategies may take longer to get off the ground than PPC but may be more cost-effective and reap more rewards over the long term.
Answering these questions will give you a clearer idea of who you’re targeting and how you want to reach them to be able to formulate your online campaigns. seoWorks is a leading SEO provider with a full-service team including SEO Consultants, SEO Copywriters as well as a Website Development Team. Contact us if you would like more information about the online digital marketing strategies we offer.
This article was republished with the latest industry insights on October 28, 2016.
