Developing a Digital Marketing Plan For a Small Business

Big budget marketing plans get a lot of publicity. Large businesses have the financial means to create flashy marketing campaigns across a wide range of media, but small businesses are often left behind. However, digital marketing is important in today’s internet dominated world and a small business cannot afford to neglect online marketing – if they do, they risk being left behind.

Here is a quick guide to developing a digital marketing plan for a small business.

Market Research

It is pointless implementing any kind of digital marketing plan without carrying out some market research. You need to know who your customers are. Competition online is fierce, so content needs to be targeted to the right people. If you produce too much generic content, it will be lost in a sea of similar content, which is a waste of your time and money.

Check data for your website and see who your customers are. Where do they come from? What type of customers are the most likely to convert to leads? Most businesses have two or three specific customer types. It is essential that you figure out who yours are.

Look at your competitors and see where their weaknesses are. Can you exploit any vulnerabilities or opportunities in their website or marketing? For example, is there a gap in their product range that you can fill? Miss this and you are missing out.

Optimize Your Website

Before you start any kind of digital marketing campaign, make sure your website is fully optimized for SEO. If you have been with the same hosting provider for a few years, check whether your website loads fast enough, and if it doesn’t consider moving to a new hosting provider. A Blue Host coupon could make the move more economical, which would give you more cash to spend on digital marketing.

Once you know who your customers are, start producing targeted, branded content. Build an influencer network, as this can help you get your brand out there and attract new customers. Promote content via social media and encourage people to share it with their own networks. Social networks are critical in content marketing, so use as many social networks as you can.

Create a Content Hub

Create a content hub where you can draw visitors in and direct them into the sales funnel. Blogs work well as a content hub, but a Facebook page or website are just as effective. Build links back to your content hub by posting guest posts and promoting content on other sites.

Work hard at building content that is relevant and useful. The more relevant your content is, the easier it will be to attract repeat visitors. Contextually relevant digital content drives conversion, builds revenue and profits.

Engage customers with excellent customer service and encourage them to leave positive reviews online. Digital marketing starts and ends with social proof and referrals. Ignore this at your peril.

Test different strategies in your digital marketing campaigns and continually hone your strategies. It’s the pathway to success.