As a small business owner, you’re probably used to wearing many hats. CEO, accountant, salesperson, assembly line worker, you name it. Doing so many things at once usually means that departments like marketing get much less attention than they deserve. For many small business owners, finding time to market their company is a challenge. In fact, according to Infusionsoft’s 2017 Small Business Marketing Trends Report, it is THE challenge small businesses are facing today.
Therefore it is critical that small business owners start working smart, and use their limited time wisely. Taking advantage of a few effective digital marketing trends can turn your business even more profitable. Let’s take a look at some of them.
The most upwardly trending media platform currently is Mobile. We are all connected to the world via our phones these days, more than we ever were. Millions of consumers use their mobile devices to read the news, check social media, do research, shop and much more. This means that your business’s digital footprint must be optimized for mobile accessibility.
All the most popular social media platforms support Video. Consumers are looking at videos on YouTube and Snapchat for hours a day, and they are a great way to increase engagement with your audience and start creating brand loyalty. And it doesn’t have to be just video-blogging or vlogs. Small businesses can benefit greatly from producing promotional videos teasing new content and products. Buying a small spot on YouTube works wonders. Statistics show that a lot of viewers are watching the entire spot or clicking through to actionable web pages.
In today’s world of celebrity endorsements, Influencers reign supreme. People are more likely to trust the recommendations of media personalities they admire. Now, don’t think you have to go out and get a Kardashian to tweet about your business. Finding a popular local blogger or instagrammer will do just fine, someone who could be a brand ambassador for your business.
With so much content all over the place, think Personalization. Your digital marketing should be personalized, and that goes beyond merely adding subscribers names to your email campaigns or sending newsletters. It means understanding the habits and preferences of your customers and being able to cut through all the other marketing noise in their inboxes.
Nearly half of all small business owners have no idea what their Metrics are. Are their marketing campaigns effective? What are your customers clicking on? It’s easy to find out, by using the analytical tools provided by Google, Facebook, etc. Once you know what your audience responds to, you can give them more of that, and stop wasting time on content that isn’t productive.
Now that you know the marketing trends with the most growth potential, how do you set about using them in your business? Small businesses don’t have big marketing budgets. And being online can make you competitors with someone across the world. So how do you succeed?
It is important to figure out which of the trends work for your particular business. A small doctor’s office may not benefit from Instagram, but an architectural firm might. A local boutique’s Facebook page might become its most valuable asset. Pick and choose which social media to use.
Making your website mobile friendly is an easy way to become more competitive online. Customers and viewers should be able to access your pages on their smartphones, when they are away from their laptops and desktops.
However, the biggest marketing tool, according to HubShout’s polling of small business marketing practices is Search Engine Optimization. Small businesses are spending an average of 30% of their budgets on SEO. Next is Web Development and rounding out the top 3 is Pay Per Click advertising.
SEO can be tricky, and rather than attempt to crack the ever changing world of search engine algorithms, small businesses would benefit by outsourcing their SEO campaigns. Approximately 68% of small businesses that participated in a 2017 Online Marketing Trends survey stated that they outsourced their SEO campaigns. For a small investment, an experienced SEO company can help you navigate the digital marketplace, improve your online rankings and ultimately bring you more clients.
Read more relevant blog post:How to Know Which Tasks to Outsource for Greater Business Growth