The options for do-it-yourself (DIY) online marketing can be overwhelming with the constantly changing world of social media marketing, email marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), article marketing, blogging and more. So, if you want to start a DIY online marketing campaign, where should you begin?
Launch your digital marketing campaign with these strategic principles to get you started.
The Medium and the Message
The first step of creating an online marketing strategy is to figure out your message – that is, the content that will drive your campaign. Whether it’s promotion, sales information, industry-related updates or helpful tips, you need to know why you’re creating content for your audience.
Once you have a focused message, spend some time, money or both to articulate it concisely. A great looking website is all well and good, but if it doesn’t get the right information across in a clear and coherent way, it’s useless.
The next step is to work on your marketing medium. All these messages should be published on your website, preferably in the form of a blog. Blogs make it easy for people to comment on, share and like your message. Search engines like Google reward you for having popular and industry-relevant content by improving the ranking of your site in search engine results. Users interacting with your article and creating backlinks through sharing will also improve your website’s popularity.
Share Your Message With Social Media
Make time to check in with Twitter, Google +, Facebook and other social media platforms, interact with your followers and keep them engaged so they’ll want to stay up to date with the content you’ve published on your website.
Provide a summary or teaser for your riveting blog – and remember to include a link so your fans can read the full article. Making your content compelling and available to your audience can drive traffic back to your website, which improves your SEO.
Remember Your Email List
Now that you have a regularly updated blog full of new and exciting content, copy and paste the best parts of it into an email marketing campaign (such as an e-newsletter) with links back to your blog. Just like sharing summaries or teasers through social media, this email strategy will send traffic back to your website. By doing so, your readers will have the opportunity to share, like and comment on your article, all of which help with your website SEO.
Plus, by periodically sharing valuable tips or information with your email subscribers, your business will always be “top-of-mind” as an expert in the industry.
Should Your Online Marketing Strategy Include Advertising?
Maybe. Adding Google pay-per-click ads, Facebook advertising and other online advertising options can be an extremely effective way to bring in targeted traffic. Online advertising can be affordable and deliver immediate results, so it’s worth considering if paid advertising can be incorporated into your marketing budget.
Final DIY Online Marketing Thoughts
The great thing about running your online marketing for yourself is that you can get a lot of value out of creating focused content, as long as you share it with your market. An effective online strategy allows you to keep current contacts engaged with your business, and is a great way to connect with new audiences while converting potential clients into satisfied customers.
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