The world has become a global village thanks to the internet. Almost half of the world’s population is relying on the internet for a number of things. It is also safe to say that most people have been forced by the COVID-19 pandemic to adapt to online shopping, a valid reason why you should embrace digital marketing for your small business.
Digital marketing can help you to introduce your small business to new markets, attract the right clients and customers as well as convert them right within your website. In the end, you’ll have people coming to you, instead of always having to track them down.
Also, there are several established digital marketing strategists you can easily find online to get you started on your digital marketing journey. Read on to find how digital marketing can boost your small business.
What is Digital Marketing?
For starters, digital marketing refers to marketing a business online. Many people are currently relying on the internet to do several things, making it easy for business owners to find target consumers online.
Why Digital Marketing is Important for Small Businesses
There are several reasons that justify why you should incorporate digital marketing in your small business. Here are the main reasons:
Your potential customers are online.
Your target customers are either on social media platforms or are using search engines like Google and DuckDuckGo to find various information. For that reason, prioritize optimized content that search engines like Google and Bing can rank on first SERPs.
By doing that, targeted internet users will easily find their way to your website and social media pages when they search a keyword that is related to your content. Even if you fail to attract desired numbers organically, sponsored posts (Facebook Ads, Twitter Ads, Google Ads, etc.) will do it for you.
Smooth lined interactions with potential customers
Digital marketing makes communication between sellers and potential buyers easier when using for, example, Social Media Marketing Strategy (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.).
As a business owner, engaging customers on your various business social media accounts (through hashtags and relatable captions) creates room for trust and loyalty. You could also rely on your customer’s feedback to improve on suggested areas.
Simplified Performance Tracking
Performance tracking helps establish whether a certain digital marketing strategy is working or not, and what changes or adjustments to make. This is possible through use of digital marketing analytical tools like Google Analytics, Hootsuite, HubSpot, among others.
With such analytical tools, you can evaluate your website’s traffic (new, returning, and unique visitors), establish the duration spent by visitors on your site and the most frequented pages, track keyword performance, among other key details. It is also possible to determine the rate at which your business is losing customers (customer attrition), enabling you to take actionable measures to curb the disappointing trend.
Your competitors have gone digital.
Establishing online presence takes time. Your competitors know this, that’s why they have hopped in. Pay attention to what makes them tick. Is their website content frequently updated? How do they engage their potential buyers? The most important thing here is not necessarily about competition, but learning from them and making the lessons learnt work for your benefit.
Boosts brand awareness.
By advertising through social platforms such as Facebook or running TikTok challenges, your target audience comes to know about your business and engage with you online. A great brand helps you to establish your base in the industry.
Your messaging should be crafted in such a way that it leaves a lasting positive impression about your business, the people behind it and the culture that informs its operations. Your small business gets the brand recognition it deserves, or better yet, attains global reach. Digital marketing is a gateway to winning international clients.
Get Higher Returns on Investment
By knowing who your target audience is and where they spend most of their time at online, you can tailor your marketing campaigns and content in a way that resonates with them. This way, you have a better chance at converting them into paying customers.
Even a conversion rate of just 2% for organically generated visitors can boost your small business since there are no recurring marketing expenses. For Pay per click advertising, the conversion is usually much higher, at around 20%. Your digital marketing agency can advise and help you in adjusting the content and the design of your landing page in order to boost conversions.
Best Digital Marketing Services for Small Businesses
- SEO (Search Engine Optimization): Statistically, a good percentage of online buyers prefer conducting a Google search (among other search engines like Bing) before proceeding to a purchase. Therefore, if you want to target such potential buyers, a top ranking website will come in handy. Optimizing your website using relevant keywords will generate desired traffic to your site with higher chances of converting the traffic to potential sales.
- Web Design and Development: A website is equally important in digital marketing because it represents your business’s image. Your targeted consumers view your business as represented by your website. For that reason, make your website as presentable as possible. Don’t forget to make it SEO friendly. Also, when outsourcing web design services, go for professionals professional digital marketing agency.
- PPC (Pay Per Click): PPC is an advertising strategy where search engines (Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, etc.) and social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.) pay advertisers depending on clicks generated on placed Ads. To maximize on PPC’s, ensure your Ads are well optimized bearing in mind that the Ads appear to targeted users whenever they search a keyword associated with what your business is offering.
- Content Marketing: Content aimed at marketing any type of business could take different forms. These include written texts or articles (relevant, optimized and precise), images (quality resolution and size), slideshows and videos, etc. Your website or business social media accounts can only rank higher on SERPs if quality content is prioritized.
- Email Marketing: This online marketing strategy involves sending business promotional emails to several potential customers. The emails should be well crafted to capture the attention of the targeted buyers and prompt action from their end, which is making a purchase or showing interest in whatever you are advertising.
- Social Media Marketing: Social media marketing can be a powerful technique when done right. You have to think though what your audience needs and meet that content needs through various forms. From short videos, text updates to photos and carousels depending on the platform.
