In this day when so many small business owners are strapped for cash, return on investment is very important to consider before integrating any marketing strategy.
The following four types of marketing strategies are foundational recommendations that I have seen consistently deliver a positive return on investment to my client-partners’ businesses.
1. Responsively-designed Web site.
A responsively designed website is a digital necessity for any small business owner today.
Your customers request information. They look for solutions. One in four (25%) of your customers regularly use their mobile devices to perform searches for information and solutions that you provide.
63% of searchers use multiple devices to find local businesses.
79% of mobile phone users and 81% of tablet owners use their devices in local search.
51% are looking for information on a specific business, product or service, with 80% of searches ending in a purchase ̶ most within hours.[1]
A responsively-designed website automatically condenses to fit to size of the various screen sizes of the mobile devices that your customers use. Then as your targeted customers transition to their laptops or desktops, the responsively-designed website expands to fit the larger computer screens as well.
More and more, small business owners are successfully integrating very economical, responsively-designed websites by simply using WordPress as their websites’ content management systems of choice. A quick Google search for responsively designed WordPress website designs, you can easily find a great number of free website solutions to get you started.
Without getting too far into the weeds, I want to also provide you with a few ideas as you begin to build a new website or update the website you already have online:
1. Review your competition’s websites. You should consider reviewing your competitors’ websites on your laptop and your smartphone. Do their websites automatically respond to fit each of your devices screens?
2. Assess your competition’s home page. You may want to to consider making notes of any key pieces of information that your competition shares on their homepage, such as main navigational links, home page call-outs, etc.
3. Provide your complete NAP (company name, address, and telephone number) on every page of your website. For example, key placement of your company’s contact information within the footer of your website will provide your customers an easy way to connect with you. Additional ideas:
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- Integrate Google maps into your address area, so your customers may simply tap your address on their devices’ screens to access GPS directions to your business location.
- Program your telephone number to permit your customers to be able to tap your telephone number in order to call your telephone number directly from their smartphones.
2. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization must become a regular component within your marketing mix.
Benefits of successful SEO include:
* Higher return on investment
* Long-term, steady website traffic
* More qualified, targeted customer visits
* Improved brand visibility & awareness
* High authority and thought leadership
* More conversions (i.e. email addresses, leads, sales, etc.)
* Increase in revenue
As I share with my current clients, the search engines (i.e. Google, etc.) have a huge responsibility to indexed tens of millions of websites. These machines must determine the content of your website page in order to deliver results within milliseconds from your customers, who are entering their search queries. Please feel free to review my articles on how to increase website traffic using SEO techniques.
3. Content Strategy
Content is key. The information and articles that you provide on your website specifically with your targeted customer in mind is critical for your business to succeed. You must create content that your targeted customers want to consume.
Great content builds stronger relationships with your targeted customers.
* Define your customers
* Identify what they need and want from you
* Provide information and content that they want to consume
You can start slowly to get a good feel of the topics and themes that resonate the most with your targeted audience. Also, you should consider a periodic review your current website analytics to determine the landing pages and articles that have greatest interest from your customers. For a quick reference, feel free to check out my cheat sheet how to use google analytics to improve your business.
Your competition’s social media platforms are a great resource to consider monitoring for content ideas as well. The research to identify the topics, categories and themes that your target audience shares the most can provide you with a great list of ideas for your own future content.
4. Email list
A list of your targeted customers’ emails is one of your most valuable marketing assets you will own. Your customers that provide their email addresses to you are of greater value than any customer connection you may have within your social media platform, which is owned by a third-party provider that constantly changes its algorithm and potentially prevents your community from ever seeing your announcements unless you choose to pay to advertise to them.
The list of email addresses are from your customers, who know you. They like you, and they have given you permission to you to communicate your promotions and offers directly to them.
Your growing list of email addresses will become a great resource for you to:
* survey for feedback on content and ideas pertinent to your business
* present exclusive sales offers
* enlist to become advocates for your local-market business.
* nurture and grow relationships
The list of names and emails on your list will be key to the success of your business. Build and manage it well.
Consider trying these four digital types of marketing strategies and let me know the difference they make in the growth of your business.
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[1] 7th Annual Local Search Study conducted by Neustar and 15miles