Digital Marketing Strategy

PART 1: Introduction

The purpose of ALL marketing is to make a connection between your product /service and a prospective customer’s needs. There is a logical step-by-step process you can use to make that connection.

Content and Inbound Marketing, SEO, SEM, Social Media, and Email Marketing each have specific purposes. Not every tool makes sense for every business objective. In this session you will discover which tools fit your needs.

This course will introduce you to the digital options and help you select the right tools to achieve your marketing goals.

ASSIGNMENT

If you haven’t watched the short introduction video.  Watch it now!

Then download the Digital Plan Workbook

Digital Plan Workbook – While the digital age has given us many new tools, the process is same.  The tools work best when you bring together all right  pieces in a coordinated effort to achieve your goals.  This workbook will help you organize your tools.

PART 2: Digital Marketing Choices

When it comes to digital marketing you have lots of choices.   In this section we review each of the choices and some tips for using them.  

Be sure to download the competitive worksheet before going on to the next section.  Remember, you competitors may not be making good choices, but it is helpful to know what they are choosing to do and how your strategy compares to theirs.

It is also helpful to look at companies like yours in other markets. 

ASSIGNMENT

• Download the worksheet
• Watch the Video outlining marketing choices.  Start considering your choices as they compare to your competitors. 

PART 3: Start with Your Goal

Your marketing plan will have five sections : Goals, Budget, Audience Channels and Metrics.

In this segment we look at your goals and objectives. Remember that the purpose of marketing is to move your customer through your sales funnel. Your goals change at each stage of the funnel. Your marketing needs to adjust as well

PART 4: How Much Should You Spend? 

It’s a simple question:

What should your marketing budget be? But there is no simple answer. Even for two companies which are relatively the same size and in the same industry, the answer may be dramatically different.

There are several factors which affect how much you need to spend on marketing.

The value of a customer.  Typically, you should spend no more than one-third of the gross profit you earn on a sale to acquire a new customer. The longer the relationship, the more supplemental products, the move valuable a customer becomes.

The age of your company. If you have been in business for a long time and you have an established name in your community, you will be able to spend less than a new upstart.

The strength of your customer base. Companies with an established base of customers they have stayed in contact with have an economic advantage. They can focus on marketing engagement and retention rather than introducing their business to a host of new prospects. It is always less expensive to keep a customer than find a new one.

Your sales skills measured by your closing rate.  How often does a prospect become a client?  Your closing rate is one of the most powerful numbers in your marketing equation. The better you are at converting opportunities to sales, the the fewer prospects you will need.

The quality of your referral network. Do you have strategic partners who send prospects to you? Do your existing customers like you well enough to recommend you to a friend?

RESOURCE:  CUSTOMER ACQUISION WORKSHEET

Use this customer acquisition worksheet  to calculate what you can afford to spend to acquire a new customer.

PART 5: Clarify Your Audience

Everyone is not your customer.

It is a hard thing to accept, but no matter how cool your product is, there are people out there who don’t want it. On the bright side, if you can focus on the audience that is interested in your business and craft your messages to resonate with them, they are much more likely to engage with your brand.

Selecting a niche and targeting your message on a specific segment will not prevent you from working with others. Targeting simply forces you to focus your resources and attention on the most profitable segment.

Seth Godin hit the nail on the head when he said:

The problem with “everyone” is that in order to reach everyone or teach everyone or sell to everyone, you need to so water down what you’ve got you end up with almost nothing

RESOURCES:

If you have not defined your ideal client use these resources to clarify your audience definition

IDEAL CLIENT WORKBOOK: .This guide includes a 4 step process to finding your ideal client:

POSITION STATEMENT WORKBOOK -While it sounds like a marketing buzzword, a position statement is an important first step in building your brand, marketing, and personality. It simply defines who your customer is, what they need, and how you are uniquely qualified to deliver a solution for them

PART 6: Match Audiences and Activities

Different activities will be more effective at each stage of the buying journey.

ATTRACT – Create relevant messages and go where your customers are. At this stage the following tools will be valuable.

• Blogs
• SEO  – Keywords
• SEM – Paid Advertising
• Social Advertising

ENGAGE- Create multiple conversion opportunities

• Social Media –
• Web – Calls to Action
• Landing Pages
• Offers
• Contact Forms
• Email

CLOSE- Create a multi-touch program to move prospects to yes.

• Email Marketing
• Contact Management Software
• Automated Campaigns

DELIGHT- Develop loyalty, repeat business and referrals

• Social Media
• Email
• Surveys

PART 7: Measure Results

Is your business on track? Do you know? If you are like most successful small business owners, you have a handle on your financial statements, gross sales, expenses, receivables, and accounts payable.

These important numbers provide a great snapshot of where you have been and where you are at any given time. While it is handy to be able to predict next month’s cash flow, these numbers only tell you part of the story. They can’t give you any insight into future sales.

So relying exclusively on your financials to drive your business is like trying to drive your car by looking in the rear view mirror. You can see exactly where you have been and how you got there, but you won’t have a clue about the road ahead.

To predict the future, you need to be paying attention to metrics which tell you prospects are moving through your sales funnel. You need to measure the pre-buying behavior.

RESOURCES

KPI Planning Guide – For every marketing investment you should have a specific objective or goal and a metric. Whether you are spending 1,000 or 10,000 marketing metrics will help you figure out if the money is being well spent.

Use this worksheet to outline your objectives and your measurement strategy

PART 8: Track Your Progress

SEO is not a one time event.  It is an ongoing process as you continue to expand your content and build more authority in the eyes of search engines. Tracking your progress monthly will show you the impact of your efforts over time as well as where to focus next.

ASSIGNMENT

• Use Google tools to find the following pieces of information
  
  
  • Total organic traffic
  • Total direct traffic
  • Top landing pages
• Record your traffic numbers into the worksheet and calculate your organic/direct ratio
• Record your top pages. Over time the pages you enhance should climb to the top of your list.
• Put a reminder on your calendar to  update your numbers monthly.

Download the Progress Tracker 

Review Your Plan

Ready for an independent review of your plan?  Schedule a working session today.