Saving business | 3 flaming hot digital marketing tips

While most marketers acknowledge digital marketing is a significant channel for their marketing activities, there are still many cases where brands have had to play catch up because they initially missed the opportunity. And it’s not just the small businesses underestimating the impact of digital – Yahoo’s CEO outrightly admitted recently that her company had been taken by surprise by the rapid increase in mobile marketing and were paying for it today.

Wait? Mobile marketing? Aren’t we talking about digital? Yes we are, but that’s one of the biggest mistakes that people make in thinking that digital just means a website or social media profile. This is something that companies like Market Smartly come across quite a bit during conversations with clients – there is still so much confusion about what digital marketing even is, let alone how to ensure that you’re making the most of all of your digital channels.

Tip 1: More than a website

In 2014, most marketers have acknowledged the role that social media plays not only in online marketing but also customer service and sales potentials. But this is a prime opportunity to learn from Yahoo’s mistake. Their figures suggest that by the end of the year, they will have more mobile users than those accessing their websites via computers and laptops. If you haven’t already started doing so, now is the time to ensure that your website doesn’t just look good on a mobile device (eg smart phone or tablet) but it also functions properly. Maybe your business needs to look at developing an app to help customers engage with you from their mobile devices.

Tip 2: Content matters

Content marketing is becoming a bit of a buzz word these days – and for good reason. Content marketing forms a relationship via a digital marketing channel with your target audience, site visitors and potential customers. Social media, blogs on the company website and even making sure that your web copy is as updated as it can be are all incredibly powerful ways to engage with your customers.

Tip 3: Email is still important

In their haste to take up social media marketing, many email databases and subscriber lists have gone a little dormant in modern times. Don’t give up on your email marketing yet! If you’re not getting the results you want from your email campaigns, it’s probably not the medium that has the problem. Email marketing still offers powerful engagement levels and ROI but you have to give people a reason to want to read and interact with your communications. Email is an incredibly personal medium that can be tailored to suit your customer’s individual spending habits and preferences whereas social media is still a group broadcast. It offers new ways to communicate with your customers, yes, but ultimately is not the most personal way to connect with them.

While it can be overwhelming to think about all the various digital ways to connect with your customers and clients, it is worth getting your head around. Customers are used to being able to have greater access to brands and businesses and if you don’t keep up you could be at serious risk of being left behind.

How many digital channels do your marketing activities include? Do you have any awesome digital marketing tips you can share with the Savings Room audience? Leave your comments below.