Digital Marketing & Web Presence
Seven steps to starting a successful campaign
Digital Marketing can be a bit of a rabbit hole. Success is often organic and only achieved through time and persistence. No "magic wand" or "one size fits all" approach exists. However, there are several areas you can focus on to help grow.
Digital Engagement encompasses how your company interacts or communicates with its customers digitally. There is often an overlap with digital marketing; the following is our approach to starting this process. I think it might help just to throw out our mission statement here; we feel it is foundational to any approach you take.
Creating and communicating value through technology….
Phase one "Building a business case"
Step 1 "The product market fit"
Understanding the product's value proposition is the foundation and first step in any digital marketing endeavor. This is often the most transformational step, forcing you to redefine your relationship with your customer base. Products are commoditized; this step is about the "value add" of your relationship. How will buying from you improve the customer's life? Are you a trusted industry partner who offers "brick and mortar" appeal in a digital landscape, or are you a lifestyle brand helping your customers achieve the best versions of themselves? Are you communicating success and exclusivity?
I have heard it said that "when you offer the lowest prices, people will find you at the bottom of a lake." The problem is that there is always someone cheaper. People buy value and change; your marketing approach must shout that at every step of your customer's sales journey.
Step 2: "Pick a traffic channel and get in touch with your numbers."
Where do your customers live? How are they finding you, or how are they finding your competition? Google, Facebook, and Instagram are all sales lead stores. It might make sense to buy your traffic, but how do you know what you can afford to spend? In this step, you need to identify your crucial analytics, not just to measure the value of a customer but also to determine where you are now and what success might look like. Here are a few key indicators to plan an effective strategy.
• Customer immediate and lifetime value
• Cost of customer acquisition
• Current conversion rates
• Competitive analysis of traffic and market share
Phase 2 "Creating an execution strategy"
If you use your website as a simple place to hang a shingle with your contact information, you are doing yourself a huge disservice. Even if you don't offer any type of e-commerce, this is usually the first interaction most customers will have with your brand. The whole point of your website should be to convert cold prospects into paying customers. The next three steps are building a sales funnel and starting the customer value optimization process.
An effective communication strategy with your customers often starts with an email marketing campaign. Getting folks to sign up for that mailer is the most crucial conversion rate beyond actual sales. The first step in your sales funnel should be the "Lead Magnet."
Step 3 "The lead magnet"
The lead magnet is an irresistible offer to customers in exchange for their contact info. This offer should be particular and focus on value. You are not asking them "pretty please"; they didn't land on your website by accident, but you can rest assured that you may never see them again. You must make the most of this opportunity and convert this cold prospect into a warm lead. The offer might be informational, monetary, or inspirational. You know your customers; just put yourself in their place…
Often, the next step after the lead magnet is a trip wire. This might not apply to non-e-commerce. I think you will get the idea…
Step 4 "The tripwire"
The sole purpose here is to convert a warm prospect into an actual customer. Again, this should be an irresistible offer, typically a low-ticket item. If only to change the relationship from prospect to customer fundamentally, this item might be traded at a loss.
Step 5 The Core Product Offering"
Your Core Product offering should be tied to your CTA (Call To Action) landing pages. What's the point of your website if not to drive sales? This sale is less about margin and more about traffic acquisition and conversion rate optimization. You can maximize profits through ancillary goods or services. Bundling items is a great profit maximizer. You understand that customer acquisition is usually a company's most significant expense, which means making the most of the above process. Many folks will use this stage as an on-ramp to reinvest in filling the sales funnel and increasing traffic whenever possible.
Phase 3 "Using your digital strategy to grow your business"
There are three primary ways to grow any business.
• Increase the number of customers
• Increase the value of your average transaction
• Increase the average number of transactions per customer
Our first five steps focused on increasing the number of customers. Our last two steps in phase 3 focus on "Profit Maximizers" and creating a "Return Path."
Step 6 "The Profit Maximizer"
The profit maximizer focuses on increasing the average transaction value of every sale. By suggesting innovative product bundles or offering reoccurring revenue items like warranties or memberships, companies can be more competitive on the price of their core products. A burger company may make very little on the sandwich but have a significant margin built into the fries and drink. The trend in e-commerce today is to offer that product bundle in the cart; you can see this with companies like Amazon or Home Depot every day. Understanding your customer here goes a long way; making relevant suggestions at the right time is critical and can be very effective.
Step 7 "Create a Return Path"
Our last and final step is to increase the number of transactions per customer. The return path aims to have frequent and strategic communications with your buyers and prospects. I cannot emphasize this statement enough. You have a much greater chance of converting an existing customer than a new lead, so you need to make the most of these relationships. To that end, here are a few simple suggestions that all fit into this stage of your strategy…
• Email Marketing
• Exit Offers
• Loyalty Programs
• Organic social media
• Content Marketing
• Outbound Sales Calls
• Add Re-targeting
This article provides a high-level overview of the steps required to build a foundation in digital marketing for today's web space. Please sign up for our newsletter, which will cover all these steps in much greater detail. Our goal as a consulting firm and software development company isn't to assume these roles for you but rather to educate and help companies successfully incorporate these best practices into their existing workflow.
Good Luck!!
