The way people interact and communicate has changed drastically in the last decade. Unfortunately most businesses haven’t kept up with the changing times in this regard, and it shows through in marketing efforts. If you’re trying to do a little bit of web marketing, you’ve probably noticed that your Facebook page, Twitter account, and website aren’t getting quite as much attention as you hoped for, if any at all.
The temptation to just throw up your hands in frustration and swear off internet marketing in general is strong at this point, but that’s not going to help your business. There are a couple of important reasons why online marketing efforts fail; here are a few important reasons that things might not work out.
You’ve Got No Direction
You go online, read up on this “digital marketing” stuff a bit, and try to dabble a bit here and there. You make some social media profiles, try to write some blog posts, and maybe make a PPC bid or two. Nothing happens.
Dabbling in web marketing is a great way to familiarize yourself with the process in general, but it won’t get you a lot of leads. Your business needs to have a specific and achievable digital marketing goal to work towards, whether that be driving viewers to your site, improving your search engine rankings, establishing your business as a thought leader among your competitors, or directly driving conversions.
Your Effort Isn’t Integrated
Now that you’ve got goals and a measurable way to determine success you might find that you’re still not getting anywhere, and that’s most likely because you’re spreading yourself thin, and not finishing what you started. If you want it to make a difference, your marketing effort needs to work together so that every digital marketing action is connected to, and amplifies, the effectiveness of the next.
You’re not Adapting and Evolving
A great marketing strategy is always looking at how it can improve itself and adapt to the current situation. That means ensuring that you’re talking to the right people at the right time and being intentional about how you communicate your message. It means doing your research and adapting to the preferred medium of your target demographic, and then changing with your demographics when their preferences change.
You Need a Consistent and Reliable Source of Leads
The point of a clear, well-designed digital strategy is to provide a reliable and steady flow of leads to your business. Doing this well requires a multi-faceted and targeted approach that continually reaches out to newcomers while encouraging long-term customer loyalty and advocacy. The old adage that the best clients come from referrals still holds true for digital marketing today just as well as it did for old traditional methods.
Digital Marketing is, by definition, ever changing and complex. That can be discouraging and overwhelming, but with the right direction and some solid advice it’s not impossible. Digital Marketing experts can help you a little or a lot, as needed, to make your digital marketing efforts a success.