Technology changes. The tools for getting your business or product to the right audience will keep improving but the core of what makes good marketing good does not. Certain fundamentals will stay relevant from time to time. If you keep to the fundamental marketing concepts, your business messages will not get lost. Your business will get the attention it deserves.
Online marketing can only get better
The internet is here to stay. Internet usage growth is incredible. It keeps evolving. Internet users have grown by 82%, or almost 1.7 billion people, since January 2012. These numbers are quite impressive. New applications are being built daily to help businesses reach millions of people across the world.
Thanks to frequent updates and innovative algorithms, search engines evolve and become more sophisticated every day. Search marketing is getting better for businesses.
The search marketing evolution has made it important for online marketers to continually adjust their strategies to keep up with the requirements, trends, retain visibility and continually improve keyword rankings. Example, mobile search is gaining momentum in recent times. It’s a game changer for marketers who haven’t yet taken mobile search seriously. The switch to mobile is happening fast. Make the most of it.
Simplicity speaks
Ambiguous marketing messages rarely get noticed. Attention is expensive but simplicity always wins. Keep your marketing messages in simple plain language people can understand. Don’t make your customers think. People are too busy to make time to actually read meaning into complex marketing messages.
It’s important to incorporate buyer personas into your strategy at the onset of a project, but lots of moving parts can cause distractions. Don’t lose sight of the target. And don’t concentrate on the shining bells and whistles.
Focus on offers, benefits and what your prospective customers will directly benefit from your message. Make sure all your efforts are concentrated on delivering a quality experience in simple terms. When in doubt, “put yourself in their shoes.”
Today, simplistic, clean design and lean copy are winning. The shift makes sense, considering the overwhelming amount of content people are exposed to daily. Focus on the quality of your content vs. the quantity to make sure customers engage with your marketing efforts.
Email marketing still works
Don’t be deceived. Email is not dead. It’s just getting harder to do well. It’s a common misconception that the email is dead, or dying, in a sea of social and digital platforms, but this isn’t true.
This simple communication method still lies at the very heart of modern digital communication. Email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to reach your targeted audience. As long as you keep it relevant, you will get results.
Email is all about delivering on promises. Setting up that promise is a huge part of email marketing. If you promise amazing, exclusive content and you deliver, you’ll keep intrigue high.
Plan your approach accordingly, and be strategic about when and how you communicate, staying focused, clear and on point.
Messages must be relevant, quick, distilled to the core and easily consumed. If you can do that, and deliver your message in a fun and brand-appropriate way, you will have a positive impact.
Websites will continue to play a central role for brands moving forward.
Do brands still need websites? Yes, they do.
Mobile apps and/or social platforms will not displace your core business online hub. Control your marketing information. Take charge of your business right from your website.
It’s better to own rather than rent data. If you build a huge network of followers on Twitter, then Twitter owns the data about your fans, not you. If you can persuade those followers to come to your site, however, you alone will own that valuable data.
The importance of harvesting your own business data cannot be overemphasised. Big brands don’t underestimate the importance of a website even though they maintain a strong presence on social platforms. Websites are also more affordable and easier to develop, optimize, and manage than ever before.
By building a customer and mobile-friendly website you are giving your business the opportunity to tell consumers why they should trust you.
