Where Do I Start With My Digital Marketing Strategy for My Small Business?
We’ve met with dozens of small business owners in our region and by far, our most asked question is, “Where do I start with my digital marketing strategy?” It can be overwhelming. Do I need to be on every social media channel? Do I have to implement video? How do I keep my website updated – and everything in between. In today’s weekly marketing post, we’re sharing our expert advice on what is a digital marketing strategy, a recommended digital marketing strategy for beginners, and how to create a digital marketing strategy for your small business that works. Let’s get into it.
What is a Digital Marketing Strategy?
Digital marketing, also called online marketing, is the promotion of brands to connect with potential customers using the internet and other forms of digital communication such as: email, social media, web-based advertisements, and various other marketing channels. In other words, digital marketing involves digital communication. Think of your smartphone, or your computer devices – all of those mediums help carry out the act of marketing online.
Marketing has evolved a lot over the years but it’s been around since the beginning of time. From when we used to trade goods for other goods, to the exchange of goods for currency – marketing is everywhere. It’s how we communicate value to others. So, how can you use digital marketing to your advantage in your business?
Let’s talk about digital marketing tips for your small business.
How to Get Started in Digital Marketing as a Beginner
The act of “digital marketing” can feel super overwhelming. Essentially, you’re putting a message out into the world that potentially, at the click of a button, the entire world can see. That’s both exciting, and kind of scary, right? I mean, they call it a “small business” for a reason – or so we thought & then the internet was born.
Here at MP Media, we think digital marketing is awesome because it gives small businesses like you an equal voice to others, that maybe you didn’t have before. We’re sure that if you’re scrolling through this article, you have an inclination of what digital marketing is, but maybe you’re just not sure how to implement it strategically in your business. We can help.
For starters, we’re willing to bet you most likely have a Facebook page of some sort – whether that’s a Personal Page or a dedicated Facebook Business Page. Similarly, if you’re a small business owner, you most likely have a website, or some form of an online hub for your clients and customers to connect with you. This is step one to your digital marketing strategy.
The Only Thing You Need to Know About Getting Started With Digital Marketing
From our 8+ years of combined industry experience in marketing, we’ve learned a lot about what works, and even more about what doesn’t. Our clients come to us a lot, bringing amazing ideas to the table like, “I think I want to rebrand my website!” or “Do you think I should add another social channel to my digital marketing strategy?”
While all of these ideas are amazing and things we help our clients accomplish, our best piece of advice is this:
“If you’re everywhere at once, you’re no where at all.”
We truly believe as small business owners ourselves that the best small business digital marketing strategy is one that you can be consistent with. That might go against what you’re reading online.
“TikTok just hit the market, is your business on it?” or “When was the last time you posted to your IG stories?”
These are all social media digital marketing examples, but all relevant. Maybe you don’t want to post to these platforms and we’re here to tell you that, that is totally okay! The best digital marketing strategy as a beginner is the one you can be consistent with. We love helping our clients stay consistent online, whether that’s on social media or on a different medium.
In fact, we were just completing a 3-month review for one of our clients who we’ve been working with for nearly 6 months. When they first came to us, they were looking to “upgrade their social media strategy” – so to speak.
MP Media came in and started producing consistent content for their social media channels for 6 straight months. In just the past 3 months, their social media channels have reached over 20,000 new people online.
For some small businesses, that number is bigger than their entire town! And, those results are from posting online what this client is already doing day-to-day. That’s digital marketing.
That’s the power of picking a strategy and staying consistent with it. Commit to what you like doing marketing wise online, and stick with it! If you’re into long form articles (like this one), maybe your marketing strategy is to rank on Google for your articles and drive new traffic that way.
If you like producing short-form videos, we know you’d love Facebook & Instagram reels. If you hate digital marketing, maybe an organic marketing strategy isn’t for you and we need to focus on paid ads.
We promise that there is a digital marketing strategy for everyone that doesn’t have to feel like scrambling, pulling ideas from nowhere, and lacking consistency. The best digital marketing strategy is one that 1.) feels in line with your business 2.) you’re consistent with and 3.) provides value to your potential client or customer.
How to Create Your Small Business Digital Marketing Strategy
Yeah, yeah, yeah – you get it. Stay consistent and post valuable content online. Duh! But, how do you actually stay consistent with this strategy and know that it’s working?
Track Your Analytics
A really great way to measure your digital marketing success online is to track your progress using the data online. If you have a Facebook Business Page or an Instagram Business Account, be sure to check out the analytics to see what posts your audience is loving, and when they’re most active online.
If you’re posting long-form content to your website, be sure that your website is connected to Google Analytics and check it monthly to see what type of keywords and content is bringing traffic to your site. Rinse, and repeat!
Analytics are the most clear-cut way to ensure that your digital marketing strategies are effective and have an ROI for your business.
Social Media Calendars
If you’re looking to improve your social media posting strategy, we are big believers in PLANNING AHEAD! Spend 1 hour a week, or a few hours once a month intentionally planning out your posts.
We strongly believe in creating bulk posts because, we hate scrambling. In fact, this is how we ensure all of our clients are consistent. Imagine it being the beginning of the month and your social media calendar is FULL! We’ll drink to that. After working hours of course… ;)
Totally kidding. But seriously, there are paid tools and free tools that you can utilize online to schedule your posts. Meta Business offers a free scheduling tool for your Facebook and Instagram strategy at business.facebook.com. LinkedIn just rolled out a scheduled post option, YouTube allows you to schedule videos and Shorts ahead of time – heck, we guarantee even your website host offers a scheduling option for your long-form articles.
There is no reason why you can’t stay consistent with your digital marketing strategy. You know what they say:
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
There are many other ways you can stay constitent and find a digital marketing strategy that works for your business and your personal life. We’re big believers in work-life balance, and part of the reason we love digital marketing so much is because it’s giving businesses the freedom to have more balance in their work and personal lives through planning ahead using really amazing tools that are rolling out with new and improved features every day.
The Next Step!
If you’re feeling overwhelmed and you’re not sure where to start, let’s grab a coffee, tea, or beer if that’s you’re thing (we work when our clients work!) and let’s talk. We would be happy to get to know your small business better, provide a free consultation, and potentially discuss us working together to make your digital marketing strategy work WITH your business, not against it.
See you in the next one, small business owners!
