If you’re looking for a place to launch your business, consider Adams County, Ohio as a potential location. According to 2019 VOTerian Community Survey data, the county has a combined population of 467,546 people, which is nearly 50% of the total state population. Furthermore, 39.6% of adults between the ages of 18-64 used online marketplaces in the last year. So if you’re thinking about starting a business in the area, here’s a quick primer on digital marketing in Adams County.
Online Marketing Platforms Used By Advertisers In Adams County
Although the use of social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook has increased in recent years, the internet and online marketing have been around for a while in the form of email marketing, SEO, and paid advertising. That being said, a few prominent tech companies like HubSpot, Marketo, and Pardot have begun to dominate local digital marketing.
Why Marketo?
Software giant Marketo serves as a good example of a company that successfully implemented an omni-channel marketing strategy in Adams County. The company’s HQ is located in San Francisco, but it has offices around the globe and maintains a presence in every major market. Its products, Marketing Essie, Marketing Chat, and Marketing Automation, help businesses of all sizes and stages integrate marketing activities across all channels.
Essie is the marketing automation platform that makes Marketing Chat possible. Essentially a one-stop-shop for all of the marketing activities a business needs to carry out, Essie streamlines communication between marketing and sales, and enables them to work together to grow a business.
Pardot is leading software designed for integrated inbound marketing and sales, which provides marketers and salespeople with the tools to engage and convert prospective customers into leads and customers.
The Growth Of Online Marketplaces In Adams County
The internet and online marketing have been around for a while in the form of email marketing, SEO, and paid advertising. That being said, there is one segment of the economy that has taken off in recent years and that’s online marketplaces. These platforms, which can range from simple directories to fully-fledged social media networks, are where consumers go to find products and services that interest them. They provide a space for companies to advertise and engage with customers.
Here’s an overview of the top online marketplaces used in Adams County.
Online Shopping
E-commerce and online shopping have become such an integral part of life in recent years that even non-internet users know what it means. Amazon is currently the king of retail and nearly every other business in the country uses its platforms to sell their products.
It’s no surprise that online marketplaces have become so popular in the county, considering everything from the convenience of buying what you want whenever you want it, to the massive selection of products accessible from the comfort of your home, to the lower prices typically found on online marketplaces compared to retail stores.
Social Media
In recent years, social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram have exploded in popularity. More and more people are relying on these platforms to stay up-to-date on the latest news and information, or to interact with people who share their interests.
These platforms provide businesses with a massive potential audience, which means they can have a significant impact on the number of customers they attract. However, building an audience on social media is no easy feat, as you must consistently engage with your followers to attract and retain them as customers. Another challenge is that while these platforms can be used to drive traffic to a business’ website, they can also be used to spread misinformation or create fake news stories about the company.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the practice of making webpages more visible to search engines (such as Google, Bing, and Yandex) so that they appear higher on search results pages. Getting higher search rankings ensures that your website will appear near the top of the list when users type in keywords and phrases related to your business.
There are specific techniques for SEO that can be used to optimize a business’ webpages for different platforms, like Google Search, Bing Web Search, and Yandex. SEO is not one-size-fits-all, which makes it more difficult to perform. However, experienced SEO specialists can get your website higher on the search results pages quickly and efficiently.
Paid Advertising
Last but not least, paid advertising stands for all of those advertisements that you see on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Although these advertisements do not imply any kind of endorsement or affiliation with the company that created them, they can still be an effective way to get the word out about your product or service.
Paid advertising is not a panacea, as you must constantly monitor its impact to determine whether the ad you ran was effective or not. You can use analytics tools like Google AdWords to track the performance of your paid ads and determine what worked and what didn’t.
Local Marketing: Specific Tactics Used To Reach Consumers
If you’re looking to reach consumers who live in or around Adams County, then you need to adopt a multi-channel strategy. The internet and online marketing are integral to any successful marketing plan, but you must also consider other locations, like brick-and-mortar stores, when thinking about how to reach potential customers.
The following are specific tactics used to attract and retain customers in Adams County.
Radio Advertising
One of the most popular and effective ways to advertise in the county is via radio ads. Advertisers usually purchase time on radio stations in specific markets, which allows them to target the people most likely to be interested in their products or services. Radio ads can be useful for retail businesses, service providers, and other types of businesses that need to reach a large audience quickly.
Even if you’re just launching a new business in the area, it’s a good idea to get involved in local radio advertising to begin with. You can use a platform like Google AdWords to identify radio stations that might be interested in running ads for your product or service, or you can contact a local radio station directly and ask them to consider your product for inclusion in their ads.
Display Advertising
Perhaps the most popular and traditional form of advertising, billboards and display ads are still as effective as ever in attracting potential customers. In fact, 40.7% of the population in the county uses billboards to get information about businesses and services, so it would appear that these ads are still very relevant.
Billboards can be used for many purposes, like advertising an event or offering a special promotion, so it’s a great way to get the word out to a lot of people quickly. One effective technique used to attract consumers via billboards is a combination of words and images. For example, an outdoors store might use a billboard to advertise an upcoming sale during the summer months, while an automobile dealership might choose to advertise a special deal during the holiday season.
Product Placement
Another effective, yet less expensive, way to advertise to consumers is product placement. This occurs when a business places a product or service in a prominent position on a filmed sequence or in photographs. This strategy is often used in television advertising, but it can also be found in movies and Youtube videos.
Sometimes product placement can be so subtle that consumers don’t even realize they are consuming an ad. However, other times, the product placement is so obvious that it becomes difficult to watch the film or listen to the podcast without being inundated with thoughts of the product.
The Importance Of Influencer Marketing In Local Marketing
The vast majority of big-name companies have shifted to influencer marketing, which earns you the attention of top influencers (individuals or organizations that have a huge audience of followers) in your industry. These influencers can help to drive sales of your product or service by promoting it on their social media platforms.
Think about the last product you bought that was promoted by a famous person. Chances are, that person had something to do with the product’s conception, design, or manufacturing. When you see these influencers talking about a product you’re familiar with, it gives you an insight into its popularity and how to market it yourself.