If you’re reading this, I assume you’re either an entrepreneur or an online marketer on a mission to make your business soar. Maybe you’ve built a successful e-commerce site or maybe you’ve started a blog that’s slowly but surely begun to pay off. You’re on your way to the top, and you want everyone to know about it. Buying and branding ads might seem like a quick and easy way to get there, but if you want to truly stand out from the crowd, you need to look into alternative forms of marketing.
To help you along the way, we’ve put together a detailed guide with nine crucial tips for ensuring your online marketing strategy is as effective as possible. Take a look and discover the power of a well-executed strategy:
1. Measure The Right Metrics
Unless you’re tech-savvy, you might not always be aware of the metrics that matter most when it comes to your website’s performance. After all, there are so many moving parts that can affect the way your site handles itself. Maybe you’re using a content management system, or you’ve got a web host that doesn’t provide the best service. There could be a whole host of things that might make a difference, but you have to know what they are so you can fix them. For that reason, it’s imperative that you first and foremost measure the right metrics.
When you have a content strategist on board, they’ll be able to suggest key performance indicators (KPIs) that you can track and measure. For example, if you use Google Analytics, they’ll be able to educate you on the most crucial performance metrics. If not, then they’ll be able to suggest alternative free tools that can track similar things. Do yourself a favor and work with a team of experts to find out what you should be measuring so you can better understand your site’s performance. You can also find lots of tips and advice on metrics mining in our guide to SEO success.
2. Create A Performance Review Cycle
Just because your site is live and you’re starting to get traffic doesn’t mean that everything is perfect and you should rest on your laurels. Far from it. Even the most beautifully designed and optimised sites will need constant upkeep and improvement if they’re to remain at the top of their game. To ensure this, you ought to establish a cycle of review and optimization. This is essential for any site that’s trying to grow and prosper. By setting yourself up for success and putting in the minimal amount of effort required to keep things ticking over, you’ll find yourself in a much better position to take on any online marketing challenges that might arise.
For example, you might want to review and revise your content every month or so. This will keep your site fresh and compelling for your audience. You might also want to look into content performance tiers to tie performance to specific content within your articles. To make sure your efforts don’t go in waste, establish a performance review cycle so you can pinpoint what’s working and what’s not. If you implement this strategy and measure your efforts carefully, you’ll be able to create the perfect pitch for your site – no matter what comes your way.
3. Build A Culture Of Continuous Improvement
If you want to be the best in your industry, you’ll need to have the skill to improve upon your ideas and bring about change. One of the best strategies you can use for continuous improvement is methodology benchmarking. This will help you find the best practices in your industry and apply them to your site. If you want to truly excel, you’ll need to understand the principles and follow a methodology that will help you succeed.
For example, you might want to look into A/B testing to see which articles perform best. Once you know this, you can improve upon your strategy and see greater results. If you implement this into your routine, you’ll not only be able to see the benefits on your own site, but you’ll also be able to find better ways to improve the performance of your competitors’.
4. Optimise For All Platforms
It’s important to optimise your site for all the major platforms so that you can reach the maximum audience. When it comes to your website’s performance, this means making it mobile-friendly, accessible from all devices, and having a fresh and engaging experience for your users regardless of what platform they’re on. Depending on your budget, you might want to look into hiring an agency to help you with SEO or get in touch with a few freelance web developers to help you get the job done. Regardless of how you go about it, having an optimised website is the perfect way to ensure your online marketing strategy is as effective as possible.
5. Create A Solid Foundation
As you work on creating the perfect pitch for your site, you need a strong foundation in place that’ll allow you to build a truly unique and bespoke experience for your audience. For that reason, it might be a good idea to hire a professional website designer to help you build the perfect looking website for your business. Alternatively, you could just write up a basic page with a description of your business and some contact details, and then have the web designer build it for you. What ever you do, establish your website’s foundation firmly so you can build upon it and make the most out of your online marketing efforts.
6. Measure The Results Of Your Campaigns
This tip might sound like it’s aimed more at those that are just starting out, but it’s just as important for the experienced marketer. If you’re using paid advertising to gain exposure, it’s important to analyse the results of your campaigns. This way, you can determine if the ads you’re running are showing results or if you’ve simply wasted your money.
For example, if you used Google AdWords and paid the standard $5 per day cost-per-click, then you’ll know whether or not your efforts are paying off. If you see positive results from your PPC campaign, then you know you’re on the right track. On the other hand, if you see no change at all at the top of the search results after running a PPC campaign, then you might want to consider moving on to a different form of advertising.
7. Make Sure Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly
If you’re going to offer an online presence, you’ll need to make sure your site is mobile-friendly. At the moment, mobile web browsing is on the rise, and if you want to be able to reach your audience wherever they are, then you’ll need to make sure your site can be accessed from a mobile phone. There are several tools you can use to test the mobile-friendliness of your site, so do yourself a favor and use these to ensure your site looks great on small screens.
8. Have A Defensible Advertising Platform
To be able to run an advertising platform, you’ll need to have a place for advertisers to post their advertisements. For that reason, you might want to use a tool such as Google AdSense to generate a revenue stream from advertising. What ever method you choose to gain financial freedom, ensure you have a place for advertisers to post their advertisements. You don’t want to find yourself locked out of your own advertising platform because you don’t have the money to pay the monthly fees. Having a defensible advertising platform is crucial to the success of your online marketing campaign.
9. Create A Marketing Plan
Your marketing plan is one of the most important documents you’ll ever create. Having a plan will help you stay focused and on track, and it’ll also help you determine the best approach for your marketing campaign. To start with, you might want to create a concise plan that includes everything from KPIs and metrics to strategies and objectives. Alternatively, you could just write up a few short-term objectives that you’ll then be able to tailor the rest of the plan to.
To create a truly unique and compelling experience for those that come across your site, you might want to look into incorporating video content. This way, you can show off your products in a way that’ll catch the attention of your audience. If you use video content effectively, you might find it easier to engage your audience and keep them coming back for more.