In the beginning, there was text. Lots of it. So much, in fact, that people started to put it online for the world to see. This text, now known as “content”, could be anything from news articles to product descriptions to marketing blogs to whitepapers to e-books. Basically, anything digital that provides value to your audience.

As time went on, viewers began to want more from their content. They wanted to get the information they needed without having to sift through pages of text. So, what did producers of the day do? They made websites. With websites, people can gain more from smaller bits of content – usually bullets or short lists.

Then, along came social media. Twitter, in particular, provided people with a way to connect with brands and businesses they admire. With a 140 character limit, many could fit in a lot of content. And, for the lucky few, an audience would form.

As with any new medium, people had to learn how to use social media effectively. They had to decide what would be the best way to connect with their audience, and they had to figure out how to measure the success of their efforts. Luckily for us, people who learned how to use social media effectively and had the foresight to see its potential, set up digital marketing agencies. These agencies took the complicated art of running a successful social media presence and turned it into a profitable business.

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’re already engaged in some way with a digital marketer. Maybe you work with them, maybe they’re working on your behalf, maybe you’re a customer – it really doesn’t matter. What matters is that you have a relationship with someone who can help you with your digital marketing efforts. This could mean anything from developing a strategy to setting up automated responses so you can get back to doing what’s important to you.

1. Hiring A Freelancer

This one is pretty self-explanatory. Hiring a freelancer is usually the first thing people do when they want something done right away and at a low cost. While there are many advantages to hiring a freelancer, one of the biggest is that you don’t have to worry about training them. They already have the necessary skills, so all you have to do is ask them to do the job.

The downside is that, unless you’re super pleased with their work, you’re not going to be able to get them too do your bidding. Even then, you may not have much control over how they operate. But, if you’re looking for something quick and easy, without all the headaches of managing staff, hiring a freelancer may be the way to go. Remember, there’s no such thing as a one-stop shop when it comes to freelancers. You’re going to have to do some research and find the best possible match for your needs.

2. Focusing On Organic Traffic

When you have a small business or a personal blog, every bit of traffic you can get is important. It could be that your first few visitors are the people who eventually become your regular readers – or it could be that your friends, family, and colleagues discover your blog and decide to follow it. No matter how you get your initial traffic, you want to make sure it’s coming from a place that’s trustworthy and safe. It would be best if this traffic is also interested in what you have to say – perhaps because they have the same interests as you do. Interested and trusting traffic is far more likely to become a fan of your blog than random, untrustworthy traffic.

Organic traffic is important because it’s usually more valuable. It’s usually gathered organically by doing things such as investing in quality content, building a reputation, and using various platforms – including social media.

If you’re looking for fast, easy ways to gain credibility and attract potential customers, investing in quality content, building a reputation, and using various platforms are all essential steps toward achieving this goal. Remember, though – none of this will matter if your content is terrible. Nobody wants to read something bad about a brand or business, especially when they’ve just discovered that brand or business. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

3. Publishing Without A Plan

Hopefully, you’ve already started brainstorming the content for your blog or started writing the rough draft of a novel you hope to one day publish. Before you put the finishing touches on the piece that’s going to become your masterpiece, you have to lay down the foundation. To do this, you need to have a clear plan. What you plan to write and when you plan to publish the work are vital components for establishing your credibility as an author. Without these components, your manuscript will simply be another addition to the massive pile of unpublished works waiting for someone to find the time to come back and give it a quick once-over.

The point is this: before you put the finishing touches on a piece of content and send it off to be published, you should already have a plan in mind as to what you’re going to write. This will help you avoid many of the pitfalls that cause so many newbie bloggers to fail. Publishing without a plan is a recipe for disaster. If you want to avoid this, you need to have a plan.

4. Trying To Be Everything To Everyone

One of the things that made the internet such a powerful tool is the fact that it provided users with the ability to find what they’re looking for. In the world of digital marketing, this is known as “multi-tasking”. If you’re focusing on doing everything for your customers, you’re going to be spreading yourself too thin. Instead of providing value, you’ll be harming yourself by trying to do too much.

For the same reason, it’s essential that you don’t overdo it when using social media. While it’s great to have a presence on every social media platform, you don’t need to be on every platform to have an impact. The more you put out there, the more you’ll get back. Start simple, and if you want to get more engagement, you can always introduce a new platform – but don’t make it a regular thing.

5. Posting At The Wrong Time

There’s nothing worse than someone trying to tell you something with a series of hashtags. Maybe you’re running a Twitter campaign and want to use the #blogchat to attract potential customers. Or, perhaps, you’re trying to get people to join your mailing list and want to use the #mlmchats to do so. But, when your audience is scrolling through their Twitter feed or eagerly checking their email inboxes looking for content, you’re going to lose out on potential customers.

The key to succeeding as a digital marketer is timeliness. Before you hit the “publish” button on your latest blog post, you need to give it a good amount of thought. Are you posting at a time when your target audience is most likely to be interested in what you have to say? Or, are you merely throwing out content when your audience is least likely to be interested in what you have to say?

If you want to attract potential customers to your blog, you need to be posting at the right time. Otherwise, you’re simply adding more noise to the digital soup that is the internet.

6. Not Testing Your Posts

Testing is important for any kind of content. From blogs to videos to e-books, the entire content creation process will be much easier if you have established a baseline of how things should be. While you’re busy creating the content, you can set up automated tests so you can see how what you’re creating is performing once it’s published.

Even if you’re super careful and intentional about the content you create, things change. The settings on your camera or microphone may be different, the software you use to edit video may have changed, and the technology you rely on to host your content may have evolved.

With testing, you can establish what works and what doesn’t. You can also see how different variables, such as the type of content you’re posting and the platform you’re using, affect the performance of your campaign. By understanding these variables, you’ll be able to effectively incorporate them into your strategy for improved results.

7. Not Monitoring Your Campaign

It’s easy to get distracted by the many exciting things that come with a new venture. While you’re busy establishing yourself as an expert in your field, you may forget to keep track of the various metrics that prove the worth of your efforts.

If you’re serious about succeeding as a digital marketer, you need to keep track of the following metrics: