Building an Integrated Online Marketing Plan: Linkedin

You’ve probably heard of Linkedin, if not, it’s probably about time you did. Linkedin is one of the largest and most popular social networks in the world, with over 500 million monthly active users as of Q1 2021. Launched in 2003, with the mission statement of “changing the way people collaborate and share knowledge,” Linkedin’s massive user base makes it a valuable place for marketers to be and for businesses to reach.

Integrated Marketing

With so much of social media becoming obsolete with the resurgence of email and landing pages, it’s essential for businesses to develop an integrated marketing plan, tying together all their various platforms. While each platform has its perks, having a presence on all of them means you can reach a wider audience and engage with people who might not have otherwise heard of your company.

Email marketing is considered a form of online marketing that relies on a series of emails being sent to a potential customer on a regular basis. The advantage of email marketing is that it allows you to target the right audience who have an interest in what your business offers. Moreover, you can measure the success of your campaign by looking at the number of people who have opened and/or clicked on one of your email campaigns. The disadvantage, however, is that not all businesses will have the same effect since people need to actually go out and make a purchase to benefit from an email campaign. That being said, businesses can optimize their email marketing strategies to increase the chances of a conversion.

Social Media Marketing

If you’ve been active on social media in the past, you’ll know how important it can be for a business to have a robust social media presence. It’s considered to be a “hybrid” marketing strategy, meaning that it combines aspects of traditional and online marketing, and often times, it’s used to promote products or services on a broader scale. For example, Coca Cola’s “Share a Coke with a friend” campaign that started in 2014 was a great success, bringing in over $20 million in extra revenue for the company. In this case, Coca Cola didn’t just utilize social media but also made an effort to engage with their followers, demonstrating that businesses can use social media to not only generate interest in their products but also develop meaningful connections with their audience.

Having a strong social media presence is quite important since people are often looking for businesses that are already established there, decreasing the risk of potential customers that they’ll disappoint. As a result, having a consistent presence on social media, specifically on platforms like Facebook and Twitter, can help businesses gain credibility, build a community, and ultimately increase their revenue.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is considered to be a form of marketing that relies on the creation and distribution of valuable, relevant content that will attract and retain a target audience. This type of marketing can be quite effective, as recent research shows that 60% of internet users have purchased a product or service after searching for information on the subject matter. In other words, people are more likely to purchase a product or service after reading about it on the internet. This makes content marketing a viable option for businesses that are looking to increase their revenue and have a larger audience to reach.

The advantage of content marketing is that it’s pretty easy to implement, especially if you have an inhouse marketing team. Moreover, it requires little to no upfront investment, as you’re simply paying for the content you distribute. The disadvantage, however, is that creating high-quality content can be quite time consuming, which is why a lot of marketers won’t consider it a full-time job. That being said, businesses can use content marketing to supplement their online marketing efforts and get the most out of their existing resources.

What Is Online Marketing?

If you’re reading this, I assume that you already know what online marketing is, but just to be on the safe side, let me briefly explain. Online marketing can be considered to be any type of marketing or advertising conducted online. It can include email marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, and more.

Email marketing is, in fact, considered to be one of the major forms of online marketing, with the ability to reach a large audience and engage them into taking action, making it quite effective. Social media marketing is also becoming a big driver of online marketing, allowing businesses to have a voice in a place where their customers are. With so many people using social media apps and sites daily, this is an opportunity to connect with a potentially large audience and get your message out.

Content marketing is, in many ways, the polar opposite of advertising, with the latter being focused on getting as many people as possible to see your ad and the former being about getting as many people as possible to see and value your content. It’s important to note that not all content will be created equal, with some being more valuable than others, attracting a more qualified and engaged audience.

As you can see, there are many different kinds of online marketing strategies that businesses can use to increase their revenue. While each one can be quite effective, it’s essential for businesses to have a comprehensive plan that ties together all of their various platforms, measuring the success of each one to get the best results. With the right strategy, businesses that utilize online marketing can significantly increase their revenue and grow their business, making the effort worthwhile.