If you’re reading this, I assume you’re either an online marketer or someone who knows one. Truth is, few professions are as fascinating or rewarding as marketing online. The more you know, the more you’ll appreciate it.
From SEO to content strategy, social media to email marketing, the scope is pretty much endless. However, without careful planning and research, it can be difficult to know where to start. That’s what this article is here for: to give you the best online learning marketing tactics, so you can plan your strategy and improve your process.
Let’s get to it. Here are the top online marketing tactics.
1. Blogging
I’m sure you’ve heard of blogging. After all, it’s been around for as long as the internet has, and it’s one of the oldest and most tested forms of online marketing. What is blogging, you ask? Well, it’s when you write and publish content regularly on your website or social media accounts.
The beauty of blogging is that it can be simple or sophisticated, depending on your goals. You can have a simple blog with just a few posts a month, or you can have a more sophisticated one with multiple authors, podcasts, and video series. Either way, you’re publishing regularly, which makes it consistent. And consistency is key, because it’s the first thing Google and other search engines measure when they’re assessing your website or social media accounts.
If you have a large audience, you can use blogging to build credibility and authority for your webpage or platform. Consider using it to educate your audience on a particular topic, and in turn, earn you some trust and goodwill with your target audience. As a result of your efforts, your SEO will greatly benefit, and you’ll earn the right to be considered for purchase or subscription as a thought leader in your industry.
2. Social Media Marketing
You may have heard of social media, even if you don’t follow it closely. After all, it’s been around since the early 2000s, and it’s one of the most popular and most used forms of online marketing. What is social media, you ask? It’s when you use social platforms (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn) to connect with and engage with individuals and groups in your industry. Specifically, you can use social media to promote your blog posts, products, and services, as well as raise brand awareness and generate leads.
Like blogging, social media can be used to target and engage with specific groups of people, based on a number of variables. For example, you can use your LinkedIn group of professional women in tech to reach other like-minded professionals. Or you can use your status update on Facebook to promote an upcoming webinar. The key is to find your sweet spot and use the platform to grow your business.
3. Video Content Marketing
This one’s been around for a while, too. However, in the last several years, video content marketing has taken off as a distinct strategy, and for good reason. There’s just something about watching a video and instantly connecting with a brand that appeals to the emotions of the viewer.
Depending on your industry, you can use video to provide valuable information, show how your product or service works in real life, or add a fun element by putting a humorous spin on things. Pretty much any type of video content can be used to promote your brand, and the possibilities are endless!
The key is to find the right video for your audience and plan out a strategy to distribute and engage with your video content.
4. SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Did you know that SEO is a method of improving the “organic” or “natural” ranking of a website or blog in the search results of major search engines, like Google and Bing?
SEO is all about creating content that will attract, engage, and convince potential customers to convert > into >your product or service, and it can be extremely effective when used correctly. Some of the most popular and well-known SEO tactics include:
- On-site SEO: Optimizing your site content for search engines, including: Writing for humans, not search engines; Using keywords in your content; Creating links to other relevant content; and Categorizing your content.
- Off-site SEO: Doing the same thing as on-site SEO, but instead focusing on the links (e.g., backlinks) that point back to your site.
- Link building: Using various methods to get other websites to link to your content. The more relevant and popular the content, the easier it will be for you to get links, mentions, and traffic.
- Social media SEO: Using social media to get linked to and mention your website or blog. It’s become quite a bit easier to get traffic from social media, so it’s not a bad idea to take advantage of this free traffic.
- Video SEO: Adding video content to your website can improve your SEO, simply because search engines can better understand and index video content.
- Content outreach: Creating and distributing content to gain backlinks and mentions.
No matter which type of content you use, the key is to make sure that you’re distributing relevant and high-quality content regularly. Doing this will naturally improve your SEO, driving more people to your site and increasing the chance that they’ll convert to becoming a customer or lead.
5. Email Marketing
Did you know that email marketing is one of the most effective and inexpensive forms of marketing?
It’s simple, really. You can send out emails with important information, like the dates of your next big sale or event, or you can use it to promote your blog posts or new products. The beauty of email marketing is that you can send out a message to a large list of people, quickly and easily.
The key is to find the right email list and follow the guidelines of the service you choose to use. Some of the most popular and effective email marketing platforms include:
- AWeber: One of the most popular email marketing platforms. It’s quite flexible, and you can get started for free. Moreover, you can use their autoresponder service to send out periodic emails with important information.
- Campaigner: One of the most popular email marketing tools, available on iOS and Android. You can create and send out automated email campaigns with key messages and track the results of your program.
- Drip: Another popular email marketing tool, similar to Campaigner. However, instead of tracking automated email campaigns, you can use Drip to create email marketing lists and engage with your audience via email notifications.
- HubSpot: A sales and marketing tool designed for business professionals, with a special focus on marketing effectiveness. You can use HubSpot to set up automated emails, or you can import an existing email list.
- MailChimp: One of the most popular email marketing platforms, available for free. You can import your own lists, or you can use their autoresponder to set up automated email campaigns.
- ActiveMail: An email marketing platform similar to HubSpot, you can use to set up automated emails or to engage with your audience via email notifications.
Always consider your target audience when choosing an email marketing platform. Do some research, and find out what will be the best fit for your business.
The Bottom Line
Blogging, social media, video content marketing, SEO, and email marketing are all essential to the growth and success of your business. While some of these tactics will be easier to implement than others, it’s still a good idea to learn them all. Moreover, you can always find free tools to help you automate certain tasks, so you can focus on what’s important to you.