If you’re reading this, I assume you’re either an entrepreneur with a business proposal or you’re planning to become one. Congratulations! Now that you’ve decided to pursue this exciting but demanding career, let’s switch gears and discuss the various ways you can market your business online. Specifically, we’re going to dive into four distinct strategies that can be used to gain traction in today’s digital world.
Traditional Marketing
While the internet has made all of our lives much easier in the ways that we conduct business and interact with one another, it hasn’t taken the place of face-to-face interaction. In other words, a lot of people still prefer to meet and talk with someone, hand-shake, and maybe even buy a cup of coffee before getting down to business.
As an online marketer in Los Angeles, you might be familiar with conventional advertising, which typically uses print publications, radio, and TV to disseminate information about a brand or product. You might also be familiar with billboards, TV commercials, and magazine spreads, which are the bread and butter of conventional advertising.
Although these traditional methods of advertising still exist, they’ve been supplemented and, in some cases, replaced by modern techniques.
Direct Marketing
Instead of having to rely on editors and media buyers to find your product or service in print publications, you can take control of your own destiny and reach potentially the entire world with your ad campaign.
One popular technique involves using a tool called a retargeting ad network, which essentially keeps track of your online purchases and offers you relevant advertising based on what you’ve purchased or used. For example, if you’ve purchased a dress in the past but end up browsing a fashion blog later on in the day, you’ll see a retargeting ad for that brand of dress or accessory.
E-Mail Marketing
If you’ve spent any time in e-commerce, you’ll be familiar with e-mail marketing. Essentially, this technique involves using e-mail to promote your product or service, drive traffic to your website, and eventually, make a sale.
The beauty of direct e-mail marketing is that you can target your audience based on their interests, hobbies, age, or geography. In other words, you can pinpoint exactly who you’ll send the e-mail to, ensuring you’ll get the best results.
Social Media Marketing
Last but not least, we have social media marketing. Basically, this strategy involves using popular platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest to connect with existing and potential customers.
You can target your audience based on the interests, hobbies, and/or demographics that you discover on social media. Furthermore, you can use automated marketing technology, such as AI-based content analysis, to gain valuable insight into the types of content your audience interacts with the most and uses the most often. This can help you create more personalized, relevant content on your own website and across all your digital channels.
As you can see, there are several options when it comes to marketing your business online. However, not all of these techniques are created equal. For example, e-mail marketing is great for reaching customers but doesn’t get you any where near the heart of a potential buyer.
It’s important to find which ones work best for your business and choose at least two methods to incorporate into your online marketing strategy. From there, you can begin to see significant results.