It’s been an incredible decade for digital marketing. The advent of social media and the explosion of content as we know it wouldn’t have been possible without the internet. At the same time, the evolution of SEO has allowed for more opportunities for growth.

While PPC (Pay-Per-Click) and SEO both work wonderfully well in isolation, combining the two can create a powerful platform for marketing growth.

Nottingham is a city in the United Kingdom that was originally built around a textile industry. Since the second half of the 2010s, the city’s economy has diversified into software development and digital marketing, among others. As a result, more and more businesses are taking advantage of the city’s ecosystem by setting up shop and offering their services online.

In this article, we identify five ways in which businesses can utilize digital marketing in Nottingham to gain a competitive advantage.

1. Create content consistently and regularly

The number one rule of successful online marketing is simple: produce content that is both relevant and interesting to your target audience.

In the age of fake news and clickbait, readers expect content that is both topical and informative. If you’re constantly producing content that is relevant and interesting, your readers will come back for more. And, at the end of the day, that’s all you need to thrive as an online marketer.

2. Use hashtags effectively

The second tip for those looking to do business in Nottingham is to be familiar with the hashtags that capture the attention of your target audience.

In recent times, we’ve seen the use of popular hashtags grow exponentially as people have embraced how useful they can be in driving traffic to a brand or business. For instance, if you’re running a blog on the subject of fashion, you could use the hashtag #fashionmovesme or #stylemovesmelife to reach a greater number of people.

3. Create content to resonate with audiences

If you’re new to the field of online marketing, you might be tempted to jump into creating content that resonates with a broad audience. To do this, you could try writing for The Huffington Post or Medium, for example.

However, if you’re looking to make the most of your resources, consider creating content that is relevant and interesting to a niche audience. For example, if you are a financial adviser and your target audience is business owners, you could create a blog post sharing best practices for a successful business or offering advice on how to manage personal finances.

Niche audiences exist within all walks of life and all industries. If you can become more expert in your field, you could potentially tap into this audience and offer them advice or guidance on how to improve their lives. In the words of Malcolm Gladwell, “Small niches are everywhere and they are valuable. If you can fit in with the right group, you can carve out a niche for yourself and grow as a result.”

4. Measure the success of your content marketing strategy

As a business owner or manager, it’s important to measure the success of your marketing strategy and determine what is and isn’t working.

You could track the performance of key web pages using analytics tools such as Google Analytics. These tools will give you a clear view of how individuals found your site, what actions they took while on your page, and whether or not these actions resulted in a conversion (i.e., sale or lead).

With this data, you can determine whether or not your content marketing efforts are yielding the desired results and, if not, determine what needs to be changed. For example, if you found that an e-mail blast you sent out generated a 7% conversion rate, you could conclude that this campaign was effective in generating leads for your business. 

5. Include video content

Last but not least, we have video content. In the last few years, video content has grown significantly in terms of both volume and importance. According to HubSpot, video is set to account for 79% of all digital marketing content by 2020. And, as a result of video content’s rising popularity, many businesses are finding ways to incorporate video into their marketing strategy.

We’ve already touched on the importance of video content in our opening paragraph. But, let’s explore this topic in more detail. First off, videos can increase engagement. According to HubSpot, video prompts a viewer to complete a task or action 100% of the time. In comparison, text prompts a viewer to complete an action 89% of the time and images prompt a viewer to complete an action 87% of the time.

Including video content in your marketing strategy is easy. All you need are some clips of reasonably good quality and an audio recorder. You then need to sit back and watch or listen to your videos with a critical eye. Are you saying something new and exciting? Is the content funny or interesting?

Incorporating video content into your marketing strategy doesn’t have to be difficult. With a little planning and a lot of video, you can put yourself in the right position to win.