Digital marketing is the newest form of advertising. The internet has only been fully commercialized in America since about 1995. In a little more than 25 years, the landscape of the world changed; businesses suddenly became able to reach customers on every content of every demographic. Thanks to the rapid shift, new methods of marketing needed to be cultivated – and with each new or popular platform, each new mode of communication, there’s seemingly no stop to the need for change.

We’ve covered in-person marketing already, which is still an important part of driving clients to your business, but now, let’s look at digital marketing tactics and see how they can benefit you.

Social Media

Social media can be treated one of two ways: as a many-headed monster or a fathomless well. We prefer to think of it as a fathomless well – there’s almost no limit to who you can reach and how you can do it, and on the way down, you can branch out in many different directions to other platforms. And these different platforms are both independent entities and symbiotic creations – they can function well on their own or be the perfect place to share content you’re your other platforms.

Each platform serves a different purpose and has a different demographic as the main user base. You’ll need to do some research to most effectively utilize social media marketing, but once you develop an understanding of it, the possibilities will be endless.

Take Instagram’s stats into account. With more than a billion users, the potential reach is unbelievably high. But if you run a business that’s targeted primarily towards individuals 55 and older, you might not want to focus all your efforts on Instagram posts, stories, and ads – more than 70% of users are under the age of 35.

Facebook, on the other hand, is different. Over 70% of its user base falls between the age of 35 and 54 years old. This means that your business may very well see more engagement and generate more leads via Facebook instead of Instagram.

Statistics aren’t the only consideration, though. Influencers and other businesses have carved names for themselves in the social media realm and they boast hundreds of thousands of followers. Paid sponsorships, shoutouts, and partnerships with influencers and businesses will get more eyes on your brand and your products. The reason is simple: fans like to make purchases or pursue services from trusted individuals. They most often make choices based on recommendations from friends and family, but they also turn to who they follow.

Consider the costs of these partnerships (as well as the demographic – you wouldn’t want to work with an influencer whose following is not likely to show interest in your business!) and see who’s available to work with you. Use all aspects of social media for digital marketing and you’ll be moving forward in no time.

Content, Content, Content

Content is king in the digital world. If you’re creating unique content for your own website, you also should be looking into generating content for other websites.

The guest article is a solid way to tie your company to another brand. If you run a bicycle shop, you can submit an article to various cycling magazines, for instance. Run a boat repair business? Of course a boating website that features upcoming shows will be a good place to push an article about maintenance!

You need varied content, too. Branch out a bit and step barely outside your niche to try and lure more customers who are interested in adjacent businesses (people looking for fences might be able to be persuaded to buy a stone wall, for instance). Create how-to guides, best-of lists, tips and tricks of the trade, and more. You can gain eyes, clicks, and leads just by having a sprawling presence in the digital world.

In addition, you have to mix up the content form, as well. The written word is still as relevant as ever, but audio and video play big roles, too. Short-form video content that can be uploaded to social media is a great way to snag interest, and creating a podcast can get potential customers to pay attention to a schedule. You can use these forms of content to inform people about your business, new products, new locations, contests, giveaways, and more.

News Releases

While you can put out your own content in videos and articles to let people know about the state of your business or what services you’re now offering, you can also write press releases and news releases to be featured on other sites. Websites from businesses in your industry can push your release out and you can reach a larger audience.

A very good resource to use is HARO, or Help a Reporter Out. Many reporters need interesting storylines, sound bites, topics, and the like to cover. You can provide your industry expertise, opinion, and more to these reporters, who may feature you in the story and provide a link to your business. HARO will send you 3 emails a day and you can provide your input if the topic is relevant! Don’t let these lesser-known digital marketing tactics escape you.

SEO

Finally, you’ll need your SEO game to be on point. Google is the most visited website in the world (by a long shot), so you’ll want to be as visible there as possible. The way to do this is to intelligent rank using search engine optimization (SEO). This includes using relevant keywords, proper readability, images, sources, links, and more to bring your pages higher up Google’s rankings. While this is more in the vein of content improvement, it’s still a huge part of digital marketing.

You can also look at paid campaigns and sponsored spots on websites. This will put your business at the forefront for a period of time. As always, measure costs versus lead generation and client acquisition when you spend money on advertisements!

The Digital Marketing Agency for You

Promotion LA is a digital marketing agency in Los Angeles. Our satisfied clients have worked with us for years, and we’ve gotten many small businesses off the ground and to the next level. For a consultation about digital marketing tactics or to learn more about our services, contact our office today!