Do you feel like you need a quick refresher of Marketing 101? Feel like your marketing strategies aren’t rooted in learned tactics? Do your marketing campaigns often fall short of expectations?

You’re not alone.

Many small business owners put a lot of effort and dollars into marketing and advertising, but don’t see a return on investment.

There are a lot of factors that allow you to maximize your marketing efforts so that you get the results you want. And even though no two companies are identical, we’ve found that there is a process that will help EVERYONE improve their marketing campaigns.

Marketing 101: Video Breakdown

Here is a simple 5-step process to help you get more out of your online marketing.

 

STEP 1: Be Specific

Don’t confuse and mislead your consumers by putting out broad and general content in your marketing messages. You have to specify exactly what you’re offering. Entrepreneur Brian Clark says that “non-specific copy is a red flag that signals puffery and a lack of substance.” If you look like you’re intentionally being foggy about the details, it lets your audience know your offer sounds better than it is.

Consumers won’t trust your business if you aren’t being specific about your products or services. You have to learn how to effectively communicate what you have to offer. Look at the two phrases below.

“We have nearly 30 flavors of ice cream available.”
“We have 28 flavors of ice cream available.”

The first phrase uses the word “nearly,” but what exactly does “nearly 30” mean? Is it 27? 28? 29?

The second phrase sounds more genuine and truthful because it’s being specific. Rounding off your numbers won’t help in your marketing strategy. To sum up, avoid being vague. If there’s no harm in being specific, give the people the numbers they want.

STEP 2: Create Specific Marketing Assets

Marketing assets are customized content you use to promote a specific product or service. Marketing assets include dedicated pages, photos, testimonials, etc. for each product or service. Individual pages will help educate your consumers about that specific product or service and inspire trust.

Take a look at Samsung’s website for example.

Notice how they have a separate page for all of the smartphones they offer. After choosing one, you have the option to browse through different variations of that specific type of smartphone.

Once you’ve chosen one, you’re led to another page with an in-depth look into that phone.

Having these separate pages allows the user to understand the value of each specific phone. Each page features content, photos, and even videos that are specific to the product. It also helps in guiding consumers and educating them on which product is right for them.

STEP 3: Optimize Your Website For Conversions

When it comes to selling online, the best place to do that is your website, and the best way to improve online sales is by optimizing your website. There are many ways you can do this, such as improving your SEO game, adding landing pages, and using professional photography.

One of the improvements you can make to your website that often gets overlooked is adding calls-to-action (CTAs). Just a couple of words and a button that stands out will encourage users to take the next step, which is to contact you or purchase your product.

Here’s what you can do to improve your calls-to-action:

• Choose a contrasting color for your CTA
• Make your intent clear and specific
• Be sure the web page is free of clutter, especially where the CTA is
• Make the CTA consistent with the page content and offer
• Repeat the CTA on web pages that are longer

The next way you can optimize your website is by including your contact information on every one of your pages.

Then what’s the Contact page for? You might be thinking.

Yes, it may seem redundant, but it’s the best way to make it exceptionally easy for a potential client to contact you. You want your consumers to be able to get in touch with you right away – the more barriers you eliminate, the better.

Make it convenient for them by adding your email address and phone number in your website’s footer or including a contact form in your footer. You can also add your phone number to your menu at the top of your website. This way, users won’t have to search through your site just to contact you. So, make your CTAs accessible!

STEP 4: Get Attention

Unfortunately, the reality is, most people don’t know about you or your business. If everyone did who was important to your business, you wouldn’t be here. So let’s talk about how to get your name out there to unreached people: advertising.

You have to set aside an advertising budget to increase brand recognition and brand awareness. We’ve already discussed how to set your marketing budget on another blog that you can read here. There are various online platforms you can use to advertise, but most usually go with Google Ads or Facebook Ads. As a result, you need to get on at least one of those platforms.

The problem with advertising is that most businesses run an ad without putting much thought into it. This is the reason why most advertising campaigns fail, and failure can be costly.

Here are a few of the best advertising practices to help you perfect your campaign:

• Appeal to Emotions – Humans are still easily swayed by emotions, most of our decisions are based on them. There’s scientific proof to back this up. You have to learn how to use emotions to get people to notice your ads.
• Focus on Pain Points – When you create your ad, focus on the ways your product will eliminate pain for the consumer. Humans are highly motivated by their own pain, and if you have a solution, you might have a sale.
• Use Storytelling – People like stories they resonate with. Integrate your brand story in your ads if possible to allow people to relate to your company.

For more insightful information you might’ve learned in Marketing 101, check out more of our blogs!

STEP 5: Leverage Your Success

Reviews and testimonials play a big role in helping you increase your conversion rate. These add legitimacy to your brand, and people usually check on reviews before making any purchase. A good review will remove any form of doubt from potential consumers.

Whenever a consumer makes a purchase from you or acquires your service, encourage them to write a short review for you. As a result, aside from establishing trust with people who have not yet become customers, you’ll also have a better chance at getting that spot on the first page of search engine results. The more good reviews you have, the better.

Feature these reviews and testimonials on your website, and include any business-related awards you get. In short: leverage your success, and it will bring you success over and over again.

Marketing 101: In Conclusion…

If you apply these 5 steps, you are guaranteed to finally make the most out of the dollars you spend on advertising and the hours you put into marketing. Hopefully this refresher on Marketing 101 has been insightful. Let us know what your first step is in the comments!

We’d love to discuss your marketing strategies with you! Get in touch with us – we can’t wait to watch your company grow!

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