The world of business marketing sure has changed within the past couple of decades. The objectives are still the same; to gain loyal clients, to become the top business in your industry, to earn nice profits, etc. What has changed is the way to go about achieving those goals.
So, what are the biggest changes in the business marketing industry? The most significant changes are in the methods by which you market. Now everything is done on computers via the Internet. This does not have to be confusing. If you do find it confusing, you can hire someone to manage the marketing for you. The best way to advertise your business online is to go out and do it.
Within the realm of the Internet comes a myriad of ways to perform marketing tasks. What are they? That is precisely what this article focuses on. In it, we lay out what those marketing methods are. Following that we discuss some tips for maximizing the effectiveness of your marketing strategy. Any company anywhere in the world can do this, including in Canada. So, sit back and relax while you learn more about the best ways to promote your business and gain new customers.
A Company Website Is Paramount
In today’s world, first and foremost, your company must have its own website. Before you can set up a marketing meeting with someone, even though it will likely be online, you have to attract prospects. A website is the number one way to do that.
Whether you initiate the contact or the prospective client does, he or she will immediately look up your website. If you don’t have an online store, chances are this prospect will not be able to find you in the first place.
While you’re at it, make sure the website is attractive and informative. You might need to pay a little more for it, but it’s definitely worth the expense. A cheaper website will appear as just that. It only takes five seconds for someone to form an opinion about your website. Make certain that opinion is a positive one and remember, you get what you pay for.
Social Media Marketing
Social media was not initially designed for business marketing, but rather as a way to meet new people and to communicate with old and new friends. Fast forward to today’s society and businesses did discover this was also a way to connect with current and prospective clients. Hence, business social media marketing was born. If your business incorporates online shoppers and an online store, you want to be certain your company is found in online local listings.
Whether your business is in Canada, wants to do business in Canada, or anyplace else, social media marketing should be part of your strategy. Not only does your company need to establish its presence on social media, but it needs to be updated frequently.
This can take a lot of time; however, it’s worth the time and the effort. If you do not have the manpower to do this, hire a firm to handle it for you. It’s a fact that prospective clients will look up the company on social media sites. This is an excellent way to market your business and attract your target audience. Plus, all of your competitors are on social, so why aren’t you?
SEO Services For Your Content
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) by itself is not a marketing service. Rather, it’s a tool designed to be used in conjunction with other marketing projects. Examples would be your on-page content, a blog post, Google ads, and even your social media posts. All of these marketing forms should be SEO-friendly. This can help to build brand awareness and result in more business leads.
What does that mean? SEO is utilized to make sure all forms of your content rank high in search engine results, particularly on Google. If it is not done properly, people will have trouble finding your online store or website in general.
An SEO expert will know how to take your existing content and make it rank high in searches. Additionally, they can do the same with new content right from its creation point. Whether your prospective clientele comes from Canada, the United States, or anywhere else, with proper SEO management they will find you, no matter if you own a large or small business.
Email Marketing Campaigns
It is possible to be successful with an email marketing campaign; however, it does take some planning to ensure you are reaching a relevant audience. So many emails wind up in people’s junk mail files, so they never get opened and are often deleted without a glance. The key to avoiding this is in your headline. Your subject should be catchy but also straight to the point!
Your headline should be short and entice the reader to open it. You want to drive traffic to your business and give them instant access to what you offer in your online store or services.
Another important part of email marketing is that your message be brief and error-free. Grammar errors, spelling errors, and punctuation errors could indicate that the sender is a scam artist and it’s just not professional. It may be an unfair assumption, but it’s true. Your message ought to be very compelling and invite the viewer to take action.
Pay-Per-Click Campaigns
This is a unique online advertising campaign that has blossomed over the years. Pay-per-click (PPC advertising) is an advertising tool where the business pays a publisher to place his or her ad on other websites. When someone clicks on that ad, the business has to pay the publisher. Google ads can be a very affordable form of online advertising which is a great perk for business owners with a smaller budget.
Despite negative comments about Google ads that you may have heard, they do work. Just like with social media marketing, Google ads can help you target a specific target audience, thus making it easier to drive traffic that is relevant to your online store or services. This marketing method is more effective than traditional direct mail. Talk to a PPC expert to learn more.
Online Videos
Here is a marketing trend that keeps growing: hiring a company to create video content for you. This used to be an expensive proposition, but thanks to technological advances and the increase of services offered, someone can produce fantastic videos with their smartphone and editing features.
People in Canada, or wherever else in the world they happen to be, can view these videos on a YouTube channel, TikTok, or even Instagram and Facebook. This is a practical and attractive way for a company to market online to their target audience, especially a younger demographic.
Online video marketing can take the form of educational projects in addition to advertisements. It can be about various industry topics they are involved in, or about the company itself. The idea is to promote your business online to potential customers in a unique, engaging and visually interesting way.
Radio Broadcasting
When someone thinks of a radio station, they do not often associate it with an online presence, but it can actually be a great way to attract your target audience. These days, it’s plausible to directly stream radio stations live on your computer screen or mobile device, making it more convenient than ever before for people.
Additionally, there are channels that a person can stream on their smart television that allow them to tune into a plethora of radio stations. Along with whatever programming the specific station offers comes paid advertisements. This is something your business can take advantage of.
As you would suspect, ads on radio stations are in audio form. Plenty of prospective customers listen to these stations, making it a marvellous way to promote your business. If you don’t think you can reach your target audience through a radio station, try a podcast!
Online Magazines & Newspapers
There is a font of popular online magazines and newspapers in existence now. They include sources from the United States, Canada, Europe, and a myriad of additional places, making them a great place for businesses to take advantage of these digital marketing opportunities.
Depending on the products or services your business has, you can elect to choose either magazines or newspapers. If your industry would cause you to benefit from using both kinds of outlets, go for it! The more of an online presence you have, the better off your company will be.
When you are creating these ads, remember to make them search engine optimization-friendly. The magazines and newspapers we are referring to are online, therefore, you want them to rank in the search engine.
Online Television Channels
This might sound like a contradiction in terms. Just as in the online radio stations we spoke of previously, there are loads of television channels out there now.
Some of them can be streamed onto a computer whereas others can be accessed via streaming on your television. Sometimes these online sources are free, some charge a minimal fee. Sometimes local businesses run ads on these various channels including those specifically in Canada. Other times national companies will try to reach potential customers on them.
Online TV channels are definitely outlets where ads can be found. This kind of advertising may not show up on the search engine results pages, but most likely you can include them on your company’s social media platforms.
Ads On Social Media Sites
Didn’t we already cover this? Not really. We spoke about having a presence and publishing content on social sites. Now we are discussing the placement of actual ads on them. There is a huge difference. Take a chance in using all of the social media channels to increase brand awareness and promote your business.
Different sites have different requirements and sometimes various levels. On some, it is feasible to have free ads or sponsored posts. Typically some of the levels have fees. But, remember that you get what you pay for. The more you pay for the ad, the more features you will get.
It’s safe to say you will not break the bank when you pay for an ad on social media platforms. Plus, your return on investment will be excellent. Oodles of people will see them, therefore, it is also worth the extra time and effort to do it.
Broaden Your Use of Social Media
When it comes to using your social sites for business marketing, many sites get left out. There are umpteen social media sites you can market your business on, not just Facebook and Instagram. Take the time to study other platforms and what to do on each site to promote your business.
There is so much of an opportunity to advertise online. Take advantage of them all! If your competitors are utilizing all of these sites, you should be too.
Don’t forget Google Ads. They can appear on social sites too! Keyword research will play a role even on a social media platform. Think of what you can achieve on all of them and how many active users each of them has.
Small businesses are welcome to build their online reputation on different social sites too. The sites get so much attention from new and existing customers.
You can also take advantage of the many apps that can help you in broadening your use of social media by visiting AppSumo.
Connecting With Influencers
This is another form of online marketing usually associated with social media channels. The opinions of people who participate in influencer marketing play a significant part in digital marketing efforts. This has proven to be quite useful.
At times, influencer marketing will involve a guest post or two. Sometimes a blog post gets contributed to a business’ website. If the company is lucky, maybe the influencers will do a press release or host an event in a local community. Any of these things can lead to new customers.
One more great thing about influencer marketing is they do not require the business to have a large advertising budget.
Create A Google My Business Profile
What you do first is sign into “Google My Business,” then follow the instructions for doing this. Having a business profile on this outlet is the best way to show up in a Google search. If you make use of Google maps, local customers can find you too.
Whether you are in the United States, Canada, or elsewhere, having your business appear prominently in Google search results is critical to the success of your company. It’s a highly powerful media tool to use online.
If your company happens to have its own domain name, you should also be able to advertise in a wealth of online directories. Being part of a search network or a Google news feed is even possible. Go ahead, create that profile!
Online Digital Coupons
One of the best ways to appear in organic search results is to use your advertising budget to drive traffic to your business. You can accomplish this by offering online digital coupons, then advertising this to nearby customers via the online local press.
This lessens the need to have to ad spend. The online coupons will act as your advertisement. You can transform business leads into online shoppers if you also allow digital coupons to be used over the Internet.
Utilize local media outlets to let people know you have these digital coupons. Whether you have an e-commerce business in Canada or a local business in the United States, your company will see an increase in your local community patronage if you use online digital coupons.
Online Marketing With Apps
This is part of today’s marketing strategies any business simply must take advantage of. Apps are more commonly associated with smartphones and tablets than desktops. However, they are absolutely part of the online marketing landscape. Whoever you hire to design your apps has to make them accessible for mobile devices.
Prospective customers from all over the world will react to this form of online advertising. If you are a business owner of an online store, a small business that is service-oriented, or whatever else, you ought to have an app available.
A business owner with a strong social media presence can have an online app. Even the social media platform sites themselves have apps. You will attract legions of prospective customers when you do this.
Marketing With Business Review Sites
Harness the power of online reviews.
Yes, this is a form of online advertising as the majority of business review platforms are online. Designed to provide honest reviews of a company without any conflicts of interest, these sites are widely used by potential customers.
Although some of the business review websites are geared towards local businesses and small businesses, nowadays there are plenty that covers all businesses. Iconic sources like Google and Bing offer their own versions of business review sites.
You can be assured there are mega-sized companies with reviews on them. Businesses with reviews on these specialized sites will absolutely appear on search engines. Ambitious marketers can even have press releases published announcing their review results and where to find them. Your company need not be from a local market in order to participate.
Online Giveaway Program
Online giveaway programs are a unique form of marketing. Prizes for the giveaway will be a product or a service you have that is attractive to the audience. For example, if your company has a target audience in Canada, make the prize relevant to them. It can work without being strictly a series of local events.
Instead of this being a one-shot deal, make it a recurring event. Each time you do it, change the prize. For an even better audience response, institute two or three runner-up prizes in addition to a grand prize. Doing this gives more people a chance to win and a reason to participate.
Years ago, this would not have been something you could do online. But with modern technology it now is. Not only can you promote this online, you can deliver the items via the Internet too. You can even have an email marketing campaign to advertise the contest.
Utilizing Online Directories
It used to be that online directories such as the Yellow Pages or Yelp were only for local businesses. Today there are some huge online directories that contain millions of industries and companies that specialize in them. Examples of these would be Google’s various sources or Yahoo Places.
Along with the Internet comes the opportunities for businesses in any place to be listed. A business in Canada can sell to people in the southern American states and vice versa. Making use of them will help you build brand awareness for your company.
The most important thing about being in an online directory is that users can search for businesses in your niche and find you. Be sure to include all pertinent details in your listing. It increases your visibility and usefulness to the viewer.
Implement Company Blog
We touched upon this when we were discussing company websites. Of course, blogs on your website are imperative. There are instructions on the Internet for starting and maintaining your own blog, separate from your website.
You can use this vehicle as a form of online marketing. Make this blog especially for your business and relevant to only the niches you cover. It is even plausible to have guests appear frequently.
Having a company blog will increase traffic to your website, especially if an SEO strategy is implemented. It is a method of communication with your audience and can demonstrate knowledge of your industry. This is definitely a great way to promote your business and prove yourself a thought leader in the industry.
Join An Online Referral Group
Many of us have gone to in-person networking groups, aka referral groups. We all know the benefits; talking about your business, listening to other people’s marketing pitches, etc. It’s a terrific way to market.
Thanks to technology, there are now a host of referral groups that are online. This takes far less time out of the day. Plus, they are not limited to one geographical area. Participants can be from the States, Canada, Asia, you name it! Your company can really flourish and grow in its clientele with this tool.
Online referral groups are social platforms to take advantage of without having to see whose child won an award at school. They are better than a direct mail campaign. Users can even post in the news feed of the social sites.
Online Press Releases
With so many media outlets having a presence online, the news industry has adapted. Now someone can access all their news from their computer or mobile device. It stands to reason that now, press release campaigns can be conducted online as well. They would be published by the same sources that make the news available online.
This is a great way to market online even if it is not direct. A press release is generally an announcement of something important. Normally it can not contain a direct sales pitch. However, when their content is newsworthy, the company behind it can benefit from it.
A press release is a good tool to have in your online marketing arsenal. It’s permitted to contain user-generated content. Additionally, it can enhance a company’s online reputation. Plus, they are not difficult to write or time-consuming.
Digital Marketing Advertising Tips
In addition to knowing where online to market your business, you need to know how to do it in the first place. There are proper and improper ways to go about digital marketing. We are going to share some tips with you:
Make Sure You’re Targeting The Right Audience
You do not want to market to people who have zero interest in what you are selling. That wastes everybody’s time and money. If you need to, do a little marketing research before you begin your campaign. It’s easier than you think to promote your business to the right crowd, especially with Google or social ads.
Don’t Neglect Mobile Users
When you are designing your website, remember to make it accessible to mobile users too. Those who use smartphones and tablets frequently purchase items or services from there. In addition to the website, create an app for your business that works perfectly on mobile devices.
Ensure All Content Is SEO-Friendly
This includes your website itself along with any supplemental content such as the blog section. It is imperative because the most significant factor in online marketing is being featured prominently in searches. You want your company to rank high and show up near the top of the list.
Check Over All Content for Errors
One of the worst things you can do in an online marketing campaign is have content full of errors. It does not matter how minor the errors are. They add up and the viewer will get the impression your business is not professional. This is a crucial step. If you need to, hire an external editor to ensure everything sounds and looks how it should.
Use Reputable Outlets
No matter which online marketing method you are working on, be sure to use reputable outlets to publish it. If you go with a lesser-known outlet because it cost less money, it will affect potential clients’ perception of your company. As we’ve been saying, you really do get what you pay for.
Space Out Your Campaigns Well
What on Earth does this mean? You do not want to use up all of your online marketing methods in the first two months of the year, then put out nothing the rest of the time. Instead, work on one type of campaign at a time and see it through. That way your audience will not get tired of your business.
Create An Email List
This is vital to be able to keep in touch with clients. That said, do not spam people. They hate that. Instead, send emails only when there is something necessary to say. Keep them short and to the point. Avoid including attachments for people that don’t know you.
Maintain Your Social Media Accounts
Remember to stay active on your social media accounts. If your company fails to post something more recent than a year ago, it will definitely lose followers. Many potential customers are on social sites. Their purchasing decisions are often based on what they see from your business.
Get Started!
No online business marketing method is going to succeed unless you start doing it. People that have grand plans but never get around to implementing them are not going to see the success they hoped for. In order to get started on the path of reaching your goals, reach out to a professional digital marketing company to assist you.
