We have all heard the buzz about Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Are you unsure about how to get started? Or which is best for your business? Have you been to seminars that gave you a lot of ideas and no follow through? If you need help getting started with online marketing, try this process to create your action plan.
(I cannot take credit for creating this process. I borrowed it from a presentation by Jay Baer; it is available for viewing on Slide Share. Or check out Jay’s Convince and Convert blog for killer content on using social media to promote your business.)
Step 1: What is your pitch?
This is harder than it sounds—create a blurb that describes what your company does in 120 characters or less. Your 30-second commercial is a good starting point but you will have to edit it way down because it is probably a lot longer that 120 characters. After whittling my own pitch down, I got to 122 characters. (I cheated a bit because the grammarian in me insisted on proper punctuation.) Check it out:
We provide marketing, graphic, and web design services for anyone who doesn’t have the time or talent to do it themselves.
Step 2: What is the point?
You must choose a goal for your online activities. For the best results, you should choose only one goal to start: raise awareness, increase sales, or build loyalty.
Step 3: What is your current relationship with your audience?
While you probably have prospects at all levels of this scale, you should target two adjacent audience levels for best results.
Step 4: How does the audience use social media?
You will need to do some research to get the answer. There are six levels of online participation as outlined in the Groundswell Report. (I also list them on the back of the worksheet I created for this process.) To figure the level of your target audience, you need to create profile(s) listing at least their age, gender, and country. Plug in that data into the profile tool and you have your audience participation level.
Using the percentages, you should choose two levels to focus on. When you are coming up with ideas for online marketing, refer back to those profiles to make sure that the materials you create are appropriate to their action level. If your focus is spectators, then sponsoring a “create your own video contest” won’t get much response. But a well-crafted video documentary will.
Step 5: What is your one thing?
Distill your company offering into one single word. Do not use your brochure copy of carefully crafted bullet points listing benefits and features. Your one thing is your passion. Apple’s one thing is not computers, it is innovation. Volvo’s passion is not cars but safety.
My one thing is not marketing but education. By educating my clients, they get much more value from the work that I do. And I love the aha moment when someone finally gets whatever I have been teaching them.
Step 6: How will you be human?
Online marketing (and all marketing in my opinion) is more successful when it is about people not technology, or features, or manipulation. Your online strategy needs to be authentic and real. Your company needs a face—it may be you or one of your employees. It does not matter as long as it is a real person with a passion for what they do.
Step 7: How will you measure success?
The most important part to any marketing campaign is determining how to measure the success. In the online world, there are many metrics that you can use to measure your success. (Download the worksheet for a listing of them sorted according to the goals you chose in Step 2.) Your measurements can also be real world numbers like an increase in sales or inquiries. Or maybe it is a larger turn out at your next event.
Whatever you choose, you need to have a set goal (a number) that you want to reach and a process for measuring it. It can be a simple as reviewing your website stats or asking new clients how they found you—be sure to record those answers somewhere. You should choose 3 metrics to determine your ROI.
Next Steps
1. Download the worksheet and start your online strategy.
2. Post questions or comments to this blog.
3. Join the Marketing 101 Group on Google for additional resources and to post your questions.
4. Contact 910 West to schedule a consultation.
