Yakkety Yak CEO Ashley Logan shares the best ways to focus your marketing efforts for impact when you have limited time and budget
When it comes to digital marketing, there are plenty of ways for your brand to make an impact—but it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle. Should you be blogging? Posting on TikTok? Placing ads on Facebook? The fact is, when you try to speak to everyone, you end up speaking to no one. However, by focusing on a few vital digital marketing elements, you can increase your impact without spreading yourself thin on both time and budget.
Yakkety Yak’s founder and CEO Ashley Logan recently spoke to members of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) on how to set priorities, cut through the noise and get your small business noticed. By focusing on these five key digital marketing elements, you’ll have a solid roadmap to set yourself up for success.
1. A Healthy Website
A website is your digital resume and a cornerstone where people can find all the information about your business. It should offer an experience that makes people want to come back while also bringing in new customers. Many factors go into a healthy website, from design to functionality—but don’t discount the power of original content like blogs, landing pages and pillar pages.
Building out original content related to your products and services allows you to rank for search terms, or keywords, in popular search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo—bringing new users to your site organically. According to a survey by databox, 70 percent of respondents said SEO (search engine optimization) works better than PPC (pay-per-click) for generating sales. This means that the content on your site can play a big role in bringing the right people through the door.
Another thing to prioritize on your website? Make sure you craft a clear message and create a strong user experience that makes sense to website visitors. A study found that 88 percent of consumers are less likely to return to a site after a bad experience.
Finally, these other small factors can have a correspondingly large impact:
- Include email opt-ins throughout your site to continue engaging with your audience and building supporters
- Track analytics using a platform like Google Analytics to help you understand what your audience cares about
- Fuel your site with regular content updates to keep things fresh
- Tailor your resources to your audience
When done correctly, your website should end up doing the work for you.
2. Email Marketing
Ninety-nine percent of consumers check their email every day, making email marketing an essential tactic for reaching your audience. With a $42 ROI for every $1 spent, email leads should be nurtured for the gold they are. Some best practices include tailored audience lists, automated communications and A/B testing for effectiveness. Maintaining a list of audience email addresses also lets you target your audience on other platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Check out our comparison of email marketing platforms and CRM software and how to determine which is best for your brand.
While email is a great method for direct outreach, having a strategic plan in place helps you to get the most out of each email sent. Create an offering that will attract your audience, begin building and segmenting your list once they opt-in, and then set automated communications to help nurture your audience.
3. Paid Facebook Advertising
Because paid channels tend to be most effective in reaching new audiences, paid advertising can help grow your customer base whether through search or social media advertising. If you’re trying to decide where to start, take a look at Facebook. According to Sprout Social, Facebook has the highest CTR (the most bang for your buck) between Facebook ad manager’s four ad placement options (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Audience Network). Start small by boosting an organic post that is already performing well on your channel—and then get creative.
Once you get comfortable, start tapping into Facebook’s robust targeting options. The platform allows you to identify audiences, upload your own email lists and create lookalike audiences of current supporters through demographic information like age, gender and location as well as interests. We recommend keeping an eye on your performance, seeing what works and continuing to optimize to reach the right people with the right message.
4. Organic (Unpaid) Social Media
Organic social media can build excitement, grab attention and engage viewers likely to resonate with your brand’s products, services or mission. It also drives traffic back to your website where visitors can access additional content and resources. This vital marketing element serves as one of the earliest audience touchpoints, and with the number of global social media users expected to reach 3.43 billion in 2023, channels like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and TikTok are the place to be, depending on your brand’s target audience and goals. Take a look at all social channels to see where your audience engages the most and work to build a community of advocates.
The bottom line: Creating unique and consistent content on social media channels where your audience hangs out can make a big impact for your brand.
5. Thought Leadership Content
Tell your own story. No matter the medium—blogging, podcast, email, webinar or even Clubhouse—you are the expert. Sharing your knowledge not only backs up your service or product offerings but also serves a wide audience. Short on time? Pick one channel and do it well. You can then use it as a framework to distribute thought leadership content across other platforms. Communicate frequently with your readers or subscribers and build trust and authority in your subject by providing relatable, useful content that resonates with them.
No matter which of the above digital marketing elements you try, make sure to prioritize analytics and measurement in order to continue evolving your strategy and reach that desired impact. Analytics will also help you further understand your audience, evaluate what channels work best and ultimately help you work smarter, not harder. Start by reviewing web traffic, social engagement, subscribers and more, and if something isn’t working as anticipated, it might be time to pivot your strategy. Using data to inform those decisions helps you act with confidence. Then, test and try and try again.
Make the most out of your digital marketing efforts by focusing on the elements that offer the most ROI. Discover more digital marketing tips from our team on our blog or subscribe to our newsletter below for monthly tips.
