How to put your business on the A-list with digital marketing, complete in-depth guide to start digital marketing for your business today,
The Complete Digital Marketing Guide to Promote Your Small Business Online.
PREAMBLE
Digital marketing is no longer an option for small business owners but a "MUST" for every entrepreneur looking forward to grow.
Boosting your small business visibility through digital marketing is one of the greatest steps you can take to grow.
Without digital marketing, your business is like a ghost, which means it will be unseen to more potential customers.
Digital marketing has come to stay in the 21st century and it is moving faster than you could ever imagine.
Before we go into the basics of digital marketing and even the advanced tactics, let’s first go over what digital marketing is.
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What is Digital Marketing?
In a simple word, digital marketing is any marketing done through the internet. You can also call it online marketing or internet marketing
According to Wikipedia, digital marketing refers to any form of marketing that occurs online through digital channels like, websites, social media, email, search engines and mobile apps.
Digital marketing has changed the landscape of marketing by allowing businesses (both small and big) to connect with a wider audience of potential customers.
You have to get into the game and become effective at using digital marketing for business development. You don't need someone to do it for you, trust me.
The Importance of Digital Marketing in Your Business.
Digital marketing will help your business grow beyond your imagination.
Here are three(3) reasons why digital marketing is very important in your business.
1. You Reach Your Customers Where They Spend Their Time.
Did you know that over 8 billion people are using the internet across the globe?
With the growth of the internet, more and more people are spending their time online.
The internet has become an integral part of our everyday life. People are searching google, checking Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and buying products online.
Your customers are online which highlights the first importance of digital marketing.
2. Your Competitors are Already Using Digital Marketing.
Are you wondering why digital marketing is so important? Trust me, the answer is, your competitors are already using it.
All your competitors have already taken the advantage of digital marketing, so what are you waiting for?
If you neglect digital marketing, you have already fallen behind your competitors.
3. You Can Target Your Real Customers.
Imagine being able to market directly to people who have an interest in your products or services.
Digital marketing makes it easy for you to reach the right people.
All you need to do is input the important information about your audience and use that information to shape your digital marketing campaigns.
As you can see, digital marketing is a great opportunity for your business to grow and reach new heights.
Now, let's get started with the step by step guide on how to market your business online.
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Digital Marketing Guide to Promote Your Small Business Online.
1. Send your Business Online
As I have said, digital marketing is all about using the internet to promote your business. So, the very first step is to send your business online by creating a landing page.
This could be done by creating a website or a blog site for your business. For instance, Jumia’s landing page is their website, where people go to buy their products.
Building a website or a blog site is the first milestone in your business digital marketing journey.
Your website gives basic information about your company and it's products and services.
You can potentially reach the millions of visitors who visit the internet when you send your business online.
Every Internet users who visit your website or blog will be aware of your products and services and can contact you in case of any requirement.
I have sheared an article about how I created this blog site (www.BizIQ.ng), you can check it out to learn how to create a blog for your business or company.
Steps to create your Business website.
1. Obtain a good domain name: Your domain name is also known as your website address, it is the entry point to your site. e.g www.BizIQ.ng
- Make it easy to spell
- Keep it as short as possible
- Avoid numbers and hyphens
- Ensure it is memorable
2. Purchase a secure website hosting: website hosting provider is a company that offers the technology and services necessary for a website to be viewed on the internet.
Connect your domain name to your hosting provider so that your website with be online and users can then visit your website address.
2. Content Marketing
What is content marketing? Content marketing is a form of marketing focused on creating, publishing, and distributing content for a targeted audience online.
Now, the next step after you have created your website is to start adding contents.
Content is the most important factor in the success of your website. So, you have to create good contents to adorn your website.
A well written and relevant content will become popular on the internet.
The content can be in the form of:
- Blog post / Articles
- Videos
- Ebooks
- Case Studies
- Industry Reports / News
- Podcast e.t.c
The more you create good contents, the more traffic you drive to your business website and the more your business get noticed.
Publish your content on the blog and then share them to your respective customers using social share buttons on your business blog.
3. Social Media Marketing.
What is social media marketing? Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram to promote a product or service.
Once you have sent your business online by creating a website for your business and your have also create great contents.
The next step is to drive customers to the contents on your website from social media platforms like your Facebook page, Instagram account or twitter.
Social media has become a powerful force in our daily lives to the extent that even the radio and TV stations are using social media to increase the exposure of their programs.
Social media marketing is one of the best digital marketing strategies you can use, even if you don’t pay for it.
4. SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
What is search engine optimization? In simple terms, it means the process of improving your website to increase it's visibility when people search for products or services related to your business in Google, and other search engines.
It means, if you sell a particular product and customers search for that same product on Google, they would be directed to your business website (which has been optimized to be easily seen).
It is very important, your business website should be Search Engine friendly, so that whenever people typed (Keywords) on Google, your website should show up at the top of the list.
The techniques used to improve your search engine rankings are collectively called "Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)"
5. Email Marketing.
What is email marketing? Email marketing is the act of sending a commercial message, typically to a group of people, using email.
Every email sent to potential customers is considered as email marketing, it is the easiest and oldest form of online marketing and still one of the most effective.
You can use email marketing to advertise special deals, highlighting content, or promoting an event. It offers opportunities to reach users who are not on platforms like social media.
6. Affiliate Marketing.
What is affiliate marketing? Affiliate marketing is an advertising model in which a company pays others to advertise their products and services and generate sales.
You use affiliate marketing to pay someone else to promote your products and services on their website.
This is one area where spending a little money can definitely improve your return on investment (ROI).
7. Mobile Marketing.
Smartphones are now the primary device people use to interact with the internet.
That makes mobile marketing a key tactic to grow your business.
- Make your site mobile friendly
- Create mobile friendly content
- Take your brand to mobile users
- Get local with Google My Business
WhatsApp business app, Instagram, Viber & Snapchat are all mobile messaging apps that are good to promote your business on mobile devices.
CONCLUSION
You have learned the importance of Digital Marketing and how it can help you promote and grow your business.
Digital Marketing is an expanding field of knowledge and can be mastered only by implementing it. So what are you waiting for?
Start implementing it in your business now!
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