In this issue, articles include: 7 Simple Referral Marketing Strategies for Your Business, Digital Marketing Trends for 2022, Out of the Box Content Marketing Ideas to Try in 2022, and 10 Digital Marketing Tools That Give You an Edge Over Your Competition.
How to Bounce Back from a Sales Slump
Bad news… There really is no way to avoid a future sales slump. Whether you run a seasonal lobster shack off the coast of Maine or a year-round surf & turf restaurant in Hawaii, you are bound to experience a short period when your bottom line fluctuates.
Sales slumps can happen because of new competition, off-season demand, or a slew of other simple problems, the thing to remember if you have to push forward. The best tool in your arsenal as a business is consistency. Stay focused on the long-term goals of your company and do your best to be proactive about any short-term slumps, and you will have a successful strategy.
In the meantime, here are a few tips and tricks to keeping your sales flow moving forward even during the worst of times.
Engage with Social Media
Love it or hate it, social media is here to stay. It offers a direct line of communication to your customers in fun, engaging, and attractive visual posts. Keep the pedal pushed down on your social media marketing to ensure your viewership and follower base do not dip into dangerously low levels. Host a social media contest with a unique Hashtag. There are currently 3.78 billion social media users globally, which is about half of the entire population. That means there are bound to be people who will appreciate your business.
If you’re a grooming business. Put on a promotion for funny pet photos with the tag #myfunnypet and watch your numbers go back up as everyone from our local target market to the toy poodle owners in Siberia begins celebrating their goofy four-legged friends.
Celebrate Loyalty
Too often, the knee-jerk reaction to lower sales is to immediately seek new marketing channels for lead acquisition. While this isn’t a bad idea, don’t go deep into that end of the campaign pool and neglect your loyal customers. Around 65% of a company’s business comes from existing customers. That means the people helping you keep the lights on the most are the ones you’ve already built a working relationship with. Reward them with updated news, exciting early offers, and coupons to encourage them to purchase during an off-season.
Streamline and Perfect
A sales slump is a great time to reevaluate your business process, customer journey, and sales funnels. It gives you the ability to do some quality A-B testing and review all the touchpoints of your customer experience. You can also get a breath of fresh air long enough to poke your head up and see what your competitors are offering.
This could be the chance to rebrand your company or update essential online visuals for your website, social media, and more. Think of the classic ice cream shop that closes for the winter months. When they open back up, they create a lot of buzz with new flavors or some kind of comfortable outdoor seating area that signals to customers they are strong, growing, and ready to engage.
Maintain Communication
It costs 5 times as much to acquire a new customer as to keep a current loyal client. The easiest way to maintain your existing customer base is to continually offer them value in the form of communication. Minor updates via email or social media show you’re still there and preparing for the next wave of orders. This is a great time to get customer feedback and develop your brand story. A compelling story with an emotional trigger alters our brain chemistry, making us more trusting and willing to engage with new ideas.
Airbnb is a master class in brand storytelling. The name alone conjures images of A-Frame forest getaways built by individual hosts creating unique local places to stay for your next adventure. Attaching a high-quality story to your brand identity goes a long way to maintaining communication and loyalty with your current and on the fence customers.
Market or Die
A sales slump means you have fewer leads. Now is the time to engage in some quality lead magnets. These are low-cost trade-offs for encouraging higher sales that you and your team can quickly create. Consider writing a short guide for your product or service that you offer for free in exchange for email information. Maybe now is the perfect time to launch your new video series on how to prepare for a marathon to support your custom line of running shoes. Offering high value for your customers is a great way to wrap them into your sales funnel and encourage future sales.
Again, make sure you involve your social media campaigns with any kind of new lead magnet. A sales slump is the best time to focus on your paid advertising. It means you need eyeballs on your brand to offset any current losses.
Add Value
Do your best to avoid cutting prices to compensate for leaner sales numbers. You do not want to devalue your products or services. In fact, you want to add value if possible. Rewards & incentives are a great way to keep your customers coming back. Nobody can turn down the dopamine buzz from a great deal. Focus on delivering what your business does best and let user-generated content like online reviews to increase the perceived value of your business.
Starbucks has an promotion where they will offer customers a free drink for their birthday in return for signing up for their loyalty program. They didn’t change anything to the product side of their business but instead added value to the loyalty side of being a customer. That is smart marketing!
Wrapping it Up
The point is a sales slump is not the end of the world. A little preparation and proactive action can go a long way to ensuring your company can weather even the harshest of storms. Practicing a few easy steps can drastically increase the perceived value of your brand and customer loyalty. This leads to more future sales and clients who are willing to sing your praises through online user-generated content and customer referrals.
The reason for the sales slump may be out of your hands, but if you keep your marketing nose to the grindstone during those slow times, it will pay off as customers come back around.
Why Your Business Needs a Lead Magnet
The online world is full of competition that can drown out your marketing campaigns with nothing more than a strategically placed cute cat meme. To ensure your messaging rises above the rest, you need to integrate every single technique and customer touchpoint possible. That is where the power of a lead magnet can help.
A lead magnet is a well-known marketing tool that increases new leads by offering some kind of value in exchange for their contact information. You’ve probably seen these used in a variety of places online.
The reason these are so valuable is because email is still king. More than half of consumers trust emails they receive from companies they signed up for compared to random unsolicited emails.
As a result, email marketing is still one of the most productive and highest ROI methods, especially for small to medium-sized businesses. It generates $42 for every $1 spent. That is a 4,200% ROI!
Capturing those high-value email addresses is going to take some sort of value exchange. You need to offer something worth a direct line of communication to your customers. Here are some of the best types of lead magnets that can be delivered through email to increase your conversions and boost revenue.
Coupons & Discounts
The majority of consumers report that they will change their purchasing habits based on the coupons they receive. That just means opportunity for you!
Offering coupons and discounts is an excellent way to capture leads to build longer-lasting customer relationships. The cost of a 25% off coupon is much lower than the cost of acquiring a loyal customer and it instantly creates good will between your business and new customer. That means they’re more likely become repeat customers.
Video
When it comes to video lead magnets for a lot of small businesses – ebooks, training courses, webinars, white papers, checklists, just aren’t going to convert the same way as they do for digital marketing related products and services.
But regardless video is still one of the best types of lead magnets and there are two types of video lead magnets that convert pretty well.
“How-To” videos are basically the most useful content consumers search for online. Demonstrate to your viewers they’ve got a problem and your video can help them find a solution.
“Case Study” videos pack a one-two punch mixing a “how-to” video and a customer testimonial video all in one.
I’m sure there are other ideas local businesses can use video to generate leads but these two are proven to get results.
Ready-Made Templates
Pre-made templates are a great way to increase leads, and they have the added bonus of being incredibly easy to make. With modern tools like Canva for graphics and a decent understanding of Microsoft Office, your team can bust out a few quick templates for practically anything.
Whether you want to offer pre-made social media posts your clients can fill in or ready-to-use financial documents for a new business, pre-made templates will undoubtedly provide high value for your leads.
Free Report & Guides
Not to be confused with e-books. You don’t need to have a five-volume tome on woodworking to encourage more people to visit your website. Using a quick written “how-to” guide for building a small birdhouse will be more effective.
If you work in travel you could create a checklist with a “post pandemic” packing guide for a customer’s next trip to Disney World. The possibilities are only restricted to your own imagination with this one. Think about the healthcare industry and how often you’ve come across “10 Foods for Lower Cholesterol” guides while shopping for a decent vitamin online.
But before you start generating any leads, make sure you have your autoresponder setup (we like ActiveCampaign) and follow up email series to nurture your new leads. Be sure there’s a clear option to unsubscribe. You never want anyone on your email list that doesn’t want to be there in the first place.
Summing it up…
Lead magnets have become an essential marketing tool for small businesses to quickly scale and grow revenue without breaking open the piggy bank to pay for the campaign. So, what’s your next lead magnet going to be?
Video Marketing 101 for Local Business
If content is king, then video content is the reigning emperor. By 2022, online videos will make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic – 15 times higher than in 2017. If you want to engage with internet users who make up most of the world’s population, you need compelling, attractive, and engaging video marketing strategies.
Why this Matters for Small Business
Running a successful business is all about managing operating costs while increasing sales and revenue. To do this, you need to choose strategies that have the highest ROI. Technology has finally caught up video marketing. Now practically everyone has a smartphone in their pocket capable of making movies that could be featured in the Sundance Film Festival.
It doesn’t take much to create an engaging video with nothing more than some decent lighting and a compelling story. This is perfect for smaller businesses that may not have deep pockets for their marketing campaigns but still want to do something relevant.
Local Means
There are many types of video content your small business can create, including:
- Introductions
- Explainer Videos
- Testimonials from Clients
- Behind the Scenes
- Demonstration
- FAQs
- Brand Stories
- Product Reveals or Unboxing
With every one of these options, you have the opportunity to feature local-based talent, locations and content to engage your audience with.
Local Storytelling Improves Sales
There was a great study done a while ago featured on the Significant Objects site where the experimenters decided to sell ordinary items they found at thrift stores and add compelling stories written by professional writers and authors. The result was practically a 20X increase in product value on average. Imagine selling a $1.25 item for almost $8,000!
Brand narratives increase brand value. This is a proven fact. If you want to increase the value of your company, tell a story through your video marketing. Personalize your content with local traditions that evoke an emotional reaction by your audience and use supporting data to hammer home those reactions.
A great example of this is High Brew Coffee. Their brand story revolves around the founders, a married couple, drinking bold, cold brew coffee packed with caffeine to stay alert during a six-month rafting adventure through the Caribbean. The copy for that brand story practically writes itself.
Showcase Your Expertise Everywhere
A woodworker named Marc Spagnuolo decided to take his hobby of making quality wood products online in 2006. Little by little, he made videos about how to construct custom bookcases, toy chests, and chairs, and his audience grew. He is currently sitting on 745,000 YouTube subscribers and a growing company that sells membership plans, books, instructional videos, and supports a local charity.
This man is not the best in the world, and he never claims to be. His personable style and authenticity as a local husband and dad showing other people a valuable skill makes his videos highly valuable for customers across the globe. This has transformed his small business into a thriving online community.
What no one talks about is the marketing genius behind this company, the founder’s wife, Nicole. She took his videos and plastered them all over social media, their customized website, in email campaigns, and with any collaborators willing to give them some space. She leveraged the small-town charm of her craftsman husband to build a family business that will probably pay for the college education of their great-grandchildren.
Emotional Response
Viral content typically evokes high-arousal emotions. We’re not talking about the “sideways no-pants dance” either. It means feelings that evoke a physical response. Think about those commercials and online videos that ignite something inside of you and triggers an emotional response.
The brand Always did a commercial a few years ago using the hashtag #likeagirl. In this commercial young actors were asked to perform actions “like a girl” including running, throwing, and fighting. In cases with boys or woman (older than their teens) they would mimic stereotypical actions of flailing around, and looking week.
When the director asked the young girls 10-12 years old to perform the same actions. They do them normally, and often with incredible vigor. This creates a brand story that supports teaching a new way of thinking about our society while celebrating woman – Always’ target audience It evokes a feeling of inspiration and hope which makes it relatable and memorable.
While not every business will have a genius marketer like those behind this commercial, the basic principles can be weaved into your local advertising techniques. Evoke a strong emotion when you celebrate your local traditions and the things that make a Mainer a Mainer and a Californian a Californian.
The Three E’s
If nothing else, remember the three E’s of video marketing: engage, educate, and energize. Upload your videos on the platforms where your target audience will be most likely to watch. Next, educate them with compelling copy that is relatable and relevant to them. Finally, energize them with your brand story that includes a CTA worthy of the video.
Video content is a powerful tool that can be utilized by companies both large and small – but it is especially valuable for smaller businesses. It’s initial low-cost, and potential high ROI makes getting noticed over your competition easier than ever before. It allows you to engage with your audience in ways that just were not possible 10 years go. Leverage your video content across social media, and you will be rewarded with a new stream of targeted traffic that can be tapped into time and time again.
Top 10 Content Marketing Tools of 2021
As a small business, it can be hard to designate time and energy to creating content for your audience. But the fact is, one of the best ways to raise awareness about your business and grow your customer base is through content marketing.
The good news is you don’t need to be an expert in content marketing to produce engaging content. Today, there are plenty of content marketing tools available to help you achieve your goals. Ongoing content marketing will improve traffic on your website and social pages, converting more of your audience into active customers.
With tons of content marketing tools out there, we’ve done the heavy lifting to help identify the tools worth investing in. Here are the top 10 content marketing tools of 2021 to escalate your content to the next level and help you become the content connoisseur for your business:
Canva
Free Plan & Paid Plan for $12.99/month
Let’s face it, not all of us are creatives. It can be tough to put together a balanced, good-looking graphic that communicates everything you need. Canva is an excellent tool to help you build anything and everything visual: posters, flyers, banners, instagram posts, and so much more can all be built on Canva. Using the tool, you can choose from tons of templates geared towards your needs that can be easily personalized to your business using their intuitive customization tools.
Canva is best for:
- Social graphics, posters & advertisements
- Individuals with little to no graphic design background
AnswerThePublic
Free Plan & Paid Plan for $79/month
Have you ever wondered what your customers are searching for? With AnswerThePublic, you no longer have to wonder – it will show you. Depending on your product or service, you can type in keywords and AnswerThePublic will provide a list of common questions consumers have asked around those keywords. Instead of shooting in the dark for content ideas, AskThePublic shows you what consumers really want to hear about.
AnswerThePublic is best for:
- Businesses that write blog posts and written content
- Content ideas that will perform well in searches
Quora
Free Platform
Quora is another great tool to help you get into the minds’ of consumers and understand where their needs lie. Using the platform, people can post questions and answers to nearly any topic. With Quora, you can search specific products and services related to your business to find out the key questions consumers are asking. This will inform your future content and give you an opportunity to market your own business by answering questions through the platform.
Quora is best for:
- Informing content topics for blogs and website content
- Learning about consumer interests
Google Trends
Free Platform
Nailing down the right keywords that pinpoint what your customers are most interested can feel like guesswork. Google Trends shows you how various keywords are performing in terms of consumer interest. Using the platform, you can plug in your keywords and see how many searches involving these keywords occur over time. This helps you to identify the keywords your customers are searching the most, and informs your future searches and content focuses.
Google Trends is best for:
- Identifying keywords relevant to your business
- Informing keyword searches for content ideas
Hemingway Editor
Free Platform
Hemingway Editor is your own personal in-house content editor. Using the platform, you can copy and paste your written content, where it will test for usage of passive voice, poor phrasing, and overall readability. Hemingway Editor helps you tighten your content and ensure it is relevant and engaging throughout. The platform ensures you are writing content that can be understood by your audience, and keep them coming back for more.
Hemingway Editor is best for:
- Assisting in active voice writing
- Ensuring content is readable
Grammarly
Free Plan & Paid Plan for $25/month
We’re all bound to make a grammar mistake or two….or ten. No matter what, Grammarly has got your back. The platform will scan your writing for any grammatical errors, helping to fix spelling and other mistakes throughout the piece to make it perfect. What’s more, if Grammarly identifies sentences that can be rewritten, it will suggest edits using your voice so it feels authentic to your business.
Grammarly is best for:
- Content editing for well-written blog posts
- Maintaining strong voice
SEMRush
Free Plan & Paid Plan for $99.95/month
Search engine optimization (SEO) is one of those topics that feels like both everyone & no one is an expert in. However, using SEMRush, you can become an SEO expert and strategize your content schedule to yield the best search results. The tool will help you focus your content on topics that interest your audience, and use data metrics to determine the best way to release your content for optimal viewership.
SEMRush is best for:
- SEO for business website and content
- Gathering analytics related to performance for future content
Google Analytics
Free
You should make an account on Google Analytics yesterday. Google Analytics provides you with all the key metrics necessary to understand how your website is performing overall. You can take a look at how many visits you have per day, which web pages are performing the best, and how long consumers stay on your site. What’s more, Google Analytics shows you key demographic information of your consumers to help you tailor your marketing efforts to be as effective as possible. It’s one of the best ways to gauge your business’s online performance, and tailor your future marketing approaches.
Google Analytics is best for:
- Understanding your business’s performance online
- Learning more about your target audiences
BuzzSumo
Free Plan & Paid Plans starting at $99/month
BuzzSumo is the ultimate end-to-end content marketing tool for your business needs. BuzzSumo helps you with keyword and content topic research, content optimization, and tracking to understand the full-circle performance of your content marketing efforts. Using the platform, you’re able to scour the internet in seconds to find what interests your key audiences the most.
BuzzSumo is best for:
- Identifying content focuses & high-performing keywords
- Analyzing how your targeted content performs
Wordtune
There’s nothing worse than staring at an empty document, struggling to write the perfect sentence. To help you put the words on the paper, use Wordtune. Wordtune is a plug-in you can add to your browser that uses AI to breathe new life into your content. Using Wordtune, you can rewrite content to match any tone you’re looking for, and ensure it’s optimized for your audiences.
Wordtune is best for:
- Optimizing written content
- Refocusing content for varied audiences
When it comes to content marketing, leveraging these tools can help you produce optimized and engaging content that will reach your audience. Staying consistent and strategic with your content marketing will help your business stand out and grow exponentially.
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 24
- 25
- 26
- 27
- 28
- …
- 44
- Next Page »