Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta…

  • September 25, 2019

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta…

Starting a new business is a feat that few attempt, like running a marathon. Each department of your business is another part of your training to reach the proverbial finish line.

After long hours of training and preparing, we – your coaches and biggest supporters at HighClick Media – suggest that what you need the night before the big race is a hearty meal of pasta – or more precisely, social media marketing.

 

“Social media marketing is like a pasta.”
 – Someone in our office…probably.

 

Why Would I Want to Eat Pasta?

– OR –
Why Should I Invest in Social Media Marketing?

Eating pasta before the big race is great for proper carb-loading. Carb-loading is not the only solution to winning a marathon and it won’t make you run faster, but it gives your body the nourishment it needs to be successful.

Social media is carb-loading for your business. Having a presence on social media, and utilizing those platforms, will be a way for your business to build awareness, interact with your customers, show authenticity, boost sales and leads, and add an extra layer of support and customer service to your company. Who doesn’t want that? 

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - Garfield

 

Who’s Making the Pasta?

– OR –

Should I Hire a Social Media Manager?

The age-old question of “What are we having for dinner?” is usually followed by “Well, who’s gonna make it?” You’ll need to follow that same frame of mind with your social media marketing.

You know what you’re having for dinner, but you don’t know who is going to make it! Do you make it at home by yourself, hire a personal chef to cook for you, or do you go to your favorite local Italian restaurant?

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - Chef Making Pasta

When you start the process of creating your online social media presence, you’ll need to figure out if you’ll do it all yourself, on top of running your business, hiring an employee to do it, or outsourcing the job to a digital marketing agency.

Ask yourself the following questions, and be honest:

  • Do I know how to run a social media platform for a business?
  • Do I have the time?
  • Should I hire a social media manager?
  • Can one of my employees do it?
  • If I hire a marketing agency, will they be able to capture the flavor I’m looking for?
  • Should I trust my employees or a local digital marketing agency with my company image?

 

What Type of Pasta Do I Want?

– OR –

What Will My Business Look Like Online?

The amount of different types of pasta in the world is truly a work of art. From angel hair and linguine to bowtie pasta and tortellini, the different combinations available for you to devour are endless! That’s why you need to decide your vision for your pasta before the water starts boiling! 

Do you want your social media page to be more formal, like a blog, or do you want to offer a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to run your business?

How often do you want to post, and what exactly will you be promoting? It’s one thing to say, “Hey, look at what I’m eating!” and another thing to say, “Wow, look at this beautiful fresh lasagna I made from scratch with just a few things in my kitchen!”

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - Lasagna

The devil is in the details and the sauce – and we recommend knowing the recipe by heart. That way you’ll be able to work with your employees if you decide to hire someone in-house, or your marketing agency if you should decide to go that direction.

Marketing agencies can research your favorite dish, but they appreciate it if you tell them how exactly you like it made. 

No matter the project, it’s better to plan ahead, as prior proper planning prevents poor performance on your end.

It can be a difficult hurdle to navigate all of the right social media channels for your business, but going in blind makes it even more of a challenge.

 

Remember, the Goal of the Pasta Is to Help Your Race, Not Hinder It! 

Planning can also mean creating posts in advance.  Certain social media networks and websites will give you insights for you to figure out the best times to post on social media, what day of the week, engagement rates, and the top hashtags to use.

Understanding these nuances will help make planning easier. There is nothing wrong with organic spontaneous posts, but your time is valuable!

Create your meal plan, or content calendar in this case, to plan out what exactly you want to be posted and when.

Your social media marketing shouldn’t prevent you from growing your business, but it can aid it!

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - Cheese on Pasta

 

Which Ingredients Should I Use?

– OR –

What Social Media Platforms Should I Be On?

Your appetite won’t allow for any pasta meal  – it craves a specific type of delicious victory before you cross the marathon finish line.

There are plenty of social media networks out there for your business to eat up. Here are some of the more popular networks for you to try! 

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - Full House Eating Pasta

Facebook is the sauce that everyone uses and there’s a reason why. It’s business-friendly and can work almost like a second website.

With a large assortment of post types and advertisement capabilities, the flavor can be a tad overwhelming at first, but in time you’ll be wishing for seconds and thirds.

Facebook is how many businesses are found and a great place for announcements, business-to-business interaction, and community engagement.

Take full advantage of the tools Facebook gives you to keep your page active and inviting.

Depending on your flavor profile, an Instagram account is the spice of your business engagement. Instagram is owned by Facebook, and as such, integration between your Instagram and Facebook is as easy as boiling water!

You’ll need the app on any mobile device to post, and you’ll need to take pictures of your services or your product to fill your feed.

Instagram is a great place to interact with like businesses by following hashtags and engaging in their comment section. This can be done locally or across the entire globe!

Quick tip: Check out the trending hashtags for more insight into what’s currently popular on Instagram, and see if your business fits into any of them!

Making a lasagna like YouTube sounds like a great investment, and it is – but YouTube can be daunting for those who underestimate it.

The allure of the multilayer noodle cake is enough to drive any sane person crazy with delight, but the process of making lasagna (content) on YouTube is a long one. Having a set goal and content drive is crucial for YouTube.

How will you create the content? What type of videos will you produce? Who is going to edit them? If you came across this video on YouTube, would you watch it? 

YouTube is a perfect platform for the right business, so don’t let us scare you off – but it’s a platform that demands the time it takes to deliver high-caliber content.

Creative videography, quality sound design, and topics that resonate with your target audience should be top goals for your YouTube channel.

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - Multi-Layer Noodle Cake

Pasta can be very colorful, and the recipes can be particularly crafty! If this sort of pasta speaks to you, then you have certainly heard of Pinterest. Pinterest will allow your customers to create their virtual vision board using your pins (posts).

This platform is perfect for promoting crafts, DIY projects, and recipes (like pasta!).

You can take it a step further as well by promoting your company’s apps, articles, and products – sending customers straight to landing pages you’ve tailored for the occasion! 

Not every business is striving for a business-to-consumer strategy. For businesses focusing heavily on B2B, you absolutely must find yourself on LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is a great place to interact with other business owners and people in your field. If you’re looking to promote job openings in your business, LinkedIn has an onsite job listing area – perfect for looking for a personal chef to cook your pre-marathon pasta dinner. 

When it comes to social media marketing, especially when you’re first getting started, not every social media channel will be right for you.

A true hot take, we know, but tackling multiple social media channels at once can be daunting and exhausting. It’s better to start strong and ease yourself into going faster until you find the perfect pace for you.  

You’ll need to figure out which channels are best for your business style, outlook, and time management.

Sharing the Pasta.

– OR –

How Do I Get More Followers on Social Media?

Did you know? There are about 4.76 billion social media users worldwide. That’s a lot of people who could eat pasta with you!

Social media marketing is pivotal in today’s business world. Our last serving of advice is to share your pasta with your community.

Get ready for your marathon of running a business together with your community. Engage with other local businesses and local social media influencers, take part in events, and interact with each other over social media to build a strong business community.

Every social media channel provides easy and unique ways to share and grow your social media organic reach – and your business should utilize them. 

Social Media Marketing Is Like a Pasta - People Love Pasta

At HighClick Media, we work with your vision for your business and dish it up across social media. We will take your recipe of success and create fantastic meals for your customers to eat up!

We strive for a full-course meal of digital marketing and design to help your business grow. If you have the kitchen, we have the ingredients.

We’re HighClick Media and we’re here to #ElevateYourBrand! Contact us today to see how.

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5-Step Guide to Video Production

5-Step Guide to Video Production

Is your business is curious about how to make a YouTube video? How many times have you seen a competitor on Facebook Video and thought “we should have done that“?

2016 saw the rise of video content marketing to promote or market brands, products, or services. With each passing year, video marketing integrated deeper into a digital strategy for content marketers until it became a must-have for businesses. 

Video marketing relies on creating and distributing valuable and consistent video content to your target audience to attract, engage, and connect qualified leads. 

54% of consumers want to see more video content from a brand or business they support. On top of that, researchers say that by 2022, 82% of global internet traffic will come from video streaming and downloads.

All of this is great seeing as 88% of video marketers are satisfied with the ROI of their video marketing.

Video content gives a booster shot to your search engine optimization, as well as creating engaging content for your clients to interact with on social media platforms like YouTube and Facebook, or in an email blast. Wherever your target audience can be found!

The production process and how you get the message of your brand across is what matters, and in this blog post, we’ll guide you through each step on how to make a video and give you tips and tricks to rev up your video marketing campaigns.

Here’s your 5-Step Guide to Video Production!

Step #1: Conception

Conception happens when you decide you want to integrate video marketing into your business strategy. This is the stage where you figure out your target audience and campaign goals. These set the foundation of every successful marketing campaign, and as such are needed in video marketing. A campaign with no foundation will gain no elevation.

After that, it’s time to figure out how exactly you want to build upon that foundation with a wide variety of types of videos to choose from, including company commercials/trailers, client testimonials, employee spotlights, demos, how-to videos with your products, and even videos that showcase your company culture.

Video Marketing is only limited by your imagination.
Just don’t hurt yourself in the process

Next, ask yourself whether you’ll do it in-house, or if you’ll hire out. If you want to produce videos internally, you’ll need to research the equipment and editing programs necessary to produce the content. There are cameras, mics, and lighting set up for any budget. However, you get the quality you pay for, so be mindful of that! 

Do you have the staff power and capability to do so? Do you have the time to manage every step of the process? Creating video content can be a time-consuming ordeal, so be sure you’re prepared to take it on!

If you want to hire out, do your research on the agencies, freelancers, and production companies in your area (like us, for instance). Reach out and meet with companies that you feel would capture your video marketing the best. Once you seal the deal, it’s time to start pre-production.

Step #2: Pre-Production

..or as I like to call it “Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.” So you have the goals in place, now it’s time to film!

In reality, it’s time to plan the production. It’s not as simple as “have an idea, now Lights. Camera. Action!” Pre-production is VITAL to the success of your campaign.

There is a method to the video marketing madness. You have the foundation, but you need the skeleton of the video. 

We’re talking about:

  • Who is going to be in it?
  • What equipment, permits, props, scripts, etc. will you need?
  • Where is it going to be filmed?
  • When is it going to be filmed?
  • How is it going to be filmed?

A script is developed either internally or externally in conjunction with the goals, target audience, and company branding. As the script is created and edited, a storyboard is worked on to help focus the director’s vision.

A storyboard is a frame-by-frame shot list attached to the script so the director, cameraman, and post-production know exactly what goes where and when that frame happens. Not everyone will use a storyboard – but it does help with shoots that have multiple locations and angles. 

Speaking of locations, this is where filming logistics will need to happen if they did not already happen before pre-production. 

If you’re filming outside, have you checked the weather for the week and set up rain delays?

If you’re filming in a city or residential area, do you have the right permits to avoid fines? What location scouting has been done? 

Who will be in the video – employees of the company or paid actors? Have they been contacted ahead of time and worked into the filming schedule? 

There is a lot of planning that must happen with each production – so to help out, we’ve created a downloadable file for you to use! It’s a guide and checklist for each part of pre-production to help keep yourself organized.

Step #3: Filming

The purpose of pre-production is to make filming easier. It’s the day of the shoot, and everyone is prepared. Fantastic!

Film multiple takes to have more to work with and give yourself more than enough time to film. Even the best-trained actors stumble, and equipment problems can pop up.

Make sure to film the right thing

When filming, try to grab B-roll footage, which is supplemental or alternative footage inter-cut with the main shot. It’s the footage that shows what a person is talking about, shots of the location area, and maybe interaction between two people.

B-roll footage blends in with the video to create a cohesive story that is visually appealing outside of the main footage. Integrate B-roll footage into your pre-production planning.

Step #4: Post-Production 

Post-production is where all the editing magic of visual and sound effects happens. If filming was organized and efficient, then post-production will be smoother. All the footage captured is edited as per the script and storyboards.

Any planned voiceovers are captured, and if needed, a sound editor works on adding music and sound mixing; making sure to obtain a high-quality sound mix to go along with the high-quality visuals an audience is seeing. 

Visual effects, like utilizing a green screen, color correction, or other video graphics, are added and managed. When selecting the visual effects to add to your video, keep in mind your company’s brand image. What colors and fonts do you have set for your brand, and what sort of visual styles does your company present? 

Imagine the Instagram pictures from Middle Earth

With post-production, you’ll be given a lot of footage that needs to be cleaned up and trimmed down to the desired length.

If you’re working with an agency, once the first edit is done, it’s sent to you for revisions and suggested edits. You may want to add more or trim some lines. Maybe the colors are off or you don’t like transitions in some places. 

This is where you need to remind yourself of the Target Audience, Campaign Goals, and most importantly your Brand. Does this video represent your brand well? If not send it back with notes for the editors! Be specific with timestamps!

Step #5: Launch the Video!

Once you’re happy with the video, it’s time to release it. 

Will you host it on your website, or release it on platforms such as YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook? It could be a part of your marketing campaign or internal training videos. The choice is up to you!

Where the video is going and who it’s for was determined back in step 1. Be specific with where you release and promote your video. Focus on the copy and keywords to take advantage of SEO. It doesn’t hurt to review the video one more time before you click upload for any textual typos or edits that escaped the post-production team.

Once you’re happy with it, then let the world know all about it!

Here at HighClick Media, we follow each of these steps in our video marketing process. We have our target audience and campaign goals that we keep in mind with each of the videos we produce. For our brand, we create videos to help educate our community and clients on digital marketing, and we sneak in some company culture here and there.

We work as a team in each step of the process to produce content we’re proud of, while at the same time pushing ourselves to improve the product, our skills, and capabilities. We saw video marketing as where we want to be, and together we’re elevating HighClick to new heights!

Video branding and online video are taking the entire digital marketing frontier by storm, and it’s time for your company to jump in before it’s blown away.

If you’re interested in how video marketing can help your business, call HighClick Media at 252-814-2150 today or drop us a line here! Together we’ll elevate your brand to new heights.

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5 Tips to Strengthen Your Social Media Marketing Strategy

  • June 11, 2018
  • Jason Hill
Social Media Marketing Strategy

5 Tips to Strengthen Your Social Media Marketing Strategy

It’s no secret that social media marketing has been playing a vital role for businesses of all sizes over the years. Whether you’ve established a big company or recently opened a startup, it’s essential to develop a solid social media marketing strategy.

Creating a solid online presence across various social media outlets is an effective way to reach your target audience, engage with them in the best way, and reduce marketing costs. 

Maybe you’ve already created a few social profiles to showcase your brand. However, what truly matters is what additional strategies you choose to attract your potential customers in hopes that they’ll spread awareness on their online network.

To help you out, we’re sharing five social media strategies that you can practice to improve your presence and achieve your goals!

1) Produce Multimedia-Based Content

Interactive videos and attention-grabbing pictures are more likely to get shared and liked than written content alone. Think about what you’d be drawn to as you aimlessly scroll through your news feed.

2) Customized Posting for Individual Platforms

Every social platform will have its own unique set of users. By customizing your posts for each outlet, you’re showing dedication towards your customer base no matter where they’re choosing to follow your brand. Different strokes for different folks!

3) Engaging Campaigns or Contests

Campaigns and contests that promise rewards for the winners are always helpful if you’re looking to expand your customer base and appeal to a larger number of people. I mean, who doesn’t love a good freebie?

4) Set Up Your Brand

Take pride in your social media appearance! Creating a complete profile that includes a bio and a logo for your company on all your social profiles creates a well-functioning brand identity for your company. This increases credibility and gives you a consistent online identity.

5) Respond Promptly

If you want to create a loyal user base, it is so important that you take their comments and messages seriously. Your customers and potential customers are looking to you for solutions, so be ready to provide them with one in a timely manner.

Using the suggested tips above and applying your creativity to your campaign strategy will get you ready to brighten up your business! If you’re not sure where to start, or social media just isn’t your thing, hit us up! We live, sleep, and breathe all things social!

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How to Generate Leads for Your Business with Digital Marketing

How to Generate Leads for Your Business with Digital Marketing
  • March 9, 2021

How to Generate Leads for Your Business with Digital Marketing

If you haven’t already, it’s time to face the facts: the digital age has altered the way we conduct business forever. Gone are the days when promoting your business meant taking out an ad in the newspaper or going door-to-door with flyers.

These days, when seeking a product or service, the first thing most people do is reach for their laptop or mobile device and search for what they need – typically via a search engine or social media platform. In fact, nearly 90% of shoppers perform online research before making a purchase. Accordingly, conventional sales and marketing tactics have evolved to adapt to these behaviors.

Today’s marketers, salespeople, and brands must put themselves in the shoes of their prospective customers. Can your target audience carry out a quick Google search and easily discover your brand and specific products or services online? Is your message reaching the right prospects through your social media channels and campaigns?

As organizations continue to adjust to a digital sales environment, many are experimenting with online lead-generation campaigns aimed at bringing in new prospects that they can eventually convert into paying customers.

Using proven digital marketing methods, your business can build a solid lead-generation strategy that will attract new customers and boost sales in a cost-effective way.

 

What Is a Lead?

Before proceeding any further, we should probably define exactly what a lead is. According to HubSpot, a lead is any person who shows interest – whether implicitly or explicitly – in a company’s products or services in some way, shape, or form.

Rather than receiving a random cold call from someone who might have purchased their contact information, leads usually hear from a business or organization after initiating communication – typically by volunteering their personal information for an offer, trial, or subscription.

 

What Is Lead Generation, and Why Is It Important? 

While we’re at it, we should also clarify what lead generation is, and why it’s important for your business.

According to HubSpot, lead generation is the process of attracting and converting strangers and prospects into people who are interested in your company’s products and services.

Implementing a lead-generation strategy can help get your marketing messages heard across various channels, thus boosting brand awareness, creating demand for your products and services, and establishing relationships with potential customers.

From a digital marketing perspective, the overarching idea behind lead generation is to bring traffic to your website, convert website visitors into leads, and ultimately convert those leads into customers. By gradually warming up prospects to your brand, you set up your sales team for greater success and help drive revenue for the business.

 

How to Generate Leads Through Digital Marketing

It’s important to note that there is no generic formula that works equally well for all businesses. A lead-generation method that may be effective for one company might fall flat for yours. A number of factors come into play here, including the type of business you have, the kinds of products you sell, and properly identifying your target audience, to name a few.

There are numerous promotional channels you can use to steer traffic to your website in order to start generating leads. Let’s take a look at a few of the most common digital marketing techniques that have proved to be successful for many organizations:

 

Content Marketing

Content marketing involves “creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience to drive profitable customer action.”

Common forms of content marketing include blogs, articles, infographics, videos, and social media posts.

The ultimate goal of content marketing isn’t to sell your product or service – rather, you want to build trust and authority around your brand. Instead of delivering an obvious sales pitch, offer meaningful solutions to specific problems that customers are experiencing and position your brand and its products and services as the natural remedy.

Effective content marketing helps improve online visibility, boost brand awareness, increase website traffic, and attract more credible leads. In addition, when your audience notices that you’re consistently posting useful information, they’ll presume that you’re good at what you do – which naturally helps build confidence in your business.

Having a great deal of interesting content on your website will also encourage visitors to spend more time on each page. When Google sees that people are spending a lot of time reading your content, this sends a positive signal that people are finding your pages helpful – which, in turn, has a positive impact on your Google search rankings.

Gated content is a surefire way to generate leads, as this type of content is only available to people who agree to fill out a special form to access it. It’s a fair exchange for both parties – you get the contact information of a new lead and a potential customer gains access to your special content. Popular forms of gated content include case studies, whitepapers, reports, e-books, and how-to guides.

 

Pro Tips for Successful Content Marketing:

  • Regularly post blogs, news, and tips about or related to your industry. This helps further establish your expertise in the field.
  • Organic search is the largest source of high-quality leads – so spend some time optimizing your content for search engines so that users can find it easily.
  • Research your target audience thoroughly so that the content you create aligns with users’ search intent – in other words, seek to answer the questions they’re already asking and provide the info they’re already searching for.
  • Promote your content on your social media sites and in emails. Great content won’t make any difference if people can’t find it!

 

Email Marketing

Despite the fact that it’s one of the earliest forms of digital marketing, email is still one of the most effective methods for gaining and nurturing leads. In truth, the first point of entry to a lead is often an email. Virtually everyone who’s active online has an email address – and that isn’t going to change anytime soon!

Email marketing can consist of newsletters with updates on your organization, announcements about special promotions, and exclusive offers for subscribers.

With today’s technology, you can achieve more favorable results with your emails through audience segmentation. In essence, you can tailor your email marketing messages to target specific segments of your customer database. In doing so, you make your brand relevant to a greater number of people.

Email is a surefire way to reach people who are already familiar with your brand, products, or services. Done right, this marketing channel helps bolster trust between your organization and current or potential clients.

 

Social Media Marketing

Social media has unquestionably become one of the most powerful avenues for marketing. With over 2.8 billion monthly active users on Facebook alone, it’s a safe bet that most of your potential customers have and use at least one social media account. Currently, the most popular platforms for driving traffic to your website and acquiring leads are Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.

Through social media, you can connect with your target audience directly, gradually build relationships with them, and in due course convert those followers into leads. In order for your efforts to be successful, you’ll have to invest time and effort into building an engaged audience.

Instead of flooding your followers with a slew of special offers, speak to them about their desires and challenges. By interacting with users on a personal level, you not only start to earn their trust but also humanize your brand in the process – the importance of which cannot be understated.

It’s essential that you know your target audience well in order to determine which social media platforms they use frequently so you can reach them where they are. Don’t expect to succeed by simply setting up accounts on every social media channel available, then interacting with your audiences once a week – consistency is key. Ideally, you should establish a presence on 1 to 3 social media channels and start posting meaningful and relevant content on a regular basis.

Resist the temptation to use social media simply as a platform to talk about yourself. Rather, use it to discuss news about your industry, share tips that aren’t necessarily written by your team, and always welcome open discussions. An active business social media account can go a long way toward promoting your brand as a thought leader and expert in the field.

 

Pro Tips for Effective Social Media Marketing:

  • Be sure that your social media profiles include all the important information users might need to get in touch with you, including hours of operation, physical address, website URL, and other contact info.
  • Showcasing your company culture on social media can give your brand a distinctive personality online. Don’t hesitate to share pictures, videos, and anything else that might give users an inside look at your company.
  • Many people visit social media sites simply to be entertained. When composing your social media posts, be sure to maintain a casual, not-too-serious tone. This can form a stronger connection with your audience.
  • That being said, each social media platform has a different vibe. Strive to “read the room” and change your tone based on the platform you’re using, while still retaining the ethos of your brand.
  • Center your social media efforts on interaction and engagement. It makes no difference if you’re posting a hundred times a day on Twitter. If nobody’s engaging with those posts, you’re wasting your time!
  • Always remember that social media is a two-way street. By sharing and commenting on your followers’ content, you show that you’re an active participant in the relationship you’re building with them.
  • If you’re considering running paid advertising on social media, Facebook Lead Ads is a good place to start. This type of advertisement provides a quick and simple way for users to share their contact info with you without ever having to leave Facebook or visit your website.

 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Ranking high in organic searches is likely one of the most beneficial long-term lead-generation strategies there is. Yet, with over two hundred factors determining how Google will rank your website within search engine result pages (SERPs), it can be difficult to know where to start.

Being at or near the top of Google SERPs is especially critical when you consider that 75% of people won’t ever advance beyond the first page of results. With Google receiving over 1 billion searches per month if you’re not laying claim to your rightful place in those searches, how can you hope to drive the website traffic needed to generate leads?

The solution is search engine optimization (SEO). The goal of SEO is to improve your website’s rankings in SERPs for specific keywords and phrases. If someone is looking something up online and your website appears first in search results, there’s a good probability that they will engage with your website in some form or fashion.

As with many other aspects of the digital world, the rules of SEO change regularly, especially as technology advances. But this doesn’t mean you can’t gain some degree of control over your rankings.

SEO is primarily driven by your chosen keywords and how you map them to relate back to your website. This process can be complicated and is generally best left to marketing professionals. However, there are a couple of things you can do on your own which will make a positive impact.

You can start by making sure that your NAP (Name, Address, and Phone) is consistent on your website, as well as within online directories such as Yelp, Facebook, and Google Business Profile.

Make it simple for your customers to leave a review on your website. Additionally, reviews on third-party platforms can greatly increase your chances of being found by qualified prospects – without having to pay a dime! So, don’t hesitate to ask your satisfied customers to put in a good word for you.

 

Website Optimization

Having a business website is a critical component of marketing your brand – think of it as your digital business card. Indeed, the overall aim of digital marketing is to propel traffic to your website. But nearly 96% of users who visit your website aren’t yet prepared to make a purchase. Your website has to persuade visitors to buy your products or services.

Are your website design and landing pages sleek and contemporary? Are pages loading quickly enough? Are all internal links routing to the correct web page? These are the kinds of questions you need to regularly address in order to successfully generate leads through your site.

Though having a slick, professional appearance can make your brand look modern and well-informed, it’s not what matters most to your target audience.

Website visitors would prefer to interact with a website that’s easy to navigate. If it isn’t, visitors are unlikely to spend a great deal of time on your website – let alone convert to customers. Loading errors, lag speed, and poor user interface can actually drive traffic away rather than draw more in.

In addition, Google deems it essential that websites be more mobile-friendly. If not optimized for a seamless experience on users’ smartphones, your website can actually be penalized by being ranked lower in search results.

Building optimized web pages for your business is the secret to driving traffic to your website and converting those who are “just visiting” into leads. Experienced web developers and web designers can make sure that both your website and your landing pages – which are essential to driving leads, since these pages are often where most of your website leads will be generated from – are fully optimized.

 

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising

Pay-per-click (PPC) is an online advertising framework that businesses draw on to drive traffic, sales, or inquiries from their target audience. With PPC, an advertiser runs an ad on an online platform such as Google Ads and pays a fee every time someone clicks on the ad. PPC platforms provide an impressive depth of targeting, which is to say you can deliver ads exclusively to those who you deem to fit your customer demographic.

PPC uses keywords in a similar fashion to SEO – accordingly, you’ll need to decide which keywords you want to target with each campaign. These keywords will trigger your ads to appear at the top of search results.

Pay-per-click is ideal for generating new leads because it attracts “qualified” traffic – that is, users who have already shown interest in your products. In fact, PPC visitors are 50% more likely to make a purchase than visitors from organic searches.

Setting up and running a PPC campaign can be a daunting task, especially if you’re new to it. Oftentimes, the best approach is to partner with a reputable digital marketing agency that specializes in PPC advertising.

 

Chatbots

Marketing is all about identifying your target audience and communicating how your product or service can address and resolve their problems. In today’s customer-centric market, chatbots are immensely popular as customers enjoy interacting with them.

A lead-generation chatbot essentially serves as the first point of contact with a new user and signifies the beginning of your brand’s relationship with them. Chatbots are engineered to interact with site visitors in a conversational way. A chatbot’s primary goal is to anticipate what the user is going to ask and to provide a response that’s entertaining, engaging, and educational. The longer a user communicates with a chatbot, the more data is amassed.

Lead chatbots are designed to collect contact information from prospects in order to convey the data to sales professionals who can then continue the conversation and ultimately convert those leads into customers. They’ve proven to be highly effective, too – in fact, chatbots convert 4x higher than traditional lead-generation tools.

The benefits of chatbots for lead generation are practically limitless. Here are just a few of the more obvious advantages:

  1. Available to work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
  2. Meet the needs and interests of prospective customers by offering relevant products and services.
  3. Address customer queries in real time and proactively provide pertinent information to users.
  4. Direct quality leads to arrange initial sales meetings by gathering essential info, suggesting times, and sending booking confirmations to meeting participants.
  5. Increase operational efficiency, delivering cost savings to the business while providing greater customer satisfaction.

While chatbots are seldom qualified to answer visitors’ more complicated queries or to execute the final steps of the sales process – both of which necessitate a human touch – for more direct approaches like those listed above, these marketing automation tools can be valuable straight out of the gate.

Final Thoughts

Generating leads for your business might seem like a challenging task, but it’s essential if you want to drive revenue. By employing these proven digital marketing methods, you can increase the number of leads your business generates and ultimately improve your chances of increased sales.

If you’re just starting out or still struggling to find ways to grow your business, we’d love to partner with you! HighClick Media is a full-service digital marketing agency specializing in SEO, PPC advertising, social media and email marketing, content development, and website optimization. Call us today at 252.814.2150 or drop us a line to see how we can help elevate your brand!

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Marketing to Millennials: Here’s What You Need to Know

  • November 30, 2021

Marketing To Millennials: Here’s What You Need To Know

Marketing professionals for small-to-medium-sized businesses should be aware that when creating messaging and content for the Millennial generation and younger, different rules apply. Marketing approaches that might have been effective in attracting the positive notice of older generations might miss the mark for Millennials – or even send the wrong message entirely. This means you may be failing to earn the interest and loyalty of the largest living generation, even if it’s not the generation that has the most buying power – yet.

Why Are Millennials Important as a Target Audience?

The short answer to this is that everyone is important. Good marketing is accessible marketing,  taking diverse needs into consideration and leaving no one out. Neglecting Millennials simply because they hold less wealth than Boomers or Gen X is problematic from several standpoints. However, from a purely pragmatic perspective, marketing that ignores Millennials is sabotaging itself.

This is partially because Millennials will come into greater buying power in the near future. It’s also because Millennials are more likely than other generations to be the primary consumers of marketing messaging since they are the most plugged in.

Here are some key considerations if you’re developing a marketing campaign with Millennials in mind:

1) Quality of Design Is Important

Older consumers may not notice if a website is poorly laid out or looks outdated. They may notice if a site is difficult to use, but they won’t necessarily be able to pinpoint why. Millennials, on the other hand – having grown up alongside a variety of developments in the digital world – are extremely savvy about what constitutes good design versus what looks cheap, tacky, or cheesy. If you’re not confident about your capacity to design for Millennials, consider enlisting the services of a professional website designer.

2) Craft Content That’s Social-Media-Worthy

Millennials and other younger consumers are probably going to come across your marketing on social media. So, you’ll want to craft content that works well across different platforms. Social-friendly content types to consider include videos (both video Stories and live streaming), testimonials, contests, and holiday-themed content. Also, make sure that your marketing content translates well to mobile devices.

3) Short-Form Content Is the Way to Go

Optimize your social media content to cater to the shorter attention spans of this generation. In many cases, Millennials simply don’t want to waste a lot of time trying to absorb marketing material, and they probably aren’t going to sit down and gaze at a lengthy video, either. Shorter snippets and brief stories are better than earnest but lengthy infomercials. Avoid using clickbait techniques in an attempt to lure Millennial consumers to go deeper into the content. These techniques are glaringly visible for what they are and are a major turn-off for this generation.

4) Make It About the Experience

Millennial consumers tend to value experiences over ownership. They’re more likely to splurge on an adventure or an excursion than on expensive material belongings. And, of course, they’re also likely to want to translate those experiences into Instagram shares. So, instead of focusing on what Millennial buyers might want to possess or purchase, emphasize how your products or services can enhance their life experiences.

5) Deliver Prompt Customer Service

Digital tools make it possible to communicate far more rapidly and effectively than we did even a decade ago, and Millennials are well-accustomed to using these tools. Consequently, they expect others to have mastered these so-called “instant gratification” tools as well. Delayed response times, particularly when it comes to customer requests or service, are likely to provoke a certain level of impatience.

6) Don’t Try to Fake Authenticity

This is a big one. A lot of the pitches that were popular in marketing campaigns directed at Gen X or Boomers come off, in the eyes of Millennials, as just that: sales pitches. This is a generation that has learned to distrust too much smoothness or fakeness and will view rehearsed sales scripts as smarmy rather than smart. In fact, Millennials are more likely than preceding generations to distrust the motives of the business itself. This is why it’s important that your marketing campaign is backed by real evidence with regard to company ethics and influence.

7) Appeal to Their Values

Millennials tend to take values and ethics seriously. Shopping, for them, is not just about satisfying individual needs or desires or getting the best deal. It’s also about making informed choices that can contribute to a better future. Unlike the “me generation,” these younger consumers are likely to think more about sustainability and the future and ask questions about the values and mission of a company.

8) Make Affordability a Selling Point

Here again, Millennials are probably going to look past the pitch and determine whether this product or service is actually a frugal choice. The generation that made thrift store shopping hip cares less about showcasing expensive brands and more about making their spending money go further. When Millennials do splurge, they’re often motivated less by the need to have what everyone else has, and more by the desire to have something unique that reflects their personal style and brand.

9) Where Millennial Audiences Hang Out

In order to reach Millennials on social media, you’ll want to make use of the major platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, as well as some of the newer ones like Snapchat and TikTok, where younger Millennials may be more active. Email marketing also is an effective way to reach your Millennial audience. Compared to Gen Z, Millennials tend to use a variety of platforms and don’t focus simply on those which are primarily video-oriented. Since you will need to diversify your digital marketing in order to capture broad Millennial interests, consider working with a local digital marketing agency like HighClick Media.

A good marketing strategist understands that while human nature remains relatively unchanged from one generation to the next, human trends, tastes, activities, and self-definition are very culturally relative. So, it’s important to understand the different tastes of diverse demographics, including Millennial consumers.

At HighClick Media, we’re ready, willing, and able to help with all of your digital marketing needs. Give us a call today at 252.814.2150 or drop us a line here.

About The Author:

Alyssa Strickland created millennial-parents.com for all the new parents on the block. She believes the old adage that it takes a village to raise a child, but also thinks it takes a village to raise a parent! Millennial-Parents is that village. Today’s parents can be more connected than ever, and Alyssa hopes her site will enrich those connections. On Millennial-Parents, she shares tips and advice she’s learned through experience and from other young parents in three key areas: Education, Relationships, and Community.

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How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool

At the center of your digital marketing efforts, your website has the potential to become a powerful sales machine capable of branching out to all other online marketing venues.

Learning how to use your website as a marketing tool is an important first step for any business owner who’s beginning to realize the importance and potential of search engine optimization (SEO). Here are some basic tips on where to begin:

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Perpetuate Your Brand

Perpetuate Your Branding

Your branding must become synonymous with the industry you’re in. Whenever people see a meme, infographic, or video you’ve created, they should be able to instantly recognize this content as coming from your brand.

Creating a memorable brand logo has the potential to skyrocket your visibility and steer people directly to your business’s website. You might choose to use a DIY free logo creator tool for this purpose or enlist the services of a graphic designer if you’ve got the budget. Once you have your logo nailed down, you should be adding it to literally every piece of content you put out.

If your logo and branding are unique and cleverly designed, your target audience (the people actively consuming your content on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.) will flock to your website.

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Compose a Long-Form FAQ Article

Compose a Long-Form FAQ Article

Given that 8% of all Google queries are questions from users, it’s time that you capitalized on this by answering all the questions pertinent to your industry.

A FAQ article is a type of blog consisting predominantly of questions and answers. Google takes notice of question-and-answer dialogues and is much more likely to rank content that appears to answer those questions best. As you continue answering questions, your site will quickly gain momentum by becoming a go-to knowledge hub for people who are already interested in the products and services you have to offer.

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Create Pillar Posts for Your Blog

Create Pillar Posts for Your Blog

Pillar posts are more potent than normal blog posts because they’re designed to appeal to Google’s algorithms as well as people.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create a pillar post that will boost your website’s ranking and add value to your audience.

  1. Come up with a great concept that engages your audience but is also relevant to your industry.
  2. Craft a title that’s list-oriented. The longer the list of potential “hacks” or “tips” you can provide, the better!
  3. Begin by writing about three of those concepts.
  4. Publish your blog post under a catchy title, such as “3 Failproof Ways to…” or “3 Neglected Methods for…” (Note: Make sure the body of your post lives up to the hype of its title, or you might be guilty of clickbait.)
  5. Add an image or video for each of the concepts.
  6. Add another tip each month, making sure that you also change the number in your title as you add those tips.
  7. Update the existing content in the blog as well wherever relevant.

This continual adding and updating will get Google’s attention – within 6 months, you can expect your ranking to improve significantly.

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Sell Directly from Your Site

Sell Directly from Your Site

You don’t have to transform your website into a full-fledged ecommerce site to sell your products or services online. You already have the ability to present products and sell them directly from your existing website.

You can add products, along with prices, and offer delivery as much as you are able to. Before long, you’ll have a much more convenient way of selling your products in a world where people are prone to shop at home and have items brought to their front door.

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Customer Reviews and Testimonials

Reviews and Testimonials

Become the type of business owner who thrives on good reviews – then show off those reviews by displaying them on the most prominent areas of your website.

Google uses a 5-star system to rate businesses. If your rating is higher than 4 stars, showcase it on your homepage to instill trust in future users who might be looking for your services. It’s a surefire way to develop credibility with your audience in a market where competition is so strong.

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Conduct Interviews

Conduct Interviews

A great way to set yourself up as an industry leader and a trustworthy source for your products and services is by interviewing experts within your industry.

Conduct interviews and post them directly on your website, or post them on YouTube, then create a video feed on your site that allows users to watch your content without having to navigate away from your page.

Who would you interview? Here are a few ideas:

  • Suppliers
  • Affiliates
  • International Experts
  • Local Experts

Basically, anyone who might add interest and value to a topic related to your industry.

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool - Develop Tutorials

Develop Tutorials

Educating your audience is one of the most powerful marketing tools you can utilize – and you can do this directly from your current website!

You can embed videos on your site or simply create a step-by-step written tutorial about how to solve a common problem your target audience might regularly deal with.

This solution-based content will attract visitors to your site, compel them to trust you, eventually buy from you, and ultimately refer you to others who have the same needs.

Final Thoughts

How to Use Your Website As a Marketing Tool

In an ever-changing digital landscape, your company’s website is the most important marketing tool in your arsenal. None of the various aspects of marketing – social media, content creation, email campaigns, paid search ads, SEO, print media, or other traditional methods – have the potential to create more leads or present a more professional image of your business than your website.

Not only does your website serve as a virtual salesperson and brand ambassador for your business, but you can also use it to genuinely connect with prospective customers.

In essence, your website is the nexus at which all your marketing efforts begin and end. Whether you’re sending a tweet, publishing a blog post, running a newspaper ad, or adding a link at the bottom of your business card – the ultimate goal of marketing is to drive traffic to your website.

The success (or failure) of your overall marketing strategy boils down to the design, prowess, and intuitiveness of the website it draws people towards. If you aren’t using your website as the marketing tool it is, then you’re missing out on a lot of potential business. If you’re not making a concentrated effort to be where your customers are, you can bet that your competition is going to reach them before you can.

By implementing the suggestions listed above and incorporating them into your marketing strategy, you’ll be well on your way to seeing positive results for your business.

If you need help developing a marketing strategy, if your branding is all over the place, or if your website is perhaps too old and dilapidated to do what you need it to do, give us a call at 252.814.2150 or drop us a line here!

We’ll be happy to sit down with you (in person, or virtually) and discuss possible changes we can make together to help your business succeed in the digital age. At HighClick Media, our primary mission is to elevate your brand, no matter what it takes. Let’s start a conversation today!

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As a digital content expert, Anna Knowles likes to spread her knowledge and love for digital media. Her aim is to partner with small businesses and startups, helping them grow their enterprise with dynamite content.

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