Expert Insights on Digital Marketing in 2017

With 2017 just weeks away, there’s plenty of time to reflect on 2016 and four quarters which shaped your business year. Where did you excel, where did you go wrong, and where is there room for improvement? Businesses large and small across the world will be asking themselves these questions in the hope of finding the magic formula for 2017.

To help you along, this guide will pinpoint some of the digital marketing tactics your business can use in order to steal an advantage over the competition. From free software to progressive techniques which will lower overhead, this brief guide should help you along your way to a successful Q1 – at the very least!

Get social

Naturally, you’ll likely be on the likes of Facebook and Twitter already, but what about other platforms? Instagram, for instance, is huge and offers your business the chance to advertise to a massive audience. Even if you feel your business isn’t suitable for Instagram, you can get your marketing team to work out a way to occasionally post and run ads which promote your services. This Instagram marketing guide is a great place to start.

Do SEO properly

SEO isn’t essentially advertising in the traditional sense, but with a content marketing strategy, it’s absolutely essential. Without properly optimised content, you’re going to fail or, worse, trigger off a Google penalty inadvertently.

To avoid this you can have a look at Moz’s beginner’s guide to SEO and also use tools such as Google Keyword Planner to unearth the search terms you should be suing in your copy. SEO is easier than it looks and with tools such as Yoast SEO or an understanding of title tags and meta descriptions, you can quickly find your brand hurtling up Google’s search rankings.

Try progressive marketing

Don’t just rely on traditional techniques, of course, as you can successfully mix things up with targeted campaigns such as with online lead generation. This gets proactive customers to act on their purchasing intent, so it’s a really effective way to ensure you grow your conversion rate. Whether it’s with financial marketing, retail, B2B, or in specific services, it can work wonders and could transform your year.

Get blogging

As part of your content marketing strategy, you must be blogging. Not only does this get fresh content out on your site regularly (which is great for SEO purposes), you can use the content to post on your social media accounts to attract relevant customers. You can use this business blogging guide to get your campaign rolling along nicely.

The trick to blogging, however, is to sticking to a workable schedule. Don’t overdo it – work to within what’s capable and aim to produce good quality content your audience will love. Include competitions in the mix, primarily if you’re B2C, which can be used across your social channels as well and you should be onto a winning strategy.

Use visual content

The internet is driven by visuals, so as part of your content marketing don’t be afraid to try out videos for YouTube and images across Instagram, Pinterest, and, indeed, your blog. They should be eye-catching, bespoke, and compelling.

Do away with stock images, for starters. Savvy consumers know the picture of models smiling inanely is nonsense and this isn’t how it is behind the scenes, so go for the authentic look to connect with your customers and build your story in the right way throughout 2017.