Tired and confused by all of the hype surrounding online marketing? Here are a few tactics and channels that work for companies that embrace them.
Bear in mind that these tactics should be part of a larger strategy and different tactics suit different industries, budgets and philosophies. With that caveat out of the way, here are 7 things that work well for companies who embrace them:
- Google Search Advertising (Adwords) as a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) research tool.
Competing in SEO in a competitive industry is a multi-year commitment. Adwords reaches the same searchers through the same interface, so why not make a relatively small investment to experiment with your keyword selections and gain access to Google’s search data? You can do this prior to making a big commitment to SEO and then have the confidence you’re choosing the right keywords and strategy. - PR with a Twist.
Traditional PR is all about building relationships with writers and publications relevant to your industry and gaining exposure to them. Substitute “bloggers and websites” for “writers and publications” above and you’ve more or less figured out Online PR and linkbuilding. Also, there are research tools to allow you to quickly identify everyone who is writing about your industry. Throw in some networking skills and common sense and you’re on your way. - Mobile Optimization.
With mobile search now exceeding desktop search within the past month, having a website and strategy that addresses mobile users is no longer a tactic, it’s a “must do.” - Facebook Ads.
Perhaps the best business to consumer targeting platform in history, this platform is now becoming viable even for business to business marketing. What’s even more amazing is that this platform is ridiculously easy to use but is still dramatically underused by a huge percentage of businesses that could benefit from it. - Pay Per Call Advertising
Most companies realize that the Yellow Pages are ceasing to be a great call generation channel, but few companies have explored pay per call advertising. The easiest entry point to this new medium is through Google Adwords, where you can advertise your phone number right in your ad to mobile searchers and measure the calls to your site directly from your ads. - Remarketing.
You know how you visited a certain website last week and you’re now seeing their ads everywhere online? That’s remarketing (sometimes called retargeting). It’s fairly straightforward to set up through Google Adwords or Facebook and it does a great job of staying “top of mind” with prospective customers who have visited your website. It’s also quite cost-effective.
Other Notable Tactics
I’ve skipped mentioning the following as part of our 7 tactics above. It’s not that they are not effective, but just that they require significantly more commitment and insight to succeed.
If you’re ready to make a bigger investment and/or longer term commitment, you’ll also want to consider an overall strategy that includes elements of:
- Google Search advertising
- An in-depth Social Media strategy
- Google Display advertising
- An Inbound Marketing strategy
- A long term SEO strategy.
Want to learn more about what works? Join us at noon on May 27th as we host a high energy lunch and learn where Rob will cover these 7 topics in much greater detail.
To RSVP for May 27, visit our Facebook Event Page or contact Meghan at 250.721-2499 x 207.
Rob Cooper
Rob’s spent the last 15 years as a full-time web marketer and is the founder of PlusROI Online Marketing, a web development & marketing firm. He can be reached at Rob@PlusROI.com.