What’s an online marketing strategy anyway?
In my networking activities I meet so many people over the age of 50 who are relatively new entrepreneurs seeking to learn online marketing strategies for the business. Many of these people decided to venture out on their own after a layoff during the recent economic downturn and some just decided to finish their first career and now focus on doing something they love or always wanted to do.
Online marketing terms are like speaking a foreign language.
I remember when I decided to create my first blog in 2007 I heard experts telling me I need a landing page with an opt-in to build my list to gain exposure and sell a product or service, I remember thinking HUH? what’s a landing page? Is that different than a website?
I grew up without computers, cel phones or any technology for that matter so this online “speak” was all new. I remember when America Online mailed out the floppy disks back in 1993 for access to the internet that we dialed into via our telephone line, that was amazing.
I have owned a marketing and promotions business since 1996 and yes we had a website, but what was happening in 2007 I discovered was different. Online marketing was more engaging and I was intrigued to be part of this online world where I could write a blog that people might enjoy and find benefit in reading. I joined a group of local internet marketers to learn as much as I could and even though I would leave the meetings not understanding half of the conversation, I was determined to learn.
The evolution of social media
Social media really began back in 2003 with LinkedIn followed by My Space that same year. Remember how we hovered over our kids to see what they were talking about online with their other friends on My Space? Facebook didn’t come on the scene until 2004 and You Tube in 2005. Have you embraced Twitter? The 140 character micro blogging platform joined the social media frenzy in 2006. The in 2011 came Google + and Pinterest. There are many other social platforms with the development of more every year. There is no doubt that social media is here to stay and for us baby boomers it’s time to get on board this train!
What steps should you take first?
When I coach small business owners I always start at the beginning – why? Because what I find is so many people have great creative ideas, are good at implementing but when I ask who your ideal client is and where do you find them is where I lose most business owners.
Even if you are an author, you still want people to buy your book right? So again, it’s about drilling down to get the your real niche, the core of your business and who your customer really is. Let me give you a good example and a poor example…
Poor example…let’s say your product is Image Consulting and you say “my clients are women”…my reply would be too broad, what type of women are they professional or stay at home moms, are they 25-35 or over 50, what is their economic range, where do they live, what are they passionate about…see what I mean by digging deeper?
And using the example above, how are you different than the other Image Consultants in your niche? Can you easily define your points of differentiation? When buyers can distinguish a difference in services, they always defer to price and none of us want that!
Map out a strategy
Now that you have developed your ideal client profile and can communicate your core difference. the next step is to outline a strategy. Start with creating content that teaches your core audience what you now know they want to learn by;
- Writing articles in your blog
- posting those article on your first 2-3 social media sites
- share articles you find on the internet that supports what your ideal client wants to learn more about
- write free reports and give them away to people who want to learn more from you
- offer to speak to groups about your niche and educate your ideal clients – shows your credibility
I’ll share more ideas in future articles, but I want to leave you with this…you have many years of experience and knowledge, so share what you know and your ideal client will keep coming back for more! Can you relate to anything in this article? I’d love your comments below.
Well said, or should I say, written, JoAnne. Those of us who are still understanding the power of online marketing usually end up doing knee jerk posting in all forms of social media, whether it serves the purpose of promoting our business or not or achieves the purpose of building the Know Like & Trust factor. Strategies need to be revised regularly as the needs of the business change. Visibility is important in the first year but thereafter building credibility and sustaining it is vital otherwise social media engagement in the name of marketing is just an excuse to enjoy time away from business and on the internet.
Vatsala, thanks for your comment! You seem to be on your way to a good online marketing strategy. Wishing you success.