Digital Marketing Checklist for Small Businesses in 2021
Congratulations! You’ve made a new website! You’ve updated your site! You’re offering a new service! And… where are the customers? Many, many people make this very common mistake:
Just like Ray Kinsella in “Field of Dreams” heard whispered through the cornfields of Iowa, “If you Build It, They Will Come”.
There are over 2 billion websites on our planet – how on earth will people find yours? If you build a website they will come ONLY if you take some additional steps. That’s where digital marketing comes in – if you haven’t heard the phrase, it’s today-speak for “spreading the word”.
In 2021, there are numerous avenues for spreading the word about your company. In this article we’ll go through our top 5 picks. Some may be just right for your business and some may not – read through and think about what you think could work.
This year, make a new resolution: If you are not busy taking care of customers, get busy marketing your business.
5. Influencer Marketing
Just a few short years ago, it was only celebrities that relied on influencers to help market products – nowadays, there is an entire influencer marketing ecosystem that is available for anyone.
Influencer marketing could be a solid choice for not just tangible products (humorous tank tops, artisanal body lotion) but also for services (massage therapy, music lessons, financial consulting) How do you find influencers? There are numerous marketplaces but one of the top sites these days for businesses is influence.co – a unique community that lets businesses and influencers mix and meet.
For additional information you can read more at SproutSocial.
4. Lead Resellers and Generators
You might not know the term lead reseller but I’m sure you’re familiar with some of these websites: Yelp, Angie’s List, HomeAdvisor, Houzz, Porch and Thumbtack. These sites mostly lean toward home services and contracting though Yelp is aimed more at retail establishments. The big question is: Do they work? The answer: Depends on your business.
One contractor I’ve worked with recently gets over 80% of their business via HomeAdvisor – that’s pretty impressive. But they do a very great job of making sure customers provide reviews of their work on the site and keep their profile updated regularly and have a modest budget for listing services and features – and that’s a key to success with any lead reseller. It might be free to join, and get your company listed but it will cost additional money for featured listings or other benefits so keep that in mind.
3. Reviews, Reviews, Reviews
Many customers will only choose a company based on what other people think. If you are providing a regular service or product, and you know you’re doing a good job, it’s highly beneficial to send people to a place where they can provide reviews. Some top places include Google, your company’s Facebook page, Angie’s List, Glassdoor, HomeAdvisor, and many others.
Many companies rely on referrals as the lifeblood for their business and if your customers think you’re doing a great job, there’s no better way than letting them tell the world through a review for all to read.
Facebook is unique in it’s review system compared to Google, in that customers cannot provide a score (using stars, points, etc.) rather, Facebook will rate whether a review is positive or negative using it’s algorithm based on the words that the customer uses.
2. Email Marketing
I am not a big fan of very frequent emails. My inbox fills up enough as it is – however, email is such a vital business tool, it’s so important to stay in touch with your customers and let them know about your current services or to just check in. MailChimp and ConstantContact are among the top rated and most used services. MailJet, MailerLite and Moosend are a few other top alternatives that can boost your email marketing prowess.
1. Social Channels
There’s no better advertising than free advertising and social channels are the best free way to get the word out about your business. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter are the top four largest social channels in 2021, with the most eyeballs. You can pay influencers to spread the word about your business on these social channels OR you can build out your own, free, curated content. You can write blog posts with informational content about your industry and share it across these channels to help demonstrate that you are an authority in the field, also helping increase your searchability. You can post photos of your products and services. Share customer reviews. Share updates about changes in your industry that could affect customers.
