Email vs. Social vs. Paid

Think of the ultimate sales conversion scenario:

Your preferred customer gets wind of your awesome product and/or service. They Google your business and you pop up on the first page (goals). Upon reaching your website they fill out a sales inquiry asking for a quote. You have a lead!

It gets better – you reach out and they ANSWER! You’re able to schedule a consultation in one attempt. They come to the appointment and you convert the sale.

There you have it, the fairy tale every business dreams about. The thing is, converting a sale isn’t as simple as you would hope. It takes time to build trust in a digital age where “fake news” is all around us.

So how do you build trust with your audience?

Build Consumer Trust Naturally

It’s important to value the time of your target audience. To do that, a company must level with them in all aspects including what they do in their spare time, what kind of music they listen to, and where/how they retain information.

Seeing your brand from your demographic’s perspective is one of the best ways to build consumer trust naturally. After all, Entrepreneur.com says being personable is a key way to being the go-to business for your customers.

Think about it. If you were your customer, where would you look for your brand? Even more so, where would you go to look for your product or service? This is why brand placement is so important for your advertising dollars. Building a Facebook campaign won’t generate sales if your audience is on Instagram.

Advertising isn’t a one-size-fits-all endeavor. The most successful marketing campaigns are tailored to email, social media, and paid search alike to create the ultimate customer experience. Successful campaigns reach the customer where they are.

Why Email Marketing Matters and How To Do It

Ah, email. Every business utilizes it in some way, but you should be using it as a communication line to your customers. You have to keep the conversation going to stay relevant!

Here’s a great example of email marketing done right:

As an online retailer, Uncommongoods added seasonal-themed products to their newsletter. Seasonal content is a sound strategy for email marketing because the message is always relevant.

Maybe a newsletter isn’t what you’re sending out. Say you need a short, yet automated email but you’re not sure what to write? The trick to automated emails is to keep it personable, yet professional. Donald Miller does a great job at this in the below example:

Email marketing is a great tool to keep potential clients engaged with their brand. This email was sent one day after the live webinar. The duration of time between contact points felt natural, as the webinar was relevant.

TIP: Only email a potential customer after they’ve provided you with their email address. Emailing out of the blue results in a spam-like impression which can damage your brand.

The key takeaway is to email in a way that makes sense. Being relatable gains trust and thus customer loyalty.

While there are countless ways to send an email, your business must understand the value of social media for a healthy revenue flow.

Social Media Marketing: 101

Social media matters. In fact, there are approximately 3.7 billion active social media users today. This channel builds a bridge between your brand and customers. We suggest posting content your audience considers useful and relevant.

For example, say you’re in the dog grooming industry. Posting content tying back to dog grooming tips establishes credibility with your followers.

Many businesses make the mistake of posting content that their customer doesn’t care to see. For example, a post about a company’s new hire may be nice, but if it’s the only topic a company posts about no one aside from the new hire will look at the post.

Social media campaigns can help you reach infinite business and marketing goals including:

• Rebranding
• Customer engagement
• Announcing new products and/or services
• Hiring quality employees

Seeing content that engages your consumers is what you need to do. Check out MoonPie’s flow chart on Twitter.

The post uses humor to build a relationship with their social media followers. Not all communication has to be serious. Today’s buyers want a brand they can be friends with and that means finding the balance of an informational, yet captivating social media strategy.

What many businesses don’t take advantage of is the easy exposure having social media allows. Most are free including Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn. The best way to identify your most engaging style of post is testing different methods against each other. This provides well-calculated data to optimize your content calendar.

If you’re not sure what to post, our experts suggest linking back to different parts of your website to highlight the solutions your business offers.

Understanding Paid Search Strategy

Search Engine Watch defines paid search as, “A form of digital marketing where search engines such as Google and Bing allow advertisers to show ads on their search engine results pages.”

Using paid search is a great way to utilize ad spend because people are already seeking the problem your business solves. For example, a local pharmacy could use paid search to show up for “headache medicine near me” and create an entire campaign based on this search phrase.

You can also use paid search to show off pictures or your products and/or services. Display ads are great for businesses to use images in their ads if stand-alone text ads aren’t the best option.

Have you ever shopped for something online and saw ads for that same product days (maybe hours) later? Those ads are display ads. They’re a great addition to any online paid search strategy that helps potential shoppers continue to stay engaged with your brand.

Which Type of Digital Marketing Campaign Is Right For Your Business?

Knowing where to place yourself in the buyer’s journey is the best way to gain their trust. You can use digital marketing to streamline how you communicate with customers. Make sure you’re planning to launch your next campaign on the right platforms. Consider where your target market receives their information and build a plan around that.

Using the Marketing Trifecta: Email, Social, and Paid Marketing

They say there’s strength in numbers. This doesn’t fall short when considering how to market your business. More often than not, too much focus is put into one channel, like social, and not spread out amongst email and paid strategies. A sound marketing plan utilizes all three channels, creating an integrated approach.

Here’s an example of how this would play out. The lead would first become aware of your brand from a social media post.

After engaging with the social post, the lead would then submit their email address to receive free content. Having the right paid retargeting ads in place, the lead keeps the company top-of-mind. After several touch points with the brand already, the lead converts by completing some sort of call-to-action be it scheduling a consultation, appointment, or even a phone call. And there you have it!

Final Thoughts

Remember, advertising isn’t one-size-fits-all. You must customize the message you’re delivering based on the channel. Email is great for follow ups and announcements to those already familiar with your business. Social media humanizes you with relatable content. Finally, paid search allows you to show up in searches based on your unique product and/or service.

Finding the right digital marketing strategy can be tough. Luckily, our team has perfected a tailored approach to meet your social media, email, and paid advertising needs. Give us a call to schedule a one-on-one with our team of experts. Together, we can sit down and rework your strategy to maximize results.