Complete Digital Marketing Checklist for Small Businesses

If you have just started a business and want to take it online, this digital marketing guide is just for you. Read on. 

In the past decade, digital technology has radically transformed the business landscape. Businesses have changed the way they function; they have also changed how they market their brand to the target audience. In the good old days, advertising was restricted to the print media, television and hoardings. Today, we have multiple platforms on the internet to connect brands with their target audience.

Digital marketing includes websites, email, social media, blogs, press releases, authored articles, guest posts etc. As a business owner you may find it tough to manage this independently. There is no need to worry. It can be outsourced to a dedicated digital marketing agency that will take care of it for you.

What are the elements of a digital marketing checklist?

Let us keep things simple and list out the main elements of a digital marketing checklist for a small business. Careful planning can help you reap the rich rewards of going digital in a short time.

Create a unique brand identity

Make your website

Set up a social media presence

Activate email marketing

Use PPC for quick progress

Keep your customer happy

Create a unique brand identity

Since digital marketing is about creating effective audiovisual communication, it is imperative to create a brand identity that can stand out and be visible. It is critical to consider vision, mission and values for everything that represents your brand – your brand name, logo, pictures posted on social media, colour scheme, fonts and even the tone you use in your posts. Ensure you are consistent in the use of these elements to allow quick brand recall.

Make your website

Your website is the mainstay of your online business and acts as your calling card. 

It is critical to maintaining a professional website as customers will judge you by what they see on your website.

• Make sure the domain name is close to your business name and easy to type and remember.
• The web design should be attractive with visual appeal, easy navigation and essential communication that helps customers find what they are looking for.
• Use Search Engine Optimization to improve your ranking in web searches by incorporating the right keywords.
• Your website should have a mobile responsive design to provide a better user experience.
• Your website should be aligned with your brand identity in terms of the brand logo, layout, colour scheme and fonts.
• You will need an About Us page that summarises your brand and what you stand for. It should be powerful enough to grab the attention of potential customers.
• The website can have a blog section where you can post relevant content regularly.
• You can post guest blogs on other websites with links to your website to redirect new traffic. Likewise, you can get others to write guest blogs on your website to expand the audience.
• Use Google Analytics to gather metrics and review them regularly so that you can make improvements.

If you don’t have a website for your business yet, Now is a great time to start.

Set up a social media presence

Social media forms a vital part of your digital marketing strategy to improve brand visibility, increase traffic and engage with your present and potential customers. There are myriad options to choose from, be it hashtag trending campaigns, competitions, giveaways, live shows, etc.

• You can start with one platform that is ideal for your target audience when you start and join more channels as you go along. 
• You should register your brand on all platforms so that someone else cannot misuse it.
• Visual content is perfect for Instagram and Facebook, while blog post links are ideal for Twitter and LinkedIn. YouTube is the best channel to showcase video content.
• Use the same colours/fonts and logo on every platform to maintain consistency and easy customer recall.
• The social media schedule can be managed by creating a monthly social calendar and finalising the content in advance.
• You can provide links to your content on your social media accounts that will redirect traffic to your website.
• Gather and review metrics on each platform to improve your performance and fix issues.

Activate email marketing

Email marketing campaigns are a very effective method to engage your audience. McKinsey studies reveal that email is 40x more successful at onboarding new customers compared to Facebook or Twitter. As Hubspot “ State of Marketing” 2020 mentions, over 35% of marketers send 3-5 emails to their customers every week.

The global market for email marketing is estimated to be over $22.16 billion by 2025, giving you a fair idea about its importance.

• Use the same templates as used on other platforms including brand logo, colour schemes etc, to maintain consistency
• Split your customer mailing list into segments based on their age group, preferences, etc
• Send out targeted emails for better results. Blanket emails may end up in the spam folder.
• Create a schedule – send email followed by follow up emails to targeted customers.
• Send personalized emails to your customers on their significant days like birthdays or anniversaries.

Use PPC for Quick Progress

If you need a quick start in your digital marketing campaign,you can look at pay-per-click as an option. Online ads are a good way to create more traffic and improve brand visibility. It is easier to generate leads through online ads though it requires a sizeable budget. Paid advertising can be done on multiple platforms like Google, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. You can also run influencer campaigns or sponsor podcasts.

Keep Your Customer Happy

In the digital world, news travels at lightning speed. Customers have the power to make or mar your reputation with a single comment on a social platform. It is critical to ensure that you take care of your customers’ needs and keep them happy. A good customer review can fetch you more publicity than paid ads. The customer is king, and if you can please your customer with impeccable products and services, the success of your digital marketing strategy will automatically follow. Respond to your customer promptly, handle their queries sincerely and work on the feedback they provide. Have FAQs on your website to answer common questions.

Summing Up

Digital marketing strategy needs to be tailored for each business keeping in mind the nature of the business, the target audience, the budget, and the channels to be used. One size does not fit all, and an off the shelf solution may be a failure. It is best to outsource your digital marketing requirements to dedicated digital marketing agencies who can create a tailored plan for your business that will bring in the business outcomes that you are aiming for. To know more about digital marketing you can check out https://teampumpkin.com/ and we will be glad to help you out.