The digital space offers so many marketing opportunities, but to effectively leverage them requires a well-planned strategy.
The online space has created an abundance of methods that businesses can use to build their brands, generate leads, and increase their sales and customer base – but unless there is a digital strategy behind your digital marketing, your efforts can fall flat or, at worst, lead to confused or negative brand positioning.
Digital marketing refers to any form of marketing that is consumed on a computer or digital device. It takes in a wide range of marketing outputs, including websites, content creation, social media activity, paid advertising, email newsletters, search engine optimisation (SEO), and more.
The digital space offers so many marketing opportunities, but to effectively leverage them requires strategic digital marketing.
What is a digital strategy and why do you need one?
A digital marketing strategy is the plan that underpins all your online activity.
It’s a road map that has a destination – your desired outcome – and pulls in all your digital assets to get there.
A great digital strategy will increase brand awareness, and target customers at every stage of the buying cycle, from awareness to consideration, to purchase.
An effective digital marketing strategy will consider its audience and the best platforms to reach them, content that will deliver results, timings and execution.
The best digital marketing strategies are based on evidence of what has worked in the past as well as a detailed understanding of your customers and their behaviour.
Without a digital strategy you’re wandering aimlessly through the digital landscape, wasting time, money and resources on activity that has little impact and ultimately fails to achieve your marketing goals.
Here’s a top-level look at the steps involved in creating a digital marketing strategy:
1. Create a marketing plan
Digital marketing strategies sit within the overall marketing strategy, and should be one part of the marketing mix, which might take in other elements such as print, TV, billboards and radio.
It’s essential that the marketing strategy is created based on an understanding of market trends, your business offering and brand awareness and the buying behaviour of your customers – all of which should form your detailed marketing plan.
2. Set your goals
A marketing plan will have clear and measurable goals.
It might be to increase sales by a certain amount, grow the number of podcast subscribers, or sell a set number of tickets to an event.
Just like every road trip requires a destination, so too does every digital marketing strategy.
3. Create a content plan, identify key channels, measure results
The most visible side of your digital marketing plan is the content that is created to support it. Content is created to massage potential customers through the buying cycle.
You might produce video explainers to lay out an issue and how to resolve it; you might create how-to guides to assist customers to choose the best product; and you might run testimonials that cement you as being the best company to buy from.
The social media platform and digital assets you choose to run will depend on who uses what and how.
Regular testing and analysis will help you discover what is working best, what is flailing, and what you need to do to maximise your marketing results.
What are the benefits of a digital strategy?
The digital space is great for marketing. It’s cost effective and has the potential to reach a vast number of leads in real time.
It’s also the place where all your competitors are marketing, so it’s important that your digital strategy stands out from the crowd, establishes you as an industry leader, and clearly articulates your offering.
An effective digital strategy will ensure that every piece of your online activity supports your marketing objectives.
Once that’s happening, the possibilities are endless, and can lead to real, tangible bottom-line results.
Consult with the digital strategy experts
If you need a hand designing a winning digital strategy, then Assemblo can help.
Assemblo is a full-service marketing agency based in Melbourne, that are industry leaders in developing and implementing digital marketing strategies.
To find out how we can help your business, give us a call on (03) 9079 2555 or send us a note via the contact form below.