Standing at the beginning of 2016, it is perhaps the best time to sit and analyse what you can accomplish in the coming 365 days. For a digital marketer, it usually means mulling over their strategies, implementing quick tactics so as to make some good progress on their digital marketing campaigns.
So how can you be successful in your digital marketing efforts in 2016? Here are four easy things you can do to help improve your business.
1. Create a custom landing page
Perhaps you already have a good conversion rate from your PPC campaigns but there is always room for improvement. According to a 2014 research conducted by Search Engine Land, only a quarter of all advertising accounts have less than 1% conversion rate. The research also found that while the top 25 advertising accounts are converting at more than 5% rate, the average landing page conversion rate is around 2.35%. The top 10% accounts, however, have landing page conversion rates of 11.45% or more.
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So how to be in that top 10%? Having custom landing pages is indeed one of the best ways to achieve that.
There is no magic bullet; these top 10% accounts are just more diligent than the rest. In order to find winners, these people test and experiment with different landing page variations. There are several third-party service providers that allow you to build and launch A/B test landing with/without technical knowledge.
Search Engine Land suggests testing 10 different landing pages to break into the top 10%, while testing four unique landing pages is sufficient to break into that top 25%. And make sure your landing pages have the following elements:
- A short, killer headline that grabs the reader's attention while describing what it's all about.
- A more detailed, persuasive sub-headline.
- Large, high-quality pictures relevant to your products/services.
- A functional, benefit-oriented explanation that shows the users the value of your products/services.
- A user-focused value proposition explaining the benefits of your products/services.
Last but not least, it must have a compelling logical flow with strong call to action (CTA) placements. Moreover, use persuasive elements throughout the landing pages and don't shy away from long-form landing pages as they are highly effective when it comes to conversions. Here are some great landing page design examples you can get inspiration from.
2. Develop content in The right context
This is nothing new but content in the right context has been and continues to be one of the most significant aspects for many brands when it comes to creating long-form content for SEO purposes. This trend is likely to continue in 2016 as well, although there will be some minor tweaks.
If you want to be successful in your digital marketing efforts, focus on your blogging and content creation initiatives.
So if you want to be successful in your digital marketing efforts, focus on your blogging and content creation initiatives. They will continue to serve as key components of your online brand positioning efforts. That said, words alone are not sufficient as touch-points for brands. You will need to leverage high-quality image and dynamic video-based content along with robust social promotion to boost your content funnel. Basically, you need to redefine your content strategy and expand your offerings to meet the new reality in the realm of video streaming, something the big brands are already using to their advantage.
Brands are also realising the significance of user-generated content. In fact, a large spectrum of industries ranging from tech and product to entertainment and tourism, are now leveraging user-generated content programs to engage their target audiences. Some of the most notable brands like CamelBak (with its #LivingColorful Sweepstakes), Windows 10 and Three (Feel at Home #Holidayspam) are implementing this strategy to improve their brand affinity and loyalty.
If you really want to brush up your content strategy, this is where you need to focus as this user-focused trend is more likely to grow this year.
Your content marketing efforts in the coming days should therefore explore both visual and video platforms, apart from text-based blogging and guest posting. Focus more on live streaming to engage and entice your visitors.
3. Incorporate display remarketing
How many times have you encountered Tissot or Tommy Hilfiger ads on your Facebook newsfeed soon after you browsed those websites? It's no magic; it's a simple tactic called remarketing used by Google to help you reach your past website/app users. Using this you can show relevant ads to people who have just visited your website/app and left without buying anything. If you are selling products online, there is no way you can overlook the opportunities provided by display remarketing.
In fact, display remarketing not only provides a great way for marketers to follow up with your past visitors and convince them to come back and complete the desired action but also help you build brand awareness in a cost-effective way. The automated bid strategies such as target ROAS and CPA help you create high-performance display remarketing campaigns.
4. Locally targeted advertising
Chances are you are already doing advertising on search engines and social media sites. But are you targeting the right audience? What's the point of spending thousands of dollars on reaching out to global customers when you are operating locally?
What's the point of spending thousands of dollars on reaching out to global customers when you are operating locally?
The best option is therefore to target local audience in your community or city in order to get your business before relevant customers. So maximise your budget with local advertising on Google, Facebook, Twitter and other online platforms to reach out to your local consumers. In fact, spending on local advertising has already accelerated in 2015.
According to an early 2015 report, local digital advertising was estimated to reach $47.8 billion by the end of the year, representing two-fifths of the local advertising market. Another BIA/Kelsey report forecasts that "$146.6 billion will be invested in media platforms by advertisers targeting local audiences in 2016."
It is therefore important to focus much of your budget on people who are relevant to your business. Today, almost all major platforms allow for local targeting. All you need is the right strategy to reach out to people who are looking for products and services that you offer in your locality.
Conclusion
As we move into 2016, our digital marketing efforts need to focus more on providing a seamless experience to the users, irrespective of the device, channel or touch-point they are using. It must be relevant and targeted, something that strengthens the brand positioning. What you really need is a consumer-focused, data-driven digital marketing strategy that can transform the existing trends into growth oriented actions to generate long-term results.
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