More than half of CMOs and marketing leaders are unable to quantify the business impact of their marketing efforts. Think about that for a moment. Only 35% of companies are able to quantify the sales and revenue they generate from marketing.
Their marketing efforts are measured by these marketing professionals who have the resources and teams to do so. Despite this, they still struggle to measure the return on their marketing investments.
How can small and medium businesses compete if even seasoned professionals struggle with marketing measurement?
Small businesses and entrepreneurs face countless pain points every day, regardless of their niche. The concept of digital marketing is one of the hardest to grasp. Most SMBs and entrepreneurs began as experts in their trade or niche, and marketing was rarely necessary to complete their work. Putting these problems away in the “Not Now, Maybe Later” drawer is tempting, but doing so stunts growth and kills ROI. Here are eight common marketing pain points you need to address immediately, along with their corresponding solutions.
1. Resources and funds are limited
According to a report published in SearchEngineLand.com by BrightLocal and ChamberOfCommerce.com, nearly half of SMB marketing budgets are allocated to digital marketing, with just 6% spending more than $1,000/month. Think about upping your digital marketing spend just enough to make sure you’re using the right tools.
Solution: In order to grow, it is important to acquire external financing. Your market will be able to know your business exists easily and painlessly if you set up a business page on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Kijiji for little to no cost. A number of marketers and platform providers are aware of such budgetary limitations and offer flexible and affordable packages to help SMBs integrate digitally.
2. Change and new approaches are not embraced
Although Canada has a robust small and medium business community, which accounts for over 97.9% and 1.8%, respectively, many of them remain conservative about digital marketing. However, word-of-mouth alone won’t cut it with the digital transformation occurring in both business and consumer landscapes.
Solution: When customers need a service, be it plumbing or a massage, they look online first. Consider channeling some of your marketing dollars to social media or search engine optimization (SEO) instead of traditional marketing approaches, such as media buys and promotional products. They are inexpensive but highly effective methods of acquiring new customers.
3. Your website does not have an inbound marketing strategy
There are still more than half of small businesses without a website that converts passive visitors into paying customers, due primarily to a lack of time and resources to build a website on their own or to learn inbound marketing techniques.
Solution: In order to build a robust website for your business, WordPress (WP) is a good place to start. The plugin offers customization options and has pre-built functionalities. Due to its user-friendly environment and SEO tools, it is also easier to rank on search engines. There are a variety of affordable plugins you can use to expand its functionality. You can have a fully-functional and professional business website while keeping your costs low. You should make your website a client-generating machine. By combining SEO, PPC, social media, and content marketing, you can build a marketing foundation that generates clients, sales, and growth for your business.
4. Being unable to build your brand’s online presence
It is common for SMBs to assume that branding is only for large companies. This is not true. Branding is essential to attracting customers. A logo and how customers perceive your company are only a small part of it. Having a brand identity allows you to differentiate your business from competitors and connect with potential clients on a personal level.
Solution: Think of your brand as a person first. What characteristics, values, and beliefs would you embody and communicate if you were promoting yourself? It is intuitive for people to dress the part, but it is deliberate for business people. A brand is built brick by brick by refining your messaging and building long-term relationships with your customers. Both traditional and digital marketing follow this principle. Be innovative with your brand instead of copying others. Whether it’s a holiday card, promotion, newsletter, or email signature, reinforce your branding cohesively.
5. Being unable to create effective content
Small and medium-sized businesses have yet to realize the benefits of content marketing, which levels the playing field for all businesses. The only way to deliver the most valuable content marketing that customers and search engines both love is through market research. Multi-channel marketing requires a solid content strategy that relies on data and wise execution.
Solution: A wide range of tools are available for this purpose. Facebook advertising uses Audience Insights. SEO and PPC can be done with Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, Moz’s Keyword Explorer, and KWFinder. Ensure you gather enough insights to tailor your campaigns to your target audience before you create and publish text, imagery, and video content across your digital channels.
6. Measurable KPIs are not developed
A key performance indicator (KPI) measures how well you are achieving your business objectives. It sounds too technical, but it’s a great way to track your marketing ROI.
Solution: There are five KPI groups to evaluate success. Lead generation, SEO optimization, paid advertising, website and traffic metrics, and social media tracking are some of these categories. You can improve your outcomes by measuring and analyzing your campaigns against these data and best practices.
7. Neglecting your online reputation
Reputation is everything in business. According to Dimensional Research, ninety percent of customers say online reviews heavily influence their buying decisions. Small business owners who are unfamiliar with the web may find keeping track of reviews tedious.
Solution: There are several good tools available to measure customer experience online. For just $2 a month, BrightLocal gives you a comprehensive view of your digital footprint and allows you to manage your reputation easily. By logging into your account, you can access all your business’s reviews and listings so you can quickly reply or have them removed. Keep in mind that having an overall positive reputation relies on taking good care of your customers, resolving issues as soon as possible, and investing in making the customer experience better.
8. Getting distracted
With so much going on in the business and digital worlds, SMBs are likely to take advantage of any opportunity they can. Although it is welcome to keep an open mind, a lot of these opportunities may just be distractions or potential pitfalls.
Solution: Set clear, attainable goals that are spread out over a realistic timeframe to avoid getting sidetracked. Be sure to allocate time, money, and resources to achieving these goals. Regardless of the size of your business and customer base, you need to establish and keep everyone on board with your marketing goals. More importantly, understand that the success of your business depends on successful marketing. Every business has its pain points. To thrive in an increasingly competitive and technologically-advanced world, you must deal with them as quickly as possible. Your startup or small business can grow and generate profits by making bold moves and getting support from digital marketers.
Conclusion
These pain points are the most common that our clients approach us with. But they don’t need to stop you from digital marketing success.
An optimized digital marketing strategy will encompass all relevant marketing channels and online platforms to ensure your content reaches the right audience, at the right place, at the right time. ClinkIT Digital Marketing Services will help you systematically optimize your digital marketing strategies and drive more revenue for your business.
