One of the great things about marketing your business online is the amount of information that you can dig into as part of your research.
The initial research is essential so that you get your foundations in place.
A couple of real life example, names removed to protect the innocent! Perhaps you can relate?
Contents
Understand Your Audience
I’m working with a local business with a very specific market. The business has a website and a few social profiles, but the web isn’t working for them at all.
No amount of adding extra pages to the website is bringing in any traffic, let alone converting to customers and the social side looks a bit abandoned. While the business owner has a very clear vision for his business and it comes across well face to face, he hadn’t looked at what people actually do or look for online.
When marketing your business online, intent is everything
I found this myself with my “I don’t do SEO” line…
The thing is, people may have heard of the term search engine optimisation. They may understand the basic concept that it gets you found on online. They don’t know the ins and outs and don’t see my differentiation between spammy SEO and what I actually do.
So while I don’t do automated link building – or any link building if I can help it…
- I do local SEO
- I do on-page SEO
- I do coach and mentor business owners on content marketing and getting your name out there
No amount of me saying I don’t do SEO changes the fact that SEO is what many business owners see.
That hit home hard following a radio interview a few months back when I was described as an SEO consultant, even though I hadn’t used that term once or call myself that title. It still annoys me…
My client mentioned above is in the same boat. He’s using words and phrases throughout his website that people simply do not associate with his business online. Not any more, maybe 10 or 15 years ago… Times have changed.
When people do land on his website they are not seeing what they expect to see. Intent is everything.
When marketing your business online, start at the beginning
If your business is already established, you have customers and clients for your product or service ask them what their favourite social sites are, what do they search for online?
Then check it against what is actually happening – what keywords do people use, where are they most active online?
Make a decision from there on which direction to go. It saves a lot of frustration and work later down the line. Heather Waring summed it up well in her short video blog, Who Is It For and What Do You Want To Achieve?
Over to you… What are your difficulties when marketing your business online? Have you started at the beginning, the middle or the end?
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Marketing Your Business Online? Start At The Beginning... by Jan Kearney
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To tell you the truth Jan I think I’m starting at the beginning, middle and end all at the same time. The beginning is just about happening, the middle is a very hoch botched array of things that all need completing and the end is something I’m planning in my head all the time!!
Who Is It For and What Do You Want To Achieve? It’s for people that are in the same boat as me – heavily in debt and want to use IM as a way out. I want it to achieve to help people as I make my own journey and at the same time build a list of followers that I can make products for and market to.
That’s for now anyway :o)
Thanks for a great post!
xxxxcarlxxxx
Hi Carl – oh yes, I’ve been there! Still am to a certain extent, too much going on and trying to jump in the middle first…
Focus, you’ll succeed – one step at a time, keep moving it forwards 🙂
I really enjoyed reading this post, Jan. I’m still trying to get my arms around some of the basic tools available associated with all this (will they slow down with the new stuff please :-)). You make a great point about keeping the audience in mind with whatever you do from a marketing standpoint.
Hi Nanette – so many tools, so little time! Part of starting at the beginning would be working out what you need to do, then find the tools, rather than seeing a shiny new one and trying to fit it in – easier said than done!
I started in the middle, to sell stuff. Smile . That has changed somewhat, so I need to sit down reassess and set goals. Thanks for the info.
Hi Michelle, I think we all start in the middle at first then double back and re-assess. Well I know I did! Thanks for popping in and taking the time to comment.
Good post Jan, well done
Hi Jan
I think we have started in the middle sometime 🙂 I try to start at the beginning and the work my way through even though it’s tempting often to jump ahead too quickly!
Pauline