I live in an association so I can’t change the house outside just because I don’t like the paint color anymore… which leaves me thinking, did I really like that color?
Do you feel like this about your brand or your website? Like it no longer resembles your organization anymore? You’ve advanced your standards since then. You value different things.
Are people still associating your firm with who you used to be? Don’t go tearing down the walls just yet. I have some tips to help you keep your sanity. Let’s go over the digital marketing hierarchy… back to basics.
• Websites – Beyond the template, the standard navigation and required Privacy Policy… what makes your website stand out? What’s one thing you can add (add a little bling!) to make your website memorable? Robert and Shannon have been talking about this one website that uses music. How 90s, right? But, maybe it’s cool again. You don’t have to go this far into custom design, but I encourage you to expand your horizons. Try a new plugin you previously dismissed. Don’t think, “We can’t do it.” Instead change your thinking to “How can we do it?”
View our LinkedIn Live for more website ideas!
- Social Media – Social media can feel like a drag sometimes, but it is a great way to get to know your audience. What do they care about? What do they ‘like’? Get involved with your community. Join a Facebook group. It’s time to start being a person online and start sharing your story. Only then will your clients and potential leads start differentiating you from your competitors.
- Personas – This is a great way to put yourself in your clients’ shoes and feel what they feel. Are they worried? Anxious? Is a deadline approaching? All of the above most likely. Survey your clients or create a word cloud from your latest website inquiries and client conversations. What are they concerned about? Add that back to your website and speak their language. They’ll see that you’re on the same page and will start converting. (P.S. Make sure you’re tracking form submissions on your site!)
- Getting noticed online – You don’t have to be everywhere. Pick one medium to optimize first, then move to your next platform. You should start with your Google Business and Bing Places profiles. Are your Service Areas blank? Fill those in and update your description for an instant boost in relevant traffic. Include your keywords (not every single one, of course, but add them where they make sense) to your description. What emotion can you assuage? Let them know how only YOU can help them in this specific way.
- Interacting – Respond to comments on your posts like you’re famous. Like everyone knows you. Like you all live in the same cul-de-sac. Once you start interacting with the same 4 or 5 people, you start to feel like buds and show up in their followers’ feeds more, too. So, interact with people whose circles you’d like to join.
- Getting engagement – You want your strategic content to appeal to people who are likely to ‘react’ to it. This includes shares, follows, subscribes, comments – all of it. Are there a few people who respond to your eblasts regularly? Engage with them on social. Segment them as ‘most engaged’ in your CRM. These are your new favorite people. Get to know them. They will soon become ambassadors for your brand.
- Digital lead generation – One thing I always recommend to clients is to have a newsletter signup on your site. Even if you don’t have a plan for your newsletter… you can still gather emails from interested parties who want to know more about the industry. They want to get to know you and your take on their world. It’s one of the easiest ways to gather leads through your site.
- Branding – What’s your brand? Where did you start? What motivates you to continuously do your best, in business and in life? Bring that story full circle – through your branding, your website, everything you do on social media and beyond.
A bit more on branding: Of course I’m biased because I love branding. And I’m not loyal to every brand I buy… I’ll switch blueberry brands at Aldi in a heartbeat if they have fresher, cheaper fruit. However, I do love my ASICS. I have bought a ton of shoes for my family, and even though Scott and Bella are diehard Nike fans….my favorite shoes are ASICS.
But enough about ASICS! This is about YOUR organization. Getting involved on social media, interacting with fans, building a community from newsletter subscribers… these are all just the tip of the iceberg.
Now get out there and show the world why your brand is hotter than my morning coffee!
Questions? Contact us at Ingenuity.
