Digital marketing is still a young industry, so entrepreneurs are constantly finding new ways to improve their strategies. Unfortunately, many of these firms continue to make the same digital marketing blunders that have a negative influence on their traffic and lead conversion rates.
Here are sinful mistakes you should avoid when creating your next digital marketing plan:
1. Not having a plan at all or planning based on ideas that don’t work
There’s no better way to waste money than by not using it wisely. As an entrepreneur, you’re probably working hard for every penny you earn, so why would you invest in something without any proof it will work?
While this may sound like common sense, many businesses make big bets before they really know what they want. It’s always best to start out with a solid plan with time management and keep the end goals in mind while you’re creating your strategy.
2. Not focusing on search intent in SEO strategy
Search engine optimization is a critical part of any digital marketing campaign, but it’s not the only thing you should focus on. In fact, many businesses forget about intent altogether when they’re designing their SEO strategy.
When consumers search online, they have very specific reasons for doing so. Your business needs to match what people are looking for in order to attract them with your SEO efforts. A lot of times, this means targeting long-tail keywords and phrases that describe customer needs and desires. You need to understand the whole sales process in order to improve conversion.
3. Your ads aren’t relevant and engaging
If your content doesn’t match what people are looking for and if your ads aren’t relevant to your product or service, then you’ll continue to see mediocre results.
The best way to avoid this is by creating useful, interesting content that people want to share. When it comes to placing ads, try using a headline test tool.
4. Not tracking or analyzing data
Big decisions should always be based on hard facts and figures, rather than what you think will work. If you’re not tracking and analyzing your data, though, these numbers won’t do you any good when trying to improve over time. It’s important that you track everything from where your traffic is coming from (like which SEO strategy is producing the most business) to how your ad campaigns are performing.
If you get an idea that’s not working, it’s important to test and measure to see if that idea produced the results you want. If not, then move on and try something else. This leads us to our next point…
5. Focusing on everything at once
Many entrepreneurs think they need to do everything all at once when it comes to digital marketing, but this isn’t true – especially when your budget is limited. Your best bet is to focus only on platforms that will produce the highest ROI for your business while keeping other areas in mind long-term so you can plan for them later on.
So, if social media has been giving you good results lately, there’s no need to start a blog. If you’re not sure which platforms will work for your business, check out our guide on 5 small businesses that are killing it on social media.
6. Not following industry trends
One of the best ways to get ahead of the competition is by using what works for other brands in your space. Industry trends change almost exponentially every year, so if you aren’t staying on top of them, then you’ll be caught off guard and fail to keep up with new developments.
This is why it’s important to monitor things like Google search volume for keywords related to what you offer so you can determine which topics will bring new customers this year and next.
7. Neglecting mobile web design or using mobile site redirects
Your site may look great on computers, but what happens when it’s accessed by smartphones and tablets? If you don’t make your website mobile-friendly, then you could miss out on a big chunk of traffic.
The best way to avoid this is by designing for mobile devices first. Not only will this help improve conversions, but it will also benefit SEO efforts since Google now favors mobile-friendly sites in its search results.
8. Not producing valuable content
If you’re not producing valuable and engaging content, then the only people who will visit your site are those looking for something that you don’t offer. You need to create content that helps solve customer needs in your industry.
Sometimes this means making videos or podcasts; other times it means writing articles and creating infographics. Once you’ve created all of this content, make sure it’s readily accessible on your site so people can find it easily.
9. Not integrating SEO into everything you do
While we’ve already discussed how important organic search engine results are to your online presence, they aren’t the only things that contribute to a successful website and digital marketing campaign. For instance: if your site is targeting the local market then you should leverage local SEO. Your keystone content should be highly optimized as well with targeted keywords and CTAs that link back to products or services related to those topics.
If your website isn’t mobile-friendly or if it doesn’t integrate elements like social sharing buttons, then you won’t get many shares no matter how great the content is. Plus, SEO still plays a big role in other forms of digital marketing – so without it, your ad campaigns probably won’t perform well, either.
Final Words
By avoiding these mistakes, you’ll ensure that your digital marketing efforts are successful. It is important to note that while it is possible to recover from failing in digital marketing, the longer you take to act on correcting your course, the more damage you will incur.
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