Health Coach Business Start-Up Series: Digital Marketing

Now that we’ve discussed the basics of Traditional Marketing, we will focus on Digital Marketing! This is the marketing people hear a lot about these days, but usually don’t actually know a lot about it.

Digital Marketing includes (but is not limited to):

• Website Marketing / SEO
• Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC)
• Email Marketing
• Social Media Marketing (including Video Marketing)
• SMS Messaging / Targeted Display Advertising

The basis of your brand should always be your website. Some people suggest that websites are no longer as relevant as they used to be, but that is incorrect at this point. Your website is like what your business card used to be. It is essential. You need to make sure the design is done well and truly demonstrates the image you are trying to portray. SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is also critical, to make sure your business shows up in search engines. There are so many website builders out there, but WordPress is the best route for a new business owner to go because there are so many easy options for SEO built in or able to be added with a simple plug-in.

PPC Advertising is one way to go for digital marketing, but may not be the most effective depending on your business. This process involves you paying for advertisements on a particular platform, such as Google, Facebook, or Instagram. Those ads are designed to get “clicks” from your target market that will then take them to your website or a particular landing page or offer.

Email Marketing is another method, but it is one that has become somewhat oversaturated, so it is important to pay attention to ROI. This could be lucrative for your business or it may gain nothing at all. Keep in mind that the content and subject headlines are critical to the success of this endeavor. Look up the CoSchedule Headline Analyzer to help you create those attention grabbing subject headlines for your email marketing. This process can become time consuming for you if you are not sure how to do it, so this would be a great place to use an experienced contractor to set up the system and write quality content for you to test to see if this is cost effective for your business.

Social Media Marketing is usually the first thing people think of when they hear Digital Marketing, because social media platforms have become such a huge part of our lives. The key to this is understanding that your target market may use platforms you do not. If you are not your target market, do not just use the platforms you prefer. You will need to create accounts for any platforms you plan to use, set them up well, and post regular content as just a basis for your social media marketing. From there, most platforms offer the opportunity for paid ads that can enhance your presence, boost the effectiveness of specific posts, or allow you to make specific offers for that platform only. Many platforms incorporate video opportunities, including YouTube and TikTok. While videos can be extremely effective, you will need to have a good understanding of how to edit these videos and be prepared to show behind-the-scenes parts of you and your business to make these really effective. This could be another area where an experienced contract could help make this effective much quicker than if you do it yourself.

SMS text messaging and targeted display ads are two different concepts, but mostly focus on mobile devices. There are marketing platforms that incorporate text messaging into your scheduling system, your email marketing system, even your website. This allows you to reach your clients or potential clients via text message, which is usually viewed immediately by the client or in a very short amount of time compared to other marketing efforts. Meanwhile, targeted display ads can be set up using various platforms or may be something you can get through your Billboard company (Adams Outdoor has a great program for this). These ads take your target market and use the individual’s internet habits to offer them your ads on a variety of websites and apps they use regularly. It is extremely specific and is most effective for brick and mortar businesses. It is also very trackable, which most marketing is not, so it is easier to calculate your ROI.

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