Top 5 Digital Marketing Strategies For Small Businesses
What Is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing, in simple terms, is marketing using social media and other online platforms to advertise products or services offered by different businesses. In the past few years, digital marketing is gaining popularity among businesses of all sizes. The term was first popularized at the beginning of the century and is now gaining momentum.
According to GlobalData, the compounded annual growth rate of the Indian e-commerce marketplace is 19.6%, and it is set to reach 7 Trillion Rupees by the year 2023.
As consumers are switching from traditional markets to online platforms, businesses must take their ventures online and reach customers across the globe. With the help of digital marketing and the ever-expanding virtual world, the growth opportunities are endless. Ravi Sharma, a banking and payments lead analyst at the company, says that even though consumer spending has taken a plunge, there has been a rise in online spending. E-wallets and online payment solution providers such as Amazon, and PayTM could benefit from the situation and further increase their outreach.
Marketing Strategies For Small Businesses
Since small businesses don’t have a massive budget to invest in digital marketing, we’ve compiled a list of marketing strategies that don’t require a major investment:
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Search Engine Optimization:
SEO refers to optimizing your website to rank higher in search engines. With Search engine optimization, brands aim to increase traffic, build a solid website with informative and valuable content, strategically place keywords, and ultimately reduce their dependence on pay-per-click advertising. SEO has been around for years and it will continue to be one of the top ways to get long-term results.
In the next few months, Google is going to rank websites according to ‘page experience signals.’ What are these, you ask? Simply put, websites that offer a rich, hassle-free experience to users are going to rank higher. So, in the end, a website with the following characteristics would be ranked higher:
- Loads faster.
- Safe and secure.
- Mobile-browser friendly.
- Informative, high-quality content.
The key is to create first-rate content and avoid stuffing unnecessary keywords. Ensure that you conduct thorough research and cover essential information that one must know about the topic. Your website should offer a high-end user experience
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Go Local:
Google My Business is an online, free-to-use tool for businesses that can help them establish and manage their presence in the virtual world. It allows people in your vicinity to easily find your business on Google Maps and search. You can publish posts and offers to reach a wider audience. Make sure that your posts are relevant to the services/products that you offer. Adding photos, videos, and other relevant information can help you rank higher in the search engine.
According to Hubspot, ‘near me’ and ‘where to buy’ search queries have increased by over 200%. This highlights that it holds immense potential to grow your business and establish an online presence.
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Video Marketing:
As the name suggests, video marketing is a great way to post content in a video format. The main goal of video marketing is to encapsulate videos into your marketing strategy. Brands have decided to play around with this technique and take it up a notch by offering live streaming and 360° videos. Digital video marketing can help boost sales and increase the conversion rate.
In the year 2020, about 92% of marketers claimed that video marketing is a crucial part of their strategy.
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Content Marketing:
Your content must provide valuable information to the customer and provide solutions to their problems. The goal of your content should be to gain the attention of your consumer. According to Demand Metric, about 70% of the audience would prefer to learn about the brand in an article than through an advertising medium.
It can be a great way to increase brand loyalty in customers and even generate leads. It costs 62% less than traditional marketing which is why it is perfect for small businesses.
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Competitor Analysis
Analyze your competition and see what digital marketing techniques work for them. You don’t have to follow the same steps or copy their strategy. There may be things that work for them that may not work for you. Likewise, your strategies may not work for them. The point is to find out what helped them reach their position. Soon you’ll be able to figure out the right strategy for your business.
Final Thoughts
Digital Marketing is beneficial for small businesses as it allows them direct communication with consumers. Businesses can use social media platforms to engage with their audience and gain insight into market trends and enhance their services accordingly. In the same way, consumers would be able to learn more about practices that businesses follow and connect on a deeper level with their audience.
