With today’s businesses expanding beyond brick-and-mortar stores all the time, the definition of marketing has become a little more complex. Even just fifteen years ago, a company’s marketing materials were mostly made up of commercials, business cards, and public advertisements. These traditional marketing tactics were designed to establish a brand in the mind of the consumer. This was no easy task, especially when your advertising was competing with countless others for the attention of the same group of people.
Today, this idea of competing for the attention of the public is more relevant than ever. The human attention span has been steadily decreasing, but the way we engage with advertising has changed as well. These days, a traditional billboard or commercial on the radio just isn’t going to get the same response as a digitally focused campaign. This is even truer if you’re targeting younger audiences.
There’s no signs of the tech tidal wave ending any time soon, and that’s why it’s so important to modernize your marketing strategy. A great first step to expanding your brand’s reach online is to make use of a digital marketing agency. Here are five reasons to get some help from the pros.
1. Get noticed
The most obvious way that a digital marketing agency can help is just that: marketing digitally. Online advertising is an excellent example of a concept that’s easy to understand, and almost impossible to master. In theory, all you’re doing is creating some marketing materials, throwing them onto online spaces that are likely to drive traffic, and then kicking back to reap the rewards. Right?
The unfortunate truth is, if digital marketing were this simple, we’d all be retiring early. An easy fact to forget about digital marketing is that the same rules apply as traditional advertising. Competition is everywhere, and where half the battle simply used to be letting people know that you exist, now you have the additional challenge of showing off what sets you apart. For almost every industry type, there are countless companies, all operating in the same area, providing the same service, and competing for the same client base. It’s no longer enough to just let people know who you are and where they can find you. You need to catch their attention, convince them of why you’re the one for the job, and explain what makes your company so much better than all the others. Oh, and you have literal seconds to do it before losing their attention. Still seem easy?
A digital marketer can help blend your great ideas about the industry with the reality of today’s marketing climate. They’ll help organize your services, brand identity, and the core of your company into marketing materials that are attractive and concise. A digital marketing agency will streamline your selling points, helping you to say as much as you can in as few words as possible. A marketing agency can also help you identify the best demographics to target, and help you spot any groups that you’re overlooking in your marketing campaigns.
2. Get found
Gone are the days of advertising in the phonebook. What was once a goldmine of local businesses and professionals has become an awkward relic, confusing each new generation more than the last. So what filled the void that the phonebook left behind? The Internet search engine.
One of the most important, yet cryptic parts of the online marketing journey is optimizing for search engines. We use online searches just about every day, and for just about everything. Whether we’re looking for puff-pastry recipes or the best brake replacement in town, search engines are usually the first place we look when we need something. Search engines like Google operate on an algorithm, which is designed to match you to the most relevant search results possible. The exact inner workings of these algorithms are closely-guarded secrets, which is why proactively managing your search engine optimization, or SEO, is so important to consistently ranking in web searches.
There are many aspects to SEO, from keyword density to backlinks. Ranking on the first page of Google is no easy feat, however, so frequent tweaks and changes are important to stay ahead of the competition. Although SEO is a skill that can be taught and learned, the amount of time needed to truly understand it would probably be better spent working on your business. That’s why hiring a digital marketing agency that’s already familiar with the ins and outs of SEO can make such a difference in your business’ online success.
3. Get followed
If you use social media frequently, you’ve probably come across corporate marketing campaigns that come off as a bit…uninspired. Not only does a lacklustre social media hurt your conversions, it also can permanently affect the way people view your brand. And with SEO’s emphasis on strong social media, it’s no longer an optional marketing tactic. The modern consumer has come to expect a brand to have a presence on all platforms. And if you’re not active on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and countless others that eat up so much of our free time, potential customers are likely to look for a competitor who is.
Having a strong presence on social media can make the difference when a customer is in the market. This isn’t just about making semi-regular Facebook posts—your social media should be just as strategic as the other branches of your digital marketing. Ideally, your social media should be funny, interesting, and informative enough that people would follow it on their own accord. Sadly, we can’t all be comedians in 140 characters or less, and that’s where a digital marketing agency can offer a hand.
A social media expert can help you to identify your brand image, and align it with your online presence. Regular updates, promoted posting, and proactive analysis of your target markets are just some of the tools in a marketer’s toolbox. Let an expert handle this important aspect of your marketing approach, saving you time to focus on your business.
4. Get cleaned up
Going hand-in-hand with social media and brand identity, visual design is a crucial but often-overlooked part of any marketing strategy. Many business-owners assume that their existing reputation and a brief run-down of offered services is enough to grab someone’s attention. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. Now, more than ever, we are visual thinkers. We’re attracted to aesthetically pleasing images and interfaces, and the average consumer is more likely to choose your company if it has a clean and consistent visual element.
Digital marketing agencies usually have in-house graphic design teams that can work with you to learn the heart of your business. From there, they’ll put together some proposals on the look, feel, and ‘vibe’ of your visual designs. This is usually the trickiest stage. How do you sum up years of your hard work in a colour code, or a font choice? Graphic design involves a shocking amount of complexity, usually to create something that looks quite simple. This leads many to believe that their amateur design skills rival those of a professional, but often, the difference is night and day.
If your brand image is missing that little something special, consider investing in the skills of a professional graphic designer. By getting to know you and your work, they can collaborate with you on the visual elements of your brand, and help to create something beautiful.
5. Get new perspectives
Perhaps the most valuable opportunity of working with a digital marketing agency, is the chance to get a fresh set of eyes on your work. Marketers can provide an objective opinion on your current marketing strategies, and help you to figure out what’s working, and what can be improved. Sometimes, a complete overhaul is needed, re-identifying the brand’s image from top to bottom. And sometimes, all you need is a couple of tweaks to get you back on course.
Maybe you’re just getting started, and you’re trying to hammer out just what your brand is all about. Or maybe you’ve been in your industry for years, and you’re just looking to make a course correction, or break into a new market. Whatever the case, a digital marketing agency has the tools and the skills needed to make your online presence as strong and unique as your work.
If you’re ready to take the next step in inventing (or re-inventing) your company’s identity, a digital marketing agency is the answer. And there’s no agency up to the task quite like the experts at KIAI. We’re fierce, but friendly. Proud, yet professional. And we can’t wait to hear what you have in store—so give us a ring.