You already made your plans known to the universe when you resolved to make 2022 your year. This year, you’re going to put the time and effort into your business, and make that magic happen. But…contrary to popular belief, just putting those vibes into the universe isn’t going to send your business soaring.
You do have to put in the work.
So, where do you start? What are the actionable steps you need to take right now?
Great news – we’re sharing the three things you need to be doing in marketing to bring your business success in 2022!
1. Own Your Stuff
Now, more than ever, your business needs you to take charge and give it the time, attention, love and energy it deserves.
This means owning every aspect of your business – including your digital wealth.
So how exactly do you do that?
Invest In a Website
You have to have your own website (that is, your own domain). In addition to the credibility factor, owning your own website gives you the control you need to successfully manage all of your digital tools in one place.
When you have a website, it’s easy to monitor how users interact with it.
You can review detailed metrics on visitors, from specific geographic locations, what devices are used, and third-party sites like social media platforms. These insights allow you to create a clear vision of your user persona, thus allowing you to better reach and resonate with your ideal customer efficiently.
It also means customers are always able to find you – anytime, anywhere. Even outside of business hours, your website continues to find and secure new customers. Fabulous!
Sure, you can supplement your website with social media. And you absolutely should because it’s a powerful way to build brand awareness and increase website traffic; however, social media platforms are someone else’s business – they get to make the rules.
If you are relying on those platforms to be the sole hub of your marketing, then what happens when they CHANGE the rules? Anyone remember the Facebook and Instagram outage of 2021? Just imagine everything you would’ve missed out on if all of your eggs were in that basket.
Owning your website means you get to play by your rules.
Own Your Database
You need a database of customers – previous and potential. This is essentially the foundation of your business.
No clients, no money. Know clients, know money… right?!
Many successful business owners will tell you, your database IS your business. How are you building and staying on top of yours? Don’t neglect this important piece of the puzzle.
Neil Patel, one of the world’s most influential digital marketers, is a firm believer in email lists, noting that databases are “worth their weight in gold.”
He suggests that 78% of marketers find email lists to be a top of the line tool.
And you don’t have to have a database of 5,000 to be successful.
Quality over quantity is the key here.
Begin with a list of previous customers (you’d better stay top of mind to this fantastic referral base of previous customers!) and invest in a way to capture new customers via an opt-in feature on your new website that offers visitors a valuable piece of information or educational tips in exchange for their email address.
Drive traffic to your website through audience-centric blogging and social media content, and watch your email list continue to grow with new quality prospects.
As far as email execution is concerned, there are several ways to tackle this beast, but we highly recommend using one of these professional tools to help automate and evaluate this task for you:
- Active Campaign
- Mailchimp
- Constant Contact
Control Your Digital Space
Learn from the countless business owners that lost access to their assets with no chance of getting them back.
They let an awesome employee create a social media page or Google My Business, using their own email and their own creatively brilliant password.
Now, said employee lives on a boat, out at sea, and off the grid with no possible line of communication, which means you’re locked out – indefinitely.
Yikes!
People lose their businesses everyday because they hand over their accounts to people they trust and then something happens.
Don’t allow anyone to create your business assets in their name; always create in your name, with your contact information and password as the sole owner of the account.
Pro-tip: use a password manager to keep track of all of this (and eliminate password drama). LastPass is our go-to!
Ready to BE the boss you need to be and take control of your business destiny?
Make a promise to yourself right now, I will not be a slave to the fickle algorithms of social media and Google.
Start making it happen…
- Create a website with your own domain name – no lead pages, no click funnels, none of that. Just a good ol’ www.yourbadassbusinessname.com.
- Start using your website as the online hub for your business. All roads lead to this website. Blogs, social media, google ads, online reviews…these are all different paths to get people here, to your site – where the magic happens.
- Make sure you own and are able to always access your assets. Keep an organized running list of these with usernames and passwords.
2. Have a Marketing Funnel
Marketing funnels – which we like to call marketing engines – are tools designed to work for you, but without a proper understanding of how to optimize them, they’ll work against you.
We often hear of clients putting out great content, but not seeing the results they were hoping for because the execution was broken or disjointed. While solid content is important, it has to be the right content for the job.
Remember, you’re building a process… a system… a machine!
Marketing engines are designed to generate qualified leads – so don’t lose sight of the purpose. Your goal here is to work out a system that’s both predictable, and fruitful. And you want to focus on one engine at a time. Once you’ve figured out the ins and outs of that engine, you can add more.
Think of it like a restaurant menu – you want to have a few key dishes that you do really well instead of a giant menu with a bunch of mediocre food.
So how do you put all of this into action? This easy breezy list will help you do just that:
- Who are you trying to reach (i.e. Who is your ideal customer)? Where… and how… do they consume their information?
- What traffic sources will you use to get in front of them – to get eyes on your business? Is it organic traffic? Paid ads? Strategic partner referrals? Guest blogs? Podcast appearances? List them all.
- What do you want from potential customers? Where are you leading them? Be direct – it can be a website landing page, webinar, blog, podcast, etc. (these are what we call “awareness events.”)
- All awareness events must have a Call-to-Action (CTA) that tells the person what to do. And you have to make it clear and simple. Anything beyond a few clicks is enough time for someone to lose interest. This step is where you’ll direct someone to download a piece of content, schedule a call, fill out a contact form, take a survey, etc.
- Plan to spend most of your time (97%) fueling your engine. By “fuel” we mean time, money and effort you pour into the traffic source that gets you predictable results.
3. Crush Content Marketing
Content is KING.
Marketing has changed over the years yet content marketing is still the most effective use of your marketing dollars.
It builds trust and credibility with your audience by telling your story and your unique value proposition (UVP), and with the search engines, like Google, which is vital because they reward businesses that publish quality, consistent content.
Content marketing involves the creation – and sharing – of online material, be it blogs, videos, or social media posts. Anything that people might want to see, that’s content. And that’s what’s going to set you apart from anyone else.
Good content shouldn’t solely focus on your business or always be promotional. Tailor your content to what your audience cares about and what they want to read. Tell your story, resonate, build trust, and ultimately lead them to an intended action at the right time or via the appropriate channels.
As a first step, develop a content marketing strategy based on who you are trying to reach. This isn’t the same as a social media strategy. Content marketing is separate, so do it first.
Social media strategy will come later, as an element of your overall content marketing strategy.
Final Thoughts
You’re officially ready to crush your small business marketing game in ‘22.
The three tips above are all actionable steps that you can take… starting now, GO!
Each of these steps has to be part of your grand strategy, it’s just a matter of you putting things in gear.
Easy peasy… right?
Don’t worry, it’s natural to feel overwhelmed by all the options.
64% of small business owners feel unable to effectively market their businesses the way they’d like to.
This can mean gaps, poor results, confusion, overwhelm or even being too paralyzed to start.
But, what if you had a GUIDE?
We designed My Digital Mojo with do-it-yourself marketing business owners in mind.
With a My Digital Mojo membership, you’ll get expert advice, video training, tips and guidance, live events, process and strategy worksheets, and access to our exclusive Facebook community so you can connect with and learn from other small business owners and DIY marketers like you.
If you’re ready to build your online presence, increase your brand awareness, and build a marketing engine that exceeds your business goals, sign up for a My Digital Mojo online membership today!