Five Digital Marketing Basics You Can’t Ignore

Whether you’re a marketing pro or just starting out, there are some digital marketing basics you just can’t ignore. Having a strong foundation for your marketing is the key to success, and it starts with these 5 basics below.

Marketing planning process – Great marketing ideas need to be S.M.A.R.T (specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and timed). Instead of a goal of more website traffic, think “10 qualified leads per month”. Starting with a strong marketing plan with specific goals can make all the difference between success and failure. Need help creating the plan? Check out Hannah’s Core Elements of a Marketing Plan.

Know Your Numbers and Trust Them – If you’ve got Google Analytics or any other legitimate statistical software on your website, then you probably have more numbers than you know what to do with. But are they actually helping you? According to a recent Experian Data Quality Study, 81% of companies believe that data is essential to their marketing success, however, 84% are experiencing data quality issues and don’t trust or understand their numbers! Understanding (and measuring!) your numbers is essential to any successful campaign

Data and Analytical Literacy – Your company just launched a new campaign, page views begin to soar, your marketing team is declaring it a success but then the CFO asks, “How is this affecting our bottom line?” If your website visits are up 30% but conversion rates stay the same, where is the success? Plan your campaigns with measurable conversion rates. Understand who is converting and where. We’ve got a great list of measurable marketing examples for you and the ULTIMATE List of Conversion Rate Optimization Tips for you.

Create New Content – You really can’t ignore this. It is generally the most effective way to promote your website and social sites. Whether you generate content yourself or have a team do it for you, do it and consistently. Original content matters.

On-Page SEO – Once that content is created, it is time to perform SEO on that page so your content can be found. This includes keywords, image optimization, and any technical issues. Take the time to do this correctly. Failure here will result in a reduced performance that easily could have been avoided. Not sure where to start? Check out our list of the 7 Most Simple & Easy SEO Techniques.

Got some ideas of your own for marketing basics? Leave a note below, or contact one of our marketing professionals today.