Top 5 Digital Marketing Techniques for Startups and Small Businesses

With 2019 fresh and new, most businesses and digital marketers are starting to finalize their strategy for this year, while some might still be determining the budget that they will be willing to invest across channels they are already planning to leverage in the next ten months.

For startups and small businesses, before you decide which digital marketing channels you should focus on in 2019, it is first essential that you understand how each one has performed for the past recent years.

Just as you want to utilize the channels that will get you the most of your time, you also want to ensure that you will only be investing in channels that will deliver the best Returns On Investment (ROI) for your money as possible.

While not all businesses use the same metrics when determining the ROI of their digital marketing activities, having a rough idea of how most channels perform industry-wide can be a significant help if you haven’t chosen the best ones for your business.

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Here is a list of the best and proven channels for use for your digital marketing needs;

• Email Marketing

Despite being tagged by some as already “dead”, email marketing has proven that it is still one of the best channels for customer acquisition and retention.

While it may be the oldest in this list, email marketing is a strategy considered by many companies as the most effective way of connecting with prospective customers and keeping their repeat buyers engaged with their brand.

According to a survey carried out by GetResponse, 53 percent of businesses across industries and 55 percent of those who work in marketing agencies say email marketing delivers good to excellent ROI. Meanwhile, 73 percent of marketers worldwide say email marketing is a channel that delivers medium to excellent ROI, according to Statista.

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Another powerful channel that no digital marketer or business owner can afford not to use is SEO. If you are spending time writing articles for your content marketing campaign, you might as well invest in improving your search engine optimization (SEO).

It might seem technically complex, but the reality is, with a bit of reading and dedication, you can easily understand the basics. You will need to make structural changes, write consistently high-quality content and attract backlinks to your domain. It is a lot of work, but if you do it yourself, your only cost will be time, which is worth it, because the long-term benefits are enormous.

In this day and age where 81 percent of people conduct an online search before making a purchase, and 90 percent of the whole world population only look at the first page of the search engine results page (SERP), it cannot be argued that SEO has the highest potential of turning a searcher into a customer.

In a study carried out by Statista, 73 percent of marketers across the world rate SEO as a channel that delivers medium to excellent ROI.

• Content Marketing

Content marketing takes many forms, but none require significant investment. The simplest approach is to manage an on-site blog, adding new content a few times a week that informs or entertains your readers in some unique and practical way.

From blog posts to infographics, and gifs, to videos and user-generated live stories, content marketing offers a plethora of ways to businesses who not only want to educate their target customers but also want to establish a strong business brand.

The report from GetResponse reveals that 43 percent of businesses across industries and 48 percent of advertising agencies say that content marketing delivers good to excellent ROI.

• Social Media Marketing

Statistics show that more than 2.4 billion people use social media, so it’s important to incorporate this channel into your startup’s marketing strategy. As your business’s presence on social media grows, more people will see and recognize it.

Widely utilized in both the Business to Customer (B2C) and Business to Business (B2B) sector, social media networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn have enabled brands to have two-way communication with their customers and followers.

It takes more than just a profile to succeed with social media marketing. You must post engaging, relevant content that gives users a reason to follow your account. And once you’ve attracted followers, you should encourage them to stay by responding to their questions and comments.

• Paid Search

Unlike organic search or SEO, paid search is a form of digital advertising channel that allows businesses to obtain an optimal position on the first page of SERPs. This is because it allows business owners to buy traffic from search engines like Google.

Considering the reach that search engines offer, there is no question as to why businesses would not take advantage of this medium to get in front of their target audience, even if they have to allocate a significant budget for it.

Also Read: 

Top 5 Critical Success Factors for Start-Up Businesses 

Business Hubs Need the Right Tools to Ensure Successful Startups, Incubators Growth Program