You may make mistakes if you’re new to digital marketing. Here are ten things you should avoid when designing a digital marketing strategy. There are several reasons you will be making mistakes. Everyone does. But, in short, let’s say there is a lot to learn from your mistakes and those of others. And that’s okay!
We all start somewhere. We either learn from our own mistakes and the mistakes of others so that we can grow as professionals and marketers. If you’re planning to create a digital marketing strategy for your business, here are ten digital marketing dos and don’ts that will help get you started in the right direction with your strategy.
1) Not Understanding your Audience
Creating a marketing strategy without understanding your target audience is like aiming an arrow in one direction only to have it come back in another. You can’t effectively sell your products or services if you don’t know who your customers are, what they need, what they want, and how they behave. So, when creating your digital marketing strategy, make sure you take the time to understand your audience first.
2) Not Engaging Enough with your Audience
I’ve got a quick confession to make. Have you ever heard? “Do as I say, no as I do.” Well, I am guilty of this one, big time. Now that I got that out of the way, let’s continue. It is one of the biggest pet peeves for many marketers. It’s not enough to build an audience on social media platforms. You need to engage with them. If you’ve never interacted with your followers before, they might feel like they have nothing in common with you—and why should they care about what you have to say? Focus on establishing a genuine connection through social media by sharing valuable and entertaining content that adds value to your followers.
3) Not Tracking your Analytics
One of the most common marketing mistakes is not paying attention to analytics. To develop a successful digital marketing strategy, you need accurate information about your customers, where they’re coming from, how they behave on your site, etc. You can use that data to determine what changes you should make to reach new people, prevent confusion or frustration for returning visitors, etc.
4) Advertising Before you’re Ready
Not all businesses need to advertise; even if they do, you don’t have to immediately put all your chips into advertising. While getting in front of as many people as possible early on can be tempting, waiting until you know what you’re doing can save you time and money. Think about how much effort goes into creating an ad campaign that works—multiple factors are at play here.
5) Spending too Much Money too Soon
Overestimating your reach and how much money it will take to market your product. It’s all too easy to get excited about your idea and spend money on advertising before really establishing yourself with a solid marketing strategy, so don’t get carried away. If you plan to spend any money on marketing, try not to spend more than a few hundred dollars until you have an established audience that you can leverage. Examples include Facebook ads, Google AdWords, and banner ads.
6) Not staying up to date with Trends in Digital Marketing
Another big mistake many digital marketers make is not staying current with current trends. Digital marketing strategies change quickly; it’s crucial to keep on top of these changes to succeed in today’s market. Read articles about where your industry is heading online. Take part in workshops, join a local digital marketing group, or join a local digital marketing association. Keeping up with current trends will prevent you from falling behind!
7) Hiring the Wrong Team Members
If you hire (or keep) people who aren’t the right fit for your organization, you’ll surely derail your marketing effort. In addition to spending time and effort, it’s necessary to have an honest discussion with employees about why they should want to work for you and why you think they are a good match. Only employ those who genuinely want to work with you, not just because you need staff or someone asked you to.
8) Not Spending Enough Time on Social Media Marketing
Unless you live in a cave, it’s impossible not to notice that Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and YouTube are taking over as preferred ways of communication. A mistake many small business owners make is spending too little time on these channels. You could be losing out on valuable clients if you’re not actively marketing your business on social media sites.
Here is a quick read on social media
9) Not Diversifying your Income Streams
Sometimes it makes sense to focus all your attention on one income stream, but you should never ignore others. For example, if you’re focused only on Facebook Ads, you’re missing leads from other areas like blog articles, YouTube Ads, and email marketing.
10) Trying to do everything Yourself
Learn to Delegate
It’s tempting, but when you try to do everything yourself, you make too many unnecessary mistakes. Outsourcing specific tasks in your marketing strategy can make your life much easier. In online marketing, many aspects require expert knowledge—such as design, video editing, SEO, and analytics—so don’t be afraid to delegate duties.
