Sales and Marketing - Jen Jordan
Jen Jordan brings a wealth of life and leadership experiences to her writing. After 10 years creating a variety of content for a nonprofit, Jen decided to establish her own writing business. She specializes in creating high quality blog and website content for small businesses. When she's not writing, Jen is a competitive triathlete with a goal of completing a triathlon in all 50 states.
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4 Outdated Marketing Strategies to Ditch In 2021In today’s fast-paced digital marketing age, small businesses have so many marketing strategies from which to choose! The better question is, how do you know which marketing strategies are the most effective and the best way to invest your hard-earned dollars! We chose to highlight four marketing strategies that many industry experts agree are outdated and ineffective. There are far better ways to invest your marketing budget in 2021. 1. Yellow Pages Before the smartphone age, Yellow Pages were one of the easiest ways for potential customers to find your business. If someone needed a realtor, lawn care company, plumber, or any other business or service, they pulled out the trusty Yellow Pages book and perused their options. These days people are more likely to access that sort of information online, where they can also read reviews and learn all about the various options. Most printed copies of business directories make their way to the recycling or rubbish bins these days. Sadly, given the high cost of advertising in the Yellow Pages and the waning number of readers, this is an obsolete advertising strategy that’s not worth spending your hard-earned money on. 2. Social media with no strategy Many small businesses dive into social media with no plan… but because it’s “free,” they feel there’s nothing to lose. Social media is a great marketing tool, but you need a bit more strategy than just “build a large following.” Because of Facebook’s ever-changing algorithms, only a few of your followers are likely to see your content on their “news feed” these days. Many small business owners discover that they need to purchase Facebook ads to ensure their content stays visible. Don’t give up on your social media presence! It’s critical for small businesses to maintain a strong presence with relevant, timely content. Share educational and informative content. Everything from demos and how-to-videos make excellent social media content. Pair your online presence with a robust email marketing strategy to increase your visibility to your followers and customers. 3. Direct mail campaigns Direct mail campaigns were popular back in the day. Most marketing experts consider them mostly ineffective, especially when considering the cost. With direct mail campaigns, a business gathers the mailing or email list of potential customers (sometimes thousands). Then they send a postcard, letter, email, or some other kind of mailing in hopes that people will read it and decide to respond (ideally by making a purchase). The problem with this marketing strategy is that it has a name—junk mail. Like the Yellow Pages, it usually goes directly to the rubbish or recycling bin without being read. This kind of spamming wastes valuable marketing resources and inconveniences the recipients. Nobody wins. 4. Digital marketing without considering search engine optimization (SEO) Your website will likely be your first opportunity to create a lasting impression on a potential customer or client. It’s essential to make sure your website gets discovered. There are many opinions and approaches to search engine optimization (SEO) as a strategy. Unfortunately, many small businesses waste a lot of money fighting over the same few keywords that a potential customer may never actually use! So, ditch the keyword-driven bidding war. Instead, focus on identifying the keyword phrases your potential customers are actually using. Incorporate those words and phrases throughout your website and spend your time and money creating excellent educational content for your website. Is your business relying on any of these outdated or ineffective marketing strategies? If so, it may be time to re-evaluate your marketing plans for 2021 and make a few upgrades. Works Cited: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/270613 https://www.hypercube.co.nz/stop-using-these-5-popular-but-ineffective-marketing-strategies/ https://www.cloohawk.com/blog/5-outdated-marketing-practices-holding-back-your-business |
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