From our years of experience (20+ years, OMG!) advising companies big and small on their digital marketing strategy, there are common “holes” we see that render their strategy incomplete and ineffective.
So ask yourself these questions to self-diagnose your digital marketing strategy. If your answer is “no” to any of them, your digital marketing strategy might need some revising.
1. Do you know your target personas? (Yes/No)
“A buyer persona is an imaginary character based on research and data that represents your ideal buyer or target audience” [1]. It describes your target customers covering their functional, emotional, and behavioral needs in the buyer’s journey. It is far more descriptive than a demographic description of a target “segment”, and it informs your content, ad-targeting, and how you should spend your media dollar. Doing digital marketing without understanding your target customers at the Persona level is like star gazing without an understanding of the constellation: you’ll waste a lot of effort looking around but not finding what you want and start complaining that the telescope doesn’t work.
2. Do you understand your Buyer’s Journey? (Yes/No)
The marketing funnel, decision funnel, conversion funnel, buyer’s journey, whatever you want to call it, is the journey that a customer will go through as they embark on finding a solution to a problem they have, such as finding a pair of waterproof hiking shoes, or the best video conferencing solution for the boardroom. From not knowing your brand is the solution they are looking for to finally buying your service/product, buyers seek content and information that gets more specific as they learn more about the available options. Understanding this journey is tremendously helpful in generating content ideas for your brand for different stages of the funnel.
3. Do you know what your most relevant keywords are? (Yes/No)
By keywords, we mean the words that people use to describe you. Storytell your brand with terms that your target customers use allows your brand to be more easily discovered and understood. Qipao or cheongsam? Course or class? Online banking or eBanking? Keyword analysis will give you the answer. It also gives you a wealth of customer insights along the buyer’s journey. From the related keywords, you’ll discover trending topics (e.g., STEM learning toys for 5 years old), product preferences (e.g., dark red lipstick), purchase behavior (e.g., where to buy), and competitive landscape (e.g., iPhone 14 vs. Samsung Galaxy S22). The more you use the frequently used keywords in your category, the higher the chance customers will discover you via paid search, SEO, and even social media.
4. Are you articulating your offering in terms of “customer benefits”? (Yes/No)
Product feature describes your product, often in language that means nothing to your customers, such as “Super Retina XDR Display”. In contrast, customer benefit describes how your customer can benefit from your product feature, such as “Mind-blowing detail”. Speaking in customer benefit makes for effective communications as your audiences have less to think about why they need your product/service.
In a nutshell, if you understand your target personas, their needs along the buyer’s journey, and their choice of words and language, you can effectively tell them how they can benefit from your offerings. Simply put, that’s marketing communications.
Like in life, a good friend understands you, your needs and speaks your language. Be a good friend to your customers.
Reference:
1. Certified Digital Marketing Professional, Module 2: Content Marketing. https://www.bonfiremedia.hk/syllabus