What is digital marketing strategy?

The steps of developing a digital marketing strategy!

The word strategy, as complicated as it sounds, has a simple meaning. Let's start with an example. Think of a group trip. In this kind of trips, usually one person is responsible for planning; After determining the destination, he determines which way to reach the desired city, when and where to leave, where we are going to stay, what equipment we need and who will provide these equipment, who is responsible for coordinating the breakfast that We are supposed to drink on the way and things like that. All these things together make our travel strategy. This concept is also very important in digital marketing. In this article, i want to introduce you this concept and the steps of developing an effective strategy.

What is digital marketing strategy?

Want an academic definition? Digital marketing strategy is the assessment of specific goals that can be achieved through different channels.The simpler definition is this: Digital marketing strategy is a plan that helps you achieve your business goals and use existing tools, campaigns and channels such as individual, paid and acquired media to achieve these goals. In this article, I want to introduce you a way to build a coherent and efficient strategy.

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The steps of developing a digital marketing strategy:

For easy understanding of the path, I have divided it into 7 steps.

Step 1: Create personas for your buyers

The first thing you need to know about any kind of marketing is what kind of people you are going to target and who exactly you want to attract. The purpose of creating buyer personas is to help you formulate a digital marketing strategy. Creating a persona means that you know in advance who will most likely be your customer and actually guess the characteristics of your target customer.

For example, if your business is in the field of clothing, you should see what age and gender your target customer is, what is their height and weight, what are their hobbies, what is their job, and information like this. The more detailed this information is, the better you can meet your customer's needs.

Step 2: Determine your goals and resources

The goal of each part of the business should be in line with the overall goal of the business. For example, if your goal is to increase your revenue by 20% this year, your marketing colleagues may be looking to increase lead capture by 50% to meet the overall business goal. Whatever your marketing goal is, you need the right resources to make it possible. These resources can be physical tools like more up-to-date equipment for filming, or creating a new channel like email marketing to communicate with your audience or even an expert.

Step 3: Evaluate the digital marketing channels you have

There are many times when we come across an item that we had completely forgotten about while sorting out our wardrobe or clothes. In order to prevent this from happening to our digital marketing channels, it is better to have a list of these channels.

You must know what channels you have for digital marketing. Collect every channel you have in a spreadsheet. Now you have an overview of the media available to you. These media are divided into three categories. Individual, acquired and paid media, which we read a brief description of below.

• Owned media is any digital asset that is specific to your brand; Such as the brand website, the Instagram account you have, the blog you write in, and any other digital tool you have access to.
• Earned media refers to credit that you have earned through word of mouth marketing. This media may be your PR work, content you've published on your blog that has been shared multiple times, or a customer's satisfying experience. Earned media is an acknowledgment that you have earned using these methods at no cost to you.
• Paid media are those media where you have to pay a fee in order to be seen in them. This category includes tools like Google Ads, sponsored posts on social networks, banner ads on websites, TV ads, or any other tool that works with this system.

Accurately specifying these channels and their types will help you use your tools more accurately and in pursuit of your goals.

Step 4: Plan your content creation

Content, which is part of each brand's individual media, is the heart of digital marketing. Any message your brand sends can be referred to as content; from the "About Us" page to blog posts and published e-books. Content converts your visitors into leads and improves your online presence.

You can use the following techniques to improve your individual media -campaigns and content:

Check your current content.

Identify content gaps.

Write a coherent plan for content creation.

Step 5: Review your earned media campaigns

The next step in developing a digital marketing strategy is to think about the things you have done to date to market your brand and rate the effectiveness of each one. You can use a tool like Google Analytics for your convenience. Rate them and determine which section attracted the most traffic and leads, which of your posts was shared the most on social networks, or which of your strategies brought customer satisfaction, and so on. Focus on your strengths. Know your weaknesses, fix them or replace them with other campaigns.

Step 6: Review your paid media campaigns

As you did in the previous step, this time check your paid campaigns. For example, check whether the TV commercials you aired a few months ago had positive results or not. Check out the different platforms you've run paid ads on and learn the strengths and weaknesses of each. Decide whether it is optimal to continue advertising on each platform and which one will help you achieve your goals the most.

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Step 7: Apply all the above steps together

By creating a buyer persona, you were able to get to know him and his needs, then you got to know your goal and tools, by examining the different marketing channels that you have used so far, you were able to see which ones were more effective, and now it is time to use all these steps and create a strategy document. Make a comprehensive plan for yourself and proceed accordingly. Your strategy document is your road map to success. It is better to plan your digital marketing strategy for the long term, about 6 to 12 months. This tip will help you and your team know exactly when you should have finished each task.

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Advantages and importance of digital marketing strategy

• -The first and most important advantage is that it organizes your work and defines your workflow.
• -Having a strategic approach will help your brand be seen.
• -Another advantage of digital marketing strategy is that it is scientific and based on research. Ignore your instincts. When working, everything must be scientific and accurate.
• -Aligns marketing and sales goals. Having a specific strategy, different parts of a business are required to take steps towards the vision of the company.
• -You can achieve your goals by using strategy. Maybe your goal is to increase site traffic, or maybe you want to focus on increasing sales. Digital marketing strategy helps you to move towards your goals in a smoother way.

Examples of the most practical digital marketing strategies

There are probably hundreds of different roadmaps for businesses focusing on different parts of digital marketing. In the following, we will review some famous examples together, of course, these are not divine revelations, and each business requires a different strategy according to its own conditions. But to get an idea, you can start by reading the rest of this section:

1. Publishing a blog post with an eye on SEO

When we talk about blog post, we don't mean to write about your daily happenings in your blog.

Know the needs of the users you want to target and create content to meet their needs in your blog. This can be very useful because it is the first stage of predatory marketing. By raising the user's concern and solving his need, you can build trust in him and attract his opinion to your brand.

How can you measure his need? SEO techniques come to your aid here. By considering people's searches, you can target them, create content for them and finally lead them to use your products or services.

2. YouTube video marketing

A flashy video with the right effects and catchy music will definitely catch everyone's attention. These days, when the vlog market (Video Blogs Marketing) is so hot and more people are active on YouTube, why not use this opportunity for your business?

Publishing videos regularly on YouTube can put you ahead of your competitors and add to the appeal of your brand. If you are at the beginning of writing your strategy, think more seriously about video.

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3. Network marketing

Defining the benefits of social networks is a bit repetitive. We all know how popular these networks have become these days. One thing to consider is that many people these days trust the content published on social networks and have a positive opinion about businesses active on these platforms. Use this opportunity to communicate with your audience, produce entertaining and useful content for them and try to attract their attention.

4. Podcast production

Podcasts are finding their place among more people day by day. Why not be present in the moments of your audience? Your voice can resonate in your audience's ears in traffic on the way home, on the road, or even while doing chores around the house.

Allocating part of your digital marketing strategy to podcasting can be a good option for your brand if you have something new to say or if you can produce relevant and attractive content for your users.

Even if you're just starting out and don't want to do the heavy lifting, you can be a guest on other people's podcasts or sponsor an episode of a popular podcast.

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5. E-mail marketing

You may not think about it, but email marketing can be a very cost-effective and effective way to communicate with your customers/audiences. By sending newsletters, attractive and educational content to your users, you can make them lean towards your brand and build trust in them.

Before anything to start email marketing, it is necessary to ask your website audience if they want to receive your emails. And get their email address.

Building a good email list can take years. But do not despair. Ultimately, the most important thing for you is to make your audience feel positive. So choose the right path for it and be patient.

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6. Creating related forums (dialogues)

You might think that forums are out of fashion and no one goes to them. But it is not. You can easily make them fall in love with your brand by answering the questions of your audience.

Note that you should not directly promote your products during the discussion in the forums. Also, hesitate a little before linking to your articles and blog content! Be aware that talking in forums is like walking on a razor's edge. You are present in this space only to gain the trust of the audience and by directly and indirectly defining yourself, the exact opposite of this happens.

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7. Advertising

One of the famous digital marketing strategies is the use of paid advertising. Many small businesses don't advertise because they think it's too expensive. While this thinking is not so true. Nothing is free because everything takes time and time is money! With this thought, you can convince yourself that using advertisements will not be a very expensive option!

Advertisements can be in the form of advertisements on websites, in mobile applications, advertisements in Google or in social networks. Which method you use depends on the type of business you have, your audience, and the budget you want to spend. Our suggestion is to talk to the people who give you advice in this field to make the right decision before starting advertising or making a strategy based on them.

What makes a digital marketing strategy more effective?

Following the tips below can help you benefit from an effective digital marketing strategy.

1. Evaluate your marketing strategy from time to time

Observing all the principles that we have mentioned so far can lead you to have a pure strategy. But note that the conditions are not always the same. Your strategy may also need to change as conditions change (for example, new products are added).

If you review your strategy on an ongoing basis, you can be sure that you are moving in step with the needs of the customer and that you are not missing anything. Digital marketers are known for being agile, so keep in mind that you're not going to leave everything alone.

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2. Increase customer lifetime value (CLV).

Customer retention is easier than customer acquisition; Therefore, it is better to try to continue your relationship with current customers in the best way so that they support your marketing campaigns and help your business grow. Some things that can increase CLV include:

-Identifying valuable customers

-Engaging with customers across all platforms

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3. Use predictive analytics

Predictive analysis is very effective in measuring and increasing ROI. Use the data you have collected to your advantage and use it to analyze and predict user behavior. This technology is very essential in marketing because it allows you to find your potential customers and take specific actions for them.

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4. Use Automation

Automation has become an integral part of marketing. Why? Because these systems can handle repetitive tasks well; You no longer need to worry about sending a welcome SMS or email and you can take care of more important things.

With an effective automation, you can invoice your repetitive tasks, and while you are busy checking your day's work, documents are emailed to clients, password SMSes reach their audience, and half-abandoned shopping carts are taken care of.

5. Create user-friendly content

Analyze the user's needs and produce content that fits his concerns. Try to make it easier for them to use your products or facilities with the content you produce. Don't forget that content is the cornerstone of your marketing campaigns; So be sure to keep your goal in mind when creating that audience.

What problems do we face if we don't have a digital marketing strategy?

We need planning to advance anything. If we know in advance what principles we have considered for a task and our destination is clear, the probability that we will succeed in it is much higher. If we don't have a coherent strategy, our work will become disorderly, the coordination between the company's units will be lost, and this disorder will not be overlooked by the customer. For example, not having a suitable schedule for content production, causes the customer to move away from the brand and forget him. Also, if we do not know exactly where and how to spend our budget, the company may face financial problems.

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How much budget do we need for digital marketing?

The question that arises in the minds of many business owners or those who just want to start a business is how much of the budget should be allocated to digital marketing?

The amount of budget that most companies consider for their marketing in a year varies depending on the type of business. Normally, companies allocate 10% of their sales to marketing. How much of this 10% you allocate to digital marketing depends on your company's policies and whether your field of work is online or offline. Companies that have an online business allocate more budget to digital marketing.

Digital marketing strategy based on the RACE framework

There are different methods and models for developing a strategy. The RACE framework is one of these standards for developing strategy and planning in Internet marketing. In the world, there are many models, patterns, frameworks, standards, matrices, etc., with the help of which you can determine your planning and work path. You have probably heard of models such as AIDA, RACE, SOSTAC, SWOT, PESTLE, SMART, 5S, etc. and have dealt with some of them. We want to talk more about the RACE framework and the digital marketing strategy based on this framework and see how we can formulate the strategy according to the RACE model.

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What is the RACE framework and what are its parts?

This model, like AIDA, actually consists of four steps, where each letter represents the first of a word, which you can see in the following section:

Reach

Act

Convert

Engage

1. Access (REACH): This part is related to audience access to us. In fact, Reach is related to increasing the awareness of the brand, products and services in various online platforms, based on which we should be able to convey our proposed values to the target audience by properly analyzing the current situation in the market.
2. ?Action (ACT): This stage refers to the set of actions that create interest and desire in the audience to know more about us and our products and go one step lower in the marketing funnel. Naturally, this is not an easy task in different online platforms, and you should be able to reach your goal by spending time and money on creating content, online advertising, and stronger branding. At this stage, the audience has gotten to know you more and they are looking for your proposed values, competitive advantages, distinction and getting more information about your products. At this stage, you can use activities such as signing up for the newsletter, following social networks, offering discounts, reviewing products, etc. so that your audience interacts with you more.
3. CONVERT: Now it's time to direct the audience or potential customers who have expressed interest in you and your products to the bottom of the marketing funnel and turn them into customers. This stage is actually one of the most important parts of the RACE framework; Because the final purchase is done in this section. Therefore, in any way you can in the online and offline space, you should make the users make their decision to buy and complete the payment process. In this part, an attractive and practical call to action (CTA) will be very useful.
4. Engagement: Many believe that in the AIDA model, our relationship with the customer does not end after the purchase stage, and there is also a Satisfactory stage. In the RACE framework, after the stage of converting a user into a customer or finalizing the purchase, you must still maintain your relationship and interaction with customers and try to make them loyal. You should do all you can to increase customer lifetime.

The RACE framework, like the SOSTAC or AIDA models, are among the standard and important models in the digital marketing space, which especially play a significant role in formulating Internet marketing strategies. In the RACE framework, you are faced with four stages of access, action, conversion and interaction, which you need to coordinate well so that you can ultimately make more sales and build loyal customers.

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Conclusion:

A digital marketing strategy is one of the most important elements you will need to get started. A comprehensive plan will help you consider the optimal way to manage your business and measure all dimensions.