Making your marketing overhaul a success

We’ve all heard probably the most overused cliche of all time: “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result”. Yet it still rings true.

It’s surprising how many businesses stick with poor marketing strategies that aren’t bringing in the returns they hoped for. Only around 22% of businesses are satisfied with their conversion rates. If you fall outside of this 22%, it’s time for a marketing overhaul, and with these tips, you can make sure it’s a success.

Most effective ways to market

There are many ways you can market your business effectively. What you choose will depend on your business and your customers, however, there are certain things you should do if you want to stay in the limelight and remain competitive. These include:

• Social media marketing and communication – Social media hosts specific advantages to businesses looking to reach a bigger audience and boost sales. Paid social media advertising gives you access to a global market while using data points to target the most relevant users for your business. This increases the chances of successful lead conversions. Also, social media instantly connects consumers and brands, allowing you to improve the customer experience. 

• Content marketing – Content marketing has been the focus of many marketing strategies for years now, and its power seems to be growing. On average, conversion rates are six times higher for companies using content marketing than those who aren’t. And it even works for B2B selling. 95% of B2B buyers consider content as trustworthy when evaluating a company for its offerings. 

It’s up to you what you do. However, certain methods of marketing, like online content, are proving themselves as the future of effective marketing. But there are always exceptions to every rule. Do what works for you. 

Using data effectively

If you want an effective strategy, you need to build it using the right tools and tactics. The only way to know which are the right tools and tactics for you is to find out. The way to do this is by using data. 

Some businesses shy away from using data. It can seem scary, but there’s a reason data has surpassed oil as the most valuable resource in the world. It can tell you everything you need to know to set up a good strategy: where to find your audience, what content they respond to best, their demographics, and it can even provide you with a reference point to measure your marketing progress. 

For example, Facebook is one of the most powerful advertising tools in the world. It has 2.41 billion monthly users which are 43% female and 57% male. 72% of users are between age 50 and 64. In comparison, Instagram has 1 billion users. 32% are aged 18 to 25, another 32% are aged 25 to 34, while only 13% are over 45. It’s stats like these that will influence where you market and what content you use. But to use data like this effectively, you’ll have to collect your own data to help you understand your audience. 

Collecting audience data

You collect data about your audience with software. Google Analytics is popular as it lets you analyse in-depth detail about your audience. But you can take data collection one step further and purchase dedicated software to track almost any information about your customers, providing they consent. There are also the good old-fashioned ways of data collection: questionnaires and surveys, which you can email to your audience or have available on your website. 

Many companies have done this successfully. For example:

• DirectTV used data to identify homeowners who recently applied for a change of address then created a personalised version of the company’s homepage tailored to those visitors. 
• Very.co.uk used customer data and weather information in their customers’ location to recommend appropriate items on their website.
• One winter apparel store worked out when the best time to advertise to their customers often bought winter items in advance. They did this by combining two data sets. The first was their sales data including time of purchase and customer location and the second was the weather in these locations.

These are just a few examples of how data can drive effective marketing. As the world grows more connected and more influenced by technology, understanding how you can better use data will be the key to marketing success. 

A great marketing strategy is essential for business growth but, you need an eCommerce platform which supports you and helps you reach your goals. This means scalability and unlimited features, so why not give Shopit a try? Start your free trial today.