THE MARKETING LOOP
Once someone discovers your brand what do you do next?
When you discover a brand for the first time where do you go and look for more info about them? Their website? Social media account? Do you ask around to find out who knows them? If you are anything like us here in the TLSE office, the answer is probably Instagram.
So now think about your business and where people come to find out more about you? If the answer is your social media account, or more specifically Instagram, what is your account telling people about you? Is your content fresh and up to date? Is your game strong? What reason are you giving them to find out more and what links are you providing them with to join your inner circle? If people like what they see and what they read, they will want to know more and that is when and where you invite them into your brand.
As a business, we are always looking to reach out to more people to tell them what we do, share our products, increase our brand awareness and provide a reason why we are the ones to engage with rather than our competitors. With so much noise on the internet and competitors fighting for market share, how can your brand ever breakthrough?
Well, the answer is not just about putting all your eggs in one basket. Yes, it appears that social media is the first go-to point to discover a brand or learn more about them but there are many other ways too. Social media is often the front door to your brand, but what you need to do is invite them in and keep them entertained, engaged, and informed. There are so many other ways to communicate with your audience but the most important thing is to know where your audience is and where they are gathering their information. You need to ensure that wherever customers connect with your brand they see and hear the same thing. Your visual style and tone of voice on your website, in your store, and on your digital platforms all need to be the same. Connecting on so many levels is vital to reach out to customers who already are in a relationship with you and those who will want to be once they fall in love with you.
Coming up with the perfect mix and combination of marketing activations and touch points is vital to ensure the experience the customer is having with your brand is exciting and welcoming no matter where it originates. A unique blend of touch points will ensure your brand comes to life.
So, let's look at your options. A multi-touch marketing plan is what you need to consider with a mix of owned media, paid media, and earned media.
Owned media is defined as any content that your business controls. This includes:
Social media
Blog
Website
Email newsletters AKA eDMs
Paid media refers to paying to make your content visible. It’s standard practice to promote owned media which includes:
Social media advertising
Influencer marketing
Pay-per-click (PPC)
Earned media is the hardest type to obtain. This is what we once called PR! It takes a lot of effort, consistency, and hard work to establish it — hence why it’s referred to as “earned”- and includes:
Editorial mentions in print media, TV, Radio and websites
Praise from customers on social media
High rankings on search engines
The goal is for customers to fall in love with you and stay in your loop.
It should go a little something like this:
They discover your brand
They follow your social media account
That drives them to your website
They sign up to your newsletter
They receive your regular eDM
They want to purchase so they go back to your ecommerce site
On the outside:
They read about you in the media
Influencers notice you and want to work with you
Brands want to collaborate with you
Their friends and family tell them about you
Your social media advertising kicks in and subconsciously you are everywhere your customers are
They dive deeper and want to know more so they hit follow your social media and they read your blog
Now they can’t get enough of you, want to know what is new and what you have to say
What you need to do now is keep them engaged with fresh, interesting, and engaging content. Your challenge should you choose to accept it is don’t stop - or they will leave!
Remember - wherever the doorway is that they enter your brand you want to ensure they stay. They may enter at the point where someone has told them about you, or maybe they have seen your Facebook ads. Wherever it is make sure they have a reason to stay.
So how does your strategy look? Do you have the mix right and all the touch points covered?
If you need help our team of gurus is ready to chat and work with you to formulate the perfect strategy for your business and ensure your game is strong.
WORDS | Fiona Keogh, TLSE
IMAGES | TLSE
