Years ago, marketers emphasized the importance of building your brand on land that you own such as your website, email lists, etc. Building on things that you don’t own such as your social media accounts were discouraged because marketers felt you were helping to build someone else’s business, not your own.
My, How Times Have Changed!
Business owners discovered that trying to divert traffic to their websites so people could read their blog posts became increasingly more futile. So, new ways had to be adopted for content flow to gain more visibility.
Rented Media Space
As much resistance as business owners had in embracing social media, they’ve come to realize it’s a veritable gold mine in accessing their audience. Content needs to be unleashed! It has no value by sitting at home on your website. You need to have it sitting everywhere people will have a chance in seeing it, hence using ‘rented land’.
Use platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Klusster, etc. to get your message out and hopefully drive more traffic to your website as a result. Social sharing, as marketer Mark Schaefer has said, is the most important digital marketing metric after sales and leads. “Social sharing is advocacy”. In other words, when someone shares your content, it acts as a referral. There is no stronger lead than that!
It’s also important to be seen repeatedly. Someone may not click on your article the first time they see it in their posting feed but if they see it a few times, they are more likely to take notice and open it. Some business owners have noticed that their articles may not be read through their newsletter offerings, but the same article may be clicked on LinkedIn, Facebook or Klusster. The point, park it in several places!
So, go ahead and make use of any platform which will allow you to readily access your audience.
Have any questions? Please reach out and let me hear from you.
Back in 2000, at the cusp of the mobile revolution, it was studied and revealed that the average human attention span was twelve seconds. Now, thanks to the shift towards a more digitized lifestyle where we have become so hungry to consume media on our devices constantly, the average attention span has dwindled to a mere 8 seconds – making goldfish more attentive than we are.
And now marketers are left scratching their heads. At the rate that the average online user goes through content, how do we captivate our audience with the limited time we are given?
Reel them in with a title so compelling that they can’t ignore it. Your title can bring the promise of a fascinating story, a specific number of tips, or guarantee to go straight to answering a question minus the fluff.
Short attention spans mean that you have to get straight to the point. Make titles concise with enough detail to let your readers know exactly what they’ll be getting. Convey outright what’s in it for them.
Value over Volume
Overwhelming your audience with loads of information that is otherwise useless or irrelevant leaves them feeling as though you’ve wasted their time. And they’re more likely to walk out mid-sentence once they’ve established that they’re being dragged along.
Focus on the quality vs. the quantity of your content by knowing who your audience is and addressing their needs. When you understand who you’re talking to, you’re in a better position to deliver the right message.
Make an Emotional Connection
If you haven’t done your market research and created detailed buyer personas for your business, you’re basically talking to an audience you don’t know. You can’t meet their demands when you haven’t recognized what they are. And you certainly cannot relate to them on the level you’re hoping for.
Your audience wants to be drawn into a conversation and feel something. To communicate and connect with your audience on a personal level, know what triggers their emotions.
Don’t Take Too Many Risks
Be inclusive. You lose people when you take chances on trying to be too clever with inside jokes that only a select few will understand or industry jargon that goes over most people’s heads. While this may attract a small and specific set of people, you risk losing the majority who have come to learn something from you.
Keep Your Promises
There’s no point in capturing your audience’s attention if you intend to risk losing it by going back on your word; unless you want to damage your brand.
If your headline or title assures that they will get a compelling story or the answer to a thought-provoking question, deliver the content that you guaranteed. Take the first chance you get to introduce your brand or include a sales pitch in the intro, and your audience will quickly feel they’ve been deceived. And they will be just as swift to click that back button.
As both a marketer and a consumer, what titles instantly grab your interest? What type of online media captures your attention and keeps it? When it comes to tips to sparking your online audience’s curiosity, perhaps the biggest secret is to think as they do.
When it comes to advertising, many view Google Ads and Facebook Ads as competitors vying for your precious marketing dollars. Which of the two is the better option? Could there be another solution? Here we try to provide a simple explanation while also offering other options.
The Difference Between Google Ads and Facebook Ads
Before you can decide which platform is better for you, it’s important to understand the main differences between the two.
Google Ads
Google is the world’s largest and most popular platform. It handles more than 40,000 queries per second and more than 1.2 trillion searches per year. No other search engine can offer the same audience potential that Google can. What sets it apart from Facebook is search intent which means that searchers use the platform to specifically search for something. This is also referred to as ‘pay-per-click’ advertising. Advertisers bid on keywords or specific words and phrases typically entered by Google users. Each time someone clicks on an ad, the advertiser is charged a certain amount of money. The goal is for the advertiser to find new customers based on the keywords and search terms they enter into Google.
Facebook Ads
Facebook ads work differently in that they enable a business to advertise to people who are not specifically searching for their products or services. They are a good way to generate interest and awareness. The major difference with Facebook ads is the ability to target people based on various factors such as age, sex, interests and more.
Another option – Klusstering
Klusster is a platform that uses a simple combination of four distinct marketing approaches. By combining these four components, Klusster marketing provides businesses with a cost-effective, comprehensive, and uncomplicated marketing strategy. These four components are:
• Social Media Marketing– Social media marketing uses social networking sites as a marketing tool. By building various social networks around your business, you create an engaged audience. A crucial piece most businesses miss is to provide value back to their audience. Social media marketing should be used as a means to the message – not the message itself.
• Cooperative Marketing– Also known as referral or network marketing, cooperative marketing is as simple as leveraging your existing networks to build on your customer base. By working as a group, each business gains access to the other business’ audience. This is the idea behind everything from BNI’s, BIA’s and trade shows.
• SEO Marketing– Using search engine optimization is crucial to any business wanting to build a strong online presence. There is a general assumption that SEO is difficult -when really it is entirely common sense. By implementing a few simple SEO strategies (which is built right into the system) your content and your business will be found by search engines – so your customers find you faster and easier.
• Content Marketing– Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach that focuses on information sharing rather than direct selling. By focusing on providing valuable and relevant information to your audience, you create a relationship and build trust – which both attracts and retains a growing customer base.
Cost for Each Platform
Google Ads are by far the more expensive platform. Advertisers can pay up to $100 per click depending on the industry. With Facebook, advertisers typically pay under $1.00. With Klusster, the cost per click can run from $0.08-$0.15.
Final Words
While there are advantages and disadvantages to each option, my feeling is that you should diversify your options. Depending on your budget, you may want to use Google’s Adwords. If you are more conservative, you may want to experiment with Facebook Ads. However, if you’re ready to work with other businesses to increase your online visibility, you may want to consider joining a Klusster-based e-magazine.
I would love to hear from you. Feel free to connect and let’s chat!
Imagine that just 20 years ago, blogs didn’t exist. Did you even know what it meant the first time you heard the word? Now, there are over 150 million of them! Well, it’s no secret that in order to be found online, you have to have content residing online. One of the best ways to do that is through blogging. Below are a few reasons why blogging is so powerful, beneficial and helpful in getting you recognized online.
ADVANTAGES
1-SEO – Having good content online is a must in order to be found online. Create good quality content that people are interested in sharing and Google is bound to take notice.
2-Increases new business – A constant stream of visits to your blog will also increase the potential to attract interest from prospects.
3-Great for feedback – It allows and encourages constant engagement with readers. Whether they agree or disagree, you will know it immediately by their comments.
4-Gain influence – If your material is good, you will attract repeat visitors and will gain their trust and respect.
5-Learn more about your followers – One of the things businesses spend a lot of money on is in learning what their consumers want from them or what they like/dislike about their products. Blogging is an easy and effective way to obtain this information.
6-Establish yourself as an expert in your field – This won’t happen overnight but over time, as you post more blogs and share your genuine knowledge with the community, your readers will begin to see you as an expert.
7-Help others – A good blog can educate, inspire and help readers in ways the blogger may never know.
Although the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, you should still be made aware of them.
DISADVANTAGES
1-Poor content – Poorly written content can reflect badly on your brand. Put some thought into what you blog about and ensure your work has been edited and reviewed.
2-Inconsistent posts – If you decide to blog, make sure you do it consistently. Imagine how it would look to people visiting your site and your blog is over a year old. An old blog is worse than no blog!!
3-It takes time – Yes, you need to give some thought and plan out what you are going to blog about. The good news though is that the more you do it, the easier it will become. Start writing!
4-Risk having no one see your content – What? Although good quality content is key, you need to drive traffic to your site so people know there is a blog to read. If you’re active on social media you may share it there but again, you’re limited by how many followers you have. Here’s some great news! There is a new concept in online marketing that involves working with other businesses so that everyone leverages all of their social media connections in order to reach a broader audience. Want more information? Reach out and connect. I’d love to hear from you.
