Category: Marketing

Scott Cunningham runs Social Lite, a company on a mission to help independent eCommerce businesses compete and scale globally. Scott is the Certified Shopify Expert, “to scale an eCommerce business, you need to depend on repeat customers, brand loyalty, and increased revenue per visitor.”

https://www.sociallite.ca/

WHAT IS DIGITALMARKETER:

DigitalMarketer is the premier online community for digital marketing professionals. It’s a place where you can learn how to market like a pro, connect with industry experts, and get the strategies and tools you need to grow and scale your business to new heights.

https://www.digitalmarketer.com/

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Scott Cunningham runs Social Lite, a company on a mission to help independent eCommerce businesses compete and scale globally. Scott is the Certified Shopify Expert, “to scale an eCommerce business, you need to depend on repeat customers, brand loyalty, and increased revenue per visitor.”

https://www.sociallite.ca/

WHAT IS DIGITALMARKETER:

DigitalMarketer is the premier online community for digital marketing professionals. It’s a place where you can learn how to market like a pro, connect with industry experts, and get the strategies and tools you need to grow and scale your business to new heights.

https://www.digitalmarketer.com/

Continue reading here

79% of consumers trust an online review as much as they would a recommendation from a friend.

And 94% of shoppers state that just one bad review has convinced them not to buy from a company.

Reputation management is the practice of actively influencing what people think of your brand and what they see others saying about your company when they look online.

In this guide, we’ll discuss how to implement a brand reputation management strategy, use personal branding to develop a good reputation, and protect your company from developing a negative one.

Start with an aggressive reputation management strategy for personal and business growth

Reputation management is often viewed from the perspective of fighting or reducing the harm of negative content.

Though this is an important element, it’s more helpful to view business reputation management through the lens of building a positive reputation. 

You can’t avoid negative reviews, opinions, and comments altogether. This is a part of doing online business. But you can overwhelm negative sentiment with positive content from others, creating a net positive effect.

A positive reputation also contributes to business goals (such as growth, leveraging social proof, and network development). 

Achieving this growth starts with identifying and connecting with your audience of superfans.

Find your audience of superfans

Creating a brand that is appealing to everyone is improbable and a waste of time.

Focus on finding a network of diehard fans, and cater your content to their needs. This is the basis of an effective differentiation strategy.

This network isn’t mutually exclusive with building an audience of customers. Not every person that buys from you will be a superfan.

Rather, you’re building an audience of people who don’t just buy what you do, but why you do it, to paraphrase Simon Sinek.

Consider category leaders such as Apple and Salesforce.

These brands have a well-defined messaging strategy rooted in their company’s missions and prominent individuals that people relate to.

For Apple, Senior VP of Worldwide Marketing, Greg “Joz” Joswiak, connects with his audience by sharing content that reflects the brand’s Why (innovation, challenging the status quo, “Think Different”).

Salesforce holds as its guiding value “to make sure Salesforce is a platform for change,” delivering on initiatives such as renewable energy, carbon-neutral cloud computing, and green building certification.

CEO Mark Benioff’s online presence ties directly back to this vision.

These examples demonstrate that the most effective way to find and grow an audience is to build and leverage your personal brand.

Using SparkToro to discover existing audiences

SparkToro is an audience research platform that helps marketers find their prospective customers’ main sources of influence. It’s also used to discover existing captive audiences.

If we’re a B2B company selling into brick-and-mortar retail environments, and we’re looking to find an audience of retail executives, we’ll start with a simple Google search.

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LinkedIn Ads are a force in B2B advertising, giving marketers a unique chance to connect with an audience in a business mindset.

But LinkedIn Ads aren’t just for B2B companies — B2C companies, nonprofits, universities, and many other types of organizations can also use this ad platform for specific purposes to great success, including (but not limited to) finding the right applicants for job openings.

In this post, we’re going to look at absolutely everything that you need to know about LinkedIn advertising and dig into how you can leverage the platform for your business.

Types of LinkedIn ads

Most LinkedIn ads fall into one of four categories. Let’s take a look at each of them along with some examples. 

Sponsored Content

Sponsored content ads are in-feed ads that look like standard posts except for the “sponsored” tag attached. They’re great for engagement and have outstanding visibility, giving you a chance to create engaging content that users will want to click on.  

You can use any of the following ad formats:

• Single image ads
• Carousel ads
• Video ads
• Event ads

If you want to use Lead Generation ads and the lead gen ad format, keep in mind you’ll need to choose a “Lead Generation” option instead of “Sponsored content” when creating your ad, but they are otherwise similar.

Sponsored Messaging

Sponsored Messaging ads will show up as messages in users’ inboxes, which can be incredibly beneficial. These ads are labeled with a sponsored tag and have a CTA button, but users need to open the message to mark it as read, and it stays in their inbox even after that.

These ads are known for having high open rates, and they can be exceptionally successful because there’s little else to distract users when they’re checking out what you have to offer.

You can use either of the two following ad formats:

 Text Ads

Text ads show up in the right hand sidebar that stays visible while users are browsing the platform. These are similar to Facebook’s sidebar ads.

Standard text ads will have a single image in the form of a brand logo, short advertising copy and a clickable CTA. They are simple to create, and while their visibility may be lower than that of LinkedIn’s other advertising options, they can drive results at an accessible price point.

 

Dynamic Ads

Text ads and dynamic ads are extremely similar (as both appear in Linkedin’s right-hand siderail), with two significant differences: 

1. Dynamic ads are typically displayed on their own, as you can see in the example below. (Text ads are…

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Instagram video ads can help boost your profile as a business owner and bring in more customers.

Yes, Instagram was originally built for photos. And the social media site, with its many filters and frills, is still primarily known for images. But it’s also evolving very quickly, and video content on Instagram is booming.

Some 500 million people use Instagram Stories every single day. And 50% of people have visited a website after seeing a product or service on Instagram. So yeah, creating video advertising content on the site is a very good idea for any business owner.

First, make sure you have an Instagram Business account. Now you’re ready to rock.

How to set up Instagram video ads

There are a few different placements for video ads on Instagram. These include options on, Stories, Reels, In-Stream video ads and Explore, which we’ll get to later.

In terms of actually setting up the ads, the easiest option is actually going through Facebook’s (or should we say Meta’s) Ad Manager.

To get to your Facebook Ads Manager, you can go to your Page and click on the Ad Center drop-down arrow in the Manage Page panel. Then choose All Ads from the drop-down and click on Ads Manager at the bottom of the page.

It should be fairly self-explanatory from there, but you’ll be asked to name your campaign and then you can choose how you’d like your ad to be shown on Instagram.

Choosing your objectives

The Ad Manager allows you to consider the objectives you most want to pursue in your advertising.

Source

You have a lot of options, and you’ll want to choose them carefully. Different objectives only work in certain placements.

Let’s go through the objectives.

Brand awareness and reach

You want people to be aware of your brand, that much is obvious. These two metrics are based on getting as many people to see your company’s work as possible. And so it’s no surprise that they tick off almost every platform.

Traffic and video views

Then there’s traffic, which does tick off every platform. Brand awareness and reach aren’t necessarily based on buying things, so they don’t check the Shop box. But if you’re looking for traffic and video views, you want every platform available.

Engagement

If traffic is a wide net, engagement is more of a sniper rifle. Tied for the objective with the smallest amount of target platforms, engagement is based on getting as many likes and comments as you possibly can. For that purpose, you’re best off posting on the main Feed and Explore platforms, as they lend themselves well to clicks.

App installs, lead generation and messages

These three objectives are based on interacting with…

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Many of us struggle with self-doubt. It feels like no matter what you do or how much effort you put in, it could all be for nothing because one day someone will realize you don’t have the necessary knowledge or expertise. They’ll call you out—and your marketing career will be over.

This is called imposter syndrome, the internal voice constantly reminding you that you are not good enough, smart enough, or worthy enough to achieve your goals and dreams.

The reality is, every marketer starts from the beginning. We’ve all written terrible copy before or had a launch flop. Part of our careers is a willingness to always be learning. The foundations of marketing won’t change, but the platforms we use them on will.

Marketers have to be humble, and part of embodying that is kicking imposter syndrome to the curb. You don’t need a nagging voice in your head telling you that your campaigns won’t work or you’re not good enough to apply to that awesome job.

You need the biggest fan in your mind, supporting you, cheering you on, and asking you what you learned on your tough days.

As a marketer, you have the tools you need to transform the bad days where you doubt your abilities into your best days. As Robin Arzon puts it, “we have already made it through 100 percent of our bad days, and knowing that should fill us all with such a confidence that we will be able to face anything straight in the eye.”

Privacy updates, platforms changes, and new content trends can’t shake you if you’ve mastered imposter syndrome.

Here are 4 steps to get past imposter syndrome specifically for marketers.

1) Take Time For a Rebrand

We each have a personal brand. Much like a company brand, your personal brand informs and influences perceptions, represents who you are and the values you embrace, plus provides the framework to help you stand out from the crowd.

Oftentimes, our personal brands get stale because we haven’t taken the time or energy to create the brand in the first place. It’s easy to fall into a personal brand if you’re not active about creating it.

If you are having doubts about your abilities or are having trouble differentiating yourself from others in the market, it could be time for a personal rebrand. A rebrand can align you with your current expertise and make sure the content you’re creating is…on brand.

If your marketing agency started as a Facebook ads agency but turned into a video ad agency—a rebrand can show people what you’re really up to these days. It can also help you figure out what you’re an expert on, what you have to share, and how can use this expertise to get clients.

Recommended Activity: The DigitalMarketer Architecting a Branding Blueprint is a model you can use to help you get started…

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When it comes to digital marketing for eCommerce businesses, there are a whole lot of channels to choose from:

Social media can boost brand awareness and make connections. 

Email marketing can keep your community active. 

…And PPC (specifically Google Ads) can enable steady growth and sales.

Why PPC for eCommerce?

PPC (pay per click) advertising is a favorite among eCommerce marketers—and for good reason. 

Reminder: 

PPC Advertising = Ads that appear on search engine result pages, videos, apps, websites, and social media.

These ads appear everywhere, so they get a whole lot of views (like a billboard on the side of the highway). But the business owner doesn’t pay for views, they only pay when a user clicks.

The best part? PPC advertising is about finding customers who are ready to buy through search history, audience type, and a whole lot of data.

Why Google Ads for eCommerce, Specifically?

Google Ads is the most effective form of PPC (pay per click) advertising on the planet.

Think about it: 

The term “Google” has become so synonymous with “answer.”

We’re been trained to turn to Google with every question we have. And Google is so much more than a search engine, it is also YouTube, email, apps (like Google Calendar), Google Maps, and Android.

…And, Google collects information about us all, and can therefore predict intent—which means Google can put somebody who’s willing to buy your product in front of your ad (sometimes before the user even knows they want to buy).

In fact, 67% of all high commercial intent keyphrases go to a paid ad.

We’ll reiterate: 

When someone wants to buy, two out of three(!) of those Google searches result in clicking on an ad.

That tells us that when people are in the learning phase of the buying process, they go for organic search results. 

But when they are ready to buy—customers click the ads.

Is Google Ads Right for Your Business?

One more thing before we go any further: 

While Google Ads is the most effective marketing platform on the planet, it isn’t right for everyone. 

So, it’s imperative to determine Google Ads is right for your eCommerce business before you can hit the ground running.

It takes time to build, launch, and optimize campaigns—and ultimately, see results. 

That means you need to have realistic expectations. Here are seven quick questions to consider first:

1. Are you ready to commit? It typically takes about 90 days to determine if there’s potential for a predictable, scalable growth schedule. 

2. Can you afford the cost to get the ball rolling? You’ll want to spend at least $1,000-$1,500 per month at the bare minimum; but I recommend starting at a $2000 minimum.

3. What are your business goals? Ask yourself:

• Do I know my close rates?
• Do I know how many leads I need to make a sale?
• Do…

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Analyzing and monitoring your competition is fundamental to business success.

From Fortune 500 companies to startups—businesses need an idea of where they stand in the marketplace. Most importantly, they need to know how to use that information to help them stand out.

That’s why competitive reports are such a huge part of business success. It’s a roadmap telling you what to do, what to avoid, and what to try. Without it, you’re attempting to get from Point A to Point B with a blindfold on. With it, you’ve got supervision.

Competitive reports look at competitive benchmarking, competition overview, SEO strategies, and more. Ecommerce businesses, SaaS businesses, and marketing agencies can use them to figure out their short-term and long-term plans.

Every business owner has two options:

1. Know what the future can hold for their business
2. Guess and hope the future is bright

We’ll take the first option—and we’ll bet you will too.

What should a good competitive report include and how do you take what you’ve learned and apply it?

Why Does My Business Need a Competitive Report?

Businesses need competitive reports for 4 reasons:

• To better understand your target audience by research how they find and engage with your more established competitor
• For market research: Understand what is currently available on the market and where your business fits in
• To get an estimate of your future marketing budget
• To identify effective marketing tactics, etc.

Competitive reports are much more than copying your successful competitor’s marketing tactics. It’s actually nothing close to that because copying would never bring you ahead. (If you need marketing ideas, check out DigitalMarketer Lab!).

Competitive research is about understanding your target market and distinguishing your unique value proposition and consequently your unique marketing strategy to conquer it.

Competitive Research = How are your competitors doing and where you do stand in comparison?

Your Brand’s Unique Identity = What’s your USP (and how does it differ from the competition)?

Original Marketing Ideas = Your brand’s unique identity strategically creating awareness, engagement, and conversions using competitive research to know how to stand out from the competition!

Every competitive report needs 6 parts for a holistic understanding of your competitors, how your brand identity makes you unique, and what original marketing ideas come from it.

Competitive Benchmarking

Competitive benchmarking means collecting the performance data of your competitors and comparing it to your business. You can use these metrics to measure and monitor your business performance against your competitors. For example, if your competitors are ranking for the 3 top spots on search engines, you want to see where you’re ranking for those same topics. Are you slightly below them or on no-mans-land page 2?

You can choose your own performance indicators to track and compare. These may include:

• Public traffic data (from tools like Ahrefs, Alexa and Similar Web)
• Organic rankings
• Brand awareness and sentiment (based on brand…

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