Do This, Not That: Marketing Edition

Marketing is a moving target: “best practices” change frequently, tactics that worked yesterday don’t work today, and coordinating content marketing is a massive undertaking. But no matter your strategy, remember these four dos and don’ts.

Be present

Many companies enlist help from an agency when getting started with content marketing. There are lots of moving pieces, and it’s helpful to work with someone to design and build a website, formulate a marketing strategy, create content, and/or build up a presence on social media.

An agency can help you get these big pieces into place, but at the end of the day you need to take ownership of your online presence. Prospects and customers who call you, leave comments, or ask a question on Facebook or Twitter want to talk to you, not an agency.

Don’t outsource your company voice or your decisions on how to treat customers. Don’t delay prospect or customer service by fielding questions back and forth through a middleman. Be present.

Blog better, not more

It’s an oft-cited statement that in order to get the most out of content marketing, companies need to be posting content 2-3 times per week. It’s what we tell our clients, and what we try to do ourselves. But I’m going to let you in on a little secret.

Sometimes in order to be more successful, you need to post less.

It’s pretty simple: if you don’t have something compelling and valuable to say, don’t waste Internet space. Readers will always prefer less frequent, more meaningful content, than constant, pointless, or overly sales-y content.

Be social, don’t do social

Just as you shouldn’t “do” SEO, you shouldn’t “do” social media. Humans are social by nature, and although the medium may be different, the idea is the same: connect to people through kindness, honesty, and a mutual passion or need.

It’s easy to overthink and stress about social media. Ignore all the hype and focus on connecting with your audience, in whatever ways work for them and you.

Do help, don’t sell

Or rather, help twice as much as you sell.

Customers are tired of being sold to, and trust in traditional advertising is slipping. Focus on providing value and solving prospects’ problems so that your business becomes their go-to resource.

What are you waiting for?

When getting started with blogging or social media, it’s important to have a strategy. Digett’s Marketing Plan for Growth lays out everything you need to get clear on your brand, build a team, create content, measure ROI, and more.

Ready to dive in now? Sign up for a free website analysis. Digital Strategist Corky Roth will lead you through an analysis of your current marketing campaigns’ effectiveness, and help you decide if content marketing is right for you.

[Image: Dan Zen]