In 2019 there are 4.39 billion internet users in the world out of which 3.48 billion also use social media.

60% of marketers are focusing more on digital marketing compared to traditional marketing because of more traffic.
Over 80% of the buyers first look up the product online before deciding to invest in it.

Looking at the above stats, it is an indisputable fact that good digital marketing is important for the success of any brand or product. Anyone who’s selling anything can find their target audience online with the right strategy in place.

However, with forever changing trends and ‘best practices’ it can become a little unnerving to come up with a strategy, especially for new businesses.

We’ve broken it down into some simple steps that should work for everyone, whether you’re just starting out or have been around for a good while.

  • Take inventory of resources and available avenues
  • Try to understand that demographic- do research
  • Know where you can find possible leads and conversions
  • Speak in their language
  • Engage

Identify your resources

This is the first step when building any kind of strategy for any business venture.

By resources we mean figuring out how much money you can spend investing in and then pushing those ads, which platforms you can make use of, and what kind of specialists you have on your team.

Once you’ve figured these things out it should not be hard to map out your strengths and weaknesses.

Information such as which is the most useful platform for digital marketing, how many ads do you need to create ideally and how often should they be pushed are all useful bits of information to figure this first part out.

Know your target audience

You know your product, and you probably know for whom you made it. Focus on that demographic first. It is no doubt useful to create more leads and build an audience, but for starters securing a decent number of prospects should be your priority. From there you can focus on the build.

Some efficient ways to do this is to do market research before launching any campaigns. You can conduct surveys on Facebook and YouTube. Look at trends. And most importantly analyze the clientele of your competitors as that is the best way to get an understanding of your product’s market and the best way to infiltrate it.

Pick your battles

You can easily find stats online about who uses which social media platform the most. Use these to find your audience. Your future prospects are probably on there too.

There are stats for everything; age groups (even generations such as millennials or Generation Z or X or Baby Boomers, genders, nationalities etc. This information is vital to your strategy’s success.

For example, statistics say that young people aged 12-17 are using Facebook a lot less than millennials. They are leaning more towards Snapchat now. If that’s your targeted demographic, there you go. Now you know what should be your first priority.

Learn the lingo

Know the kind of language your audience uses and what suits your brand identity. In order to engage you want to be taken seriously and to be ‘hip’ as the kids say. So advertise appropriately.

Engage

The whole point of social media is accessibility. One way conversations will not get you anywhere.

Base your advertising strategy around what kind of conversations your audience wants to have. Use polls, ask questions, start discussions. These days, advertising is not just about the sell. It is mainly about building a relationship with the audience.

More engagement is also more likely to get you promoted more on those websites because of the algorithms. In fact, it is somewhat of a necessity. So while you’re at it, make it count.

Remember that at the end of the day, the audience now is getting smarter and can see through false advertising and sweeping statements. Sustainability only comes from genuine relationship building and fostering loyalty.