There’s no denying the importance of establishing strong brand awareness, regardless of the industry in which your business operates. And with so many people using different facets of the web to inform their purchases these days, having a well crafted and carefully executed digital marketing brand awareness strategy can make all the difference in helping your business stand out from the competition.
Not sure where to begin when it comes to brand awareness using digital marketing? There are a few strategies to consider incorporating into your plan.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
When was the last time you looked beyond the first page of results on Google when searching for something? If you’re like most, the answer is probably “never”. The higher your web pages rank on the search engine results pages (SERPs), the greater the chances you’ll bring in site traffic that could result in a new customer.
Search engine optimization (SEO) focuses on using strategies such as targeted keyword placement, backlinks, and unique content to improve your search engine rankings for related keywords. If you haven’t already implemented an SEO strategy as part of your digital marketing plan, you could be missing out.
Social Media Marketing
Today, 77% of Americans use at least one social media platform on a regular basis. With this in mind, if you’re not incorporating social media into your digital campaign plan, you may be failing to reach a large portion of your target audience. You can market your business on social media in a number of ways, both paid and organic.
Perhaps the best way to create brand awareness of your brand using social media is to simply share relevant content that your audience will find interesting and post regularly. Taking the time to respond to messages and feedback is also a must when establishing and maintaining a strong social media brand presence.
Content Marketing
Does your website have a blog? If so, when was the last time you updated it with a new post? Outdated and inactive blogs can not only hurt your SEO rankings but can leave visitors with the impression that you don’t care very much or stay up to date with what is relevant. Taking the time to create and post new, unique, and relevant content on a regular basis will not only help boost your brand and SEO but may also lead to shares on social media and other platforms. The end result? You establish your brand as an authority in the industry while engaging with your target audience in the process. It’s a win-win situation!
When developing new content for your blog, keep a few important tips in mind:
- always look for a new angle (something that hasn’t been done before)
- include strategic keywords and backlinks for SEO purposes
- encourage readers to comment and share on social media
- share new blog posts on your own social media channels
Paid Advertising
Last but not least, be sure to allocate at least some of your digital marketing budget to paid advertising options, such as pay-per-click (PPC) ads. This can be a great way to generate targeted traffic to your site in a predictable way. PPC campaigns are also a budget-friendly option for many businesses because, as the name suggests, you only pay for each click generated through your campaign. Paid advertising is a must for your digital marketing strategy if you want to see quick results.
Building a brand awareness strategy through digital marketing requires a great deal of research, foresight, and planning. Through the use of the following digital marketing strategies, your business can stand out in an increasingly competitive world:
Digital Brand Awareness Marketing
Looking for professional assistance in establishing brand awareness through a digital marketing strategy? Ballantine are experts in using digital marketing strategies to increase brand awareness for your business. Contact us today to get started!
*The blog post below was published on October 19, 2016, and has since been updated above.*
As an online marketer or entrepreneur, one of the most important things to understand is that building your brand is not the same thing as making immediate sales.
Of course, it’s great if a Google, Bing or Facebook paid ad campaign does generate a quick Return on Investment (ROI), and with smart marketing and meticulous testing, it’s certainly possible.
Branding is much more about building long-term customer loyalty; that’s to say an audience of people with whom your message and image resonates, who will identify with and endorse your core values. Who are therefore far more likely to buy from you again.
Website
Your website is the most important part of your online presence. It’s where you make your sales, but just as importantly it’s where you make your first impression. Attracting prospects and getting potential customers to engage with your brand.
Think of your site as the equivalent of the storefront of a brick and mortar store. Of course, it’s vital that your logos, banners, and images are visually attractive and enticing. It’s also crucial that all of your site content, including blog posts, should be the same high quality to present a consistent and coherent brand profile.
Content marketing can help your site attract a steady stream of organic search engine traffic, while the use of accurately targeted paid traffic campaigns will go a long way towards to building an audience of people who are potentially receptive to your brand message.
It’s then important to follow up with visitors to your site by sending sequenced e-mails which reinforce your message. There are a number of ways to do this, but Ballantine has the experience and knows how to make it a painless process for you.
Facebook Page
Aside from your own website, setting up a Facebook page is one of the best ways of building your brand.
Understanding that most Facebook users don’t go there with the intention of buying. So what you are trying to do is build an audience of engaged prospects without coming across as too “salesy”.
The best ways to do this are by:
- Sharing content from your own website (e.g. blog posts, videos etc)
- Sharing relevant content from other sites in your business niche
- Encouraging conversation and comments from people who have visited and liked your page
Recent changes in Facebook’s business model have made it harder to get organic likes and shares, but the good news is that their paid ads make it easy to drive highly targeted and inexpensive traffic to your page.
You can target by age, gender, location, and, perhaps most importantly, by interests. You can also decide whether you want likes, clicks to your website or more conversions.
For best brand-building results, the logos and images used on your Facebook page should be the same as those on your own website.
For brand building purposes, Twitter is in some ways rather similar to Facebook. People do not generally go there with the intention of purchasing goods or services, but rather with the desire to get information from leaders and influencers in their area of interest.
So creating or sharing informative whether it be educational or just plain entertaining content for your followers this can be a great way to build awareness of your brand.
As with Facebook, the key to success is to avoid the hard sell. It’s fine to Tweet some links to your own website content, but this shouldn’t be all you do. Instead, try to gain visibility by sharing as much relevant content and following as many high profile individuals and businesses in your niche as possible.
The more relevant and useful links you can Tweet, the faster you’ll build a following for your brand.
By using Sponsored Tweets – a paid platform – it’s also now possible to make use of the influence of individuals who have already amassed a substantial number of followers in your market.
YouTube
With an estimated 4 billion visits a day and an average visitor stay of 40 minutes, setting up a dedicated YouTube channel is a great way to promote a brand.
The imaginative use of video can establish an immediate connection with your audience, and the creation of attractive videos is a process which can now be easily automated.
Your videos then can and should be shared on your website, Facebook and Twitter outlets, always ensuring that all logos or images used are in harmony.
Additional Channels
While Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are probably the most important social media platforms for brand building there are many others which can be integrated as your business progresses.
You might consider:
- Snapchat
But whatever platform you choose, the keys to success are always high quality written content, attractive images and, perhaps most importantly, regular engagement with your audience.
At Ballantine we understand that with all the other demands of running a business it’s not easy to achieve or maintain these standards, but we also know that the advice and support of our experienced professionals can be a great help, and we offer a wide range of services designed to get you the best possible return on all your campaigns.
So contact us today for expert help with your marketing campaign.
I'm the Director of Digital Services and Partner at Ballantine, a family-owned and operated direct mail & digital marketing company based in New Jersey. and started in 1966 by my great uncle!
