Sabrina Martinez

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Everyone Loves Podcasts, So We’re Making One

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Sabrina Martinez

Way back in 2018 (it feels like a lifetime ago, doesn’t it?), Entrepreneur said podcasting was “the next marketing frontier.” At the time, Statista predicted there would be more than 100 million podcast listeners in the United States alone by 2021. And guess what? They were right.

Here are some interesting statistics from the team at Podcast Hosting:

  • 75% of Americans are familiar with the term “podcasting”
  • 55% of Americans have listened to a podcast (about 155 million people)
  • 24% of Americans listen to a podcast weekly

They reach an incredibly broad spectrum of people, meaning they’re an excellent tool to add to your marketing toolbox, and they’re still growing in popularity. The switch to mobile makes them easy to access while listeners are on the move – whether that’s driving, walking, working out, or cooking.

We’re a generation of multitaskers, and it’s rare that we’ll sit down and focus on a single piece of content unless it’s truly exceptional, so it’s important to make content that suits the needs of your target audience. Podcasting is the easy-going cousin to traditional strategies like blogging. It follows a similar structure, but it works in a fundamentally different way. In the words of AJ Agrawal, founder or Verma Media, “podcasts inspire conversation, while blogs tend to provoke thought.”

Here at Beacon Media + Marketing, we love a trend. We know that a huge number of Americans love podcasts, and since we’re committed to helping American small businesses grow, scale, and thrive, we’ve finally joined the podcast train. We’re excited for you to hear it!

Click here to listen to our podcast, or contact us to discuss content marketing.

Introducing ‘The Beacon Way’ Podcast

So, what’s our podcast actually about? At the time of writing, we’ve launched three episodes, which talk about our origin story. Our founders, Adrienne Wilkerson and Jennifer Christensen, love sharing their knowledge and experience with other business owners. (They’ve definitely ridden their share of ups and downs on the way to creating the seven-figure company we know and love today!).

Adrienne and Jennifer launched the first inbound marketing agency in Anchorage, Alaska, back in 2012 when they merged their two companies. They knew a lot of the same people, and traveled in a lot of the same circles, but they never actually met until they were in a shared client meeting one day. They’re award-winning speakers who specialize in providing practical marketing advice from the trenches of their own company, with entrepreneurial tips galore. When we describe them as a “dynamic duo,” we really mean it. They’re best friends and business partners and their podcast will take you on a journey, laughing about the highs and revealing the truth about the hard knocks.

There are lots of lessons that can save you a lot of time and energy in the early phases of your business. Take, for example, the clients you want versus the clients that actually pay the bills. “These are what we call ‘non-sexy’ clients,” says Jennifer. “These clients are the ones who need and can see the value of your services.” It’s an important lesson, but it can take a while before it sinks in. Even then, the type of client you need can change over time as your business evolves. Raise your hand if you can relate, right? Check our Episode 2 for more insights on this topic.

As business owners, it’s important to stop every now and then so you can reflect on your journey. We know exactly what it’s like to be so busy working IN your business instead of ON your business. Even as marketers, it can be hard to make time to do you own marketing, so we really wanted to put ourselves out there and walk the talk. This stuff is really important. And hey, if you’re looking for a little extra help in the marketing department, we welcome you to call us at any time.

Want to go ahead and schedule a free consultation? Click here.

How to Make Your Own Podcast

Planning a podcast is similar to planning other types of content marketing.

If you haven’t come across this term before, content marketing is an umbrella term that describes a type of marketing that focuses on information – for example, stories, how-to guides, reports, and so on – to stimulate interest in your products or services. Most often it takes the form of things like blogs and videos. It’s important to note that this type of marketing doesn’t sell directly. Instead, as our friend AJ Agrawal said earlier, it provokes a thought or starts a conversation that invites the prospective customer or client to reach out. The key is to make it as interesting as possible.

As a business owner, you might not be familiar with the content creation process. We want to make it as easy as possible for you to succeed, so here’s a step-by-step guide to nailing your content. These principles cover everything from blogs to videos, podcasts, and more.

Step 1: Plan

We’ve all heard the saying, “Fail to plan; plan to fail.” When it comes to content marketing, nothing has ever been more accurate. Remember, you’re fighting with every other business on the internet to capture your customer’s attention, so you need to make it interesting and meaningful. This doesn’t mean your plan has to be elaborate. In fact, a couple of bullet points will do the trick! Just make sure you have a clear message and you don’t dive off on too many tangents along the way. People’s time is precious, so you need to keep things moving to keep them engaged.

Need help developing a plan? Call our friendly team.

Step 2: Execute

Block out time on your calendar and just get it done. Don’t push it for other meetings. Don’t push it for other deadlines. Commit to spending time growing your own business, because if you don’t – who will? It’s important to give yourself every possible opportunity to succeed. If you think best at 6am, or 10pm, lock it in then. Start by listing your bullet points and then simply color in the gaps.

If you’re creating a video, add two or three sub-points under each one with a shot list to match. If you’re writing a blog, expand those sub-points into paragraphs. If you’re recording a podcast, use those sub-points or paragraphs to keep your conversation on track. Don’t overthink it, make excuses, or procrastinate. Just start. Then keep going. It will be done before you know it.

The only caveat we’ll add to that is to make sure you record good quality sound. Crackling phone lines, delays over video chats, or sloppy editing will make people turn off faster than… oh, what do you know? They’re gone. You don’t have to have the latest and greatest audio gear, but make sure the sound is clear and free from background noise with a decent level of volume.

Can’t stop procrastinating? Hello! It’s us again.

Step 3: Share

Here’s another business cliché: “Done is better than perfect.” It’s important to make the content great. That’s a non-negotiable. But people are actually more forgiving on the polish than you might expect. A good introduction, good music, good graphics, and good synopses are all very nice to have, but don’t let them prevent you from sharing your content. We know from experience how easy it is to get hung up on details, but if they stall you unnecessarily, they’re not serving your business.

Pick a hosting platform (we’ve chosen Buzzsprout for ours) and upload the audio with an image of either you or your business logo. Then share the link on every social platform where you have a presence: LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, you name it. Pay attention to the feedback you get, and use this to refine your technique for episode two. Remember, the point of this exercise is to inspire conversation, so make it a two-way street and keep engaging with your listeners.

 Don’t make us feel like that kid waiting to be picked in gym. Say hello!

Final Thoughts on Podcasts

Podcasts are here to stay, and they’re only going to get more popular in the future. We’re so excited to be bringing The Beacon Way to small business leaders around the United States. It’s never too late to get started, so if you’ve been working on a podcast idea for your business. We encourage you to take action and make it happen. It’s a great way to build your brand, reach new audiences, and if you’re anything like us, have a whole lot of fun reminiscing along the way.

What are you waiting for? Let’s talk content marketing.

Top Digital Marketing Trends for 2021

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Sabrina Martinez

Last year was full of unexpected changes and challenges, but 2021 offers a clean slate with infinite possibilities for your business. As much of the world has shifted its attention online, it’s more important than ever to make the right digital first impression. As you analyze last year’s digital marketing performance and make goals for the future, watch out for these top five marketing trends.

Want to take your marketing to the next level this year? Schedule a free consultation.

1. Interactive Virtual Events

While virtual events really took off in 2020, “Zoom fatigue” has become a real issue as many people took all aspects of their life, from work to social relationships, online. Livestream events, such as virtual concerts and festival, sporting events, and conferences allow people to maintain some sense of normalcy and connectedness to the world around them. However, many long for events that go beyond entertainment or education.

Consumers are likely to seek out true human connection and place a strong emphasis on community in 2021. While webinars, celebrations, and other virtual events are a strong way to draw people in, including interactive elements that allow people to join the conversation is a great way to take your marketing to next level. Utilize more intimate settings, such as chatrooms or Q&A-style discussions, to make a deeper connection with attendees. Getting influencers involved can boost attendance.

2. Data-Driven Digital Marketing

Rather than relying on their gut reaction when making a marketing call, many business owners and marketing experts are relying more heavily on data to make important decisions. Many professionals are investing in software that help them collect data and make the necessary changes to boost results. This software can provide marketers information on organic website traffic, keyword performance, conversion rates, inbound marketing ROI, and more.

Many marketers are also utilizing machine learning to better appeal to users and understand their behavior, allowing them to better predict user preferences and adjust their strategy. According to a 2019 survey by CMO, there was a 26% increase in how many marketers utilized machine learning or artificial intelligence as an analytical tool. This data not only helps marketing professionals stay a step ahead, but it also allows them to show their clients tangible results on how their marketing spend has impacted their online presence and overall success.

3. Voice Search Optimization

Whether or not you’ve jumped on board the voice search train already, voice search is here to stay and will continue to be one of the top marketing trends in 2021. According to data from ComScore, more than 50% of smartphone users in 2020 used voice search, and insights from Google reveal that 62% of people who use a voice-activated speaker are likely to use it to make a purchase within a month.

While the most popular use for smart speakers is playing music, more and more people are using voice search to find a local business (e.g. to locate a dentist near them, discover a new place to eat, or get directions to a business recommended by a friend). It’s much easier to pick up your phone and quickly ask where the nearest hair stylist is than to type it out and browse through pages of results. 

For marketing, this means prioritizing voice search optimization so you always pop up as one of the top results when a question relevant to your industry is asked. Including relevant keywords, having an FAQ page, and using local language are one piece of voice search SEO. Search engines are also are more likely to recommend your business if you have a well-developed, credible website with a schema markup, XML sitemaps, mobile-optimization, and sound site structure.

Apple’s Siri and Android’s Google Assistant are the top systems people currently use for voice search. Each of these rely on different business listing platforms to recommend businesses to searchers. Siri depends on Yelp, so it is essential your business has an up-to-date Yelp account with good reviews. Google relies on Google My Business, which similarly needs to be updated regularly with plenty of high-quality, positive reviews.

Learn about Google E-A-T and its impact on your SEO strategy

4. Strategic Social Media Advertising

At this point, most people are already convinced that social media advertising and content marketing is an essential part of any marketing campaign. From incorporating visually appealing photography and videography to easily selecting and reaching your target audience, social media is the perfect space to get your company’s name out to the world and bring in new leads.

While Facebook dominated the world of social media advertising for many years, many business owners are seeing the value in expanding their reach by branching out to other platforms. Companies are exploring which types of social media advertising would best benefit their industry and target audience.

Instagram a very successful, creative space for advertising, with incredibly high engagement rates. LinkedIn advertising has quickly grown in popularity, with eMarketer estimating that more than 50% of marketers will start using the platform for creating ads in 2021, especially for B2B advertisers looking for a more niche marketspace.

YouTube offers a creative space for running ads, and people are naturally drawn to video. It is a strong choice for businesses with a younger target audience between the ages of 14 and 49. While YouTube’s users are mostly male, Pinterest is an effective space for ecommerce brands targeting younger women.

5. Purpose-Driven Marketing

Consumers are more concerned with the values of the companies they support, and many people are taking time to learn about who they buy products or services from before making this purchase. In 2021, businesses are likely to push past the surface-deep details and incorporate purpose-driven marketing across every channel. Many companies will dedicate time and money to supporting worthy causes, emphasizing inclusivity, educating the community, or prioritizing sustainability.

As a company seeking to market your services or products in today’s current atmosphere, you need to deep dive into your company’s mission, vision, and purpose. Understanding what really makes people in your company tick and knowing what impact your business has on the community and world around you is an essential part of establishing your brand. Wherever you are on this journey, once you understand your company’s purpose, allow this shine through every aspect of your marketing.

People who are inspired by your vision are likely to become invested in your purpose and support your business for years in the future. There are several ways you can incorporate purpose-driven marketing into your current campaign including:

  • Choosing and incorporating a hashtag that captures the purpose of your campaign
  • Partnering with a nonprofit, which can include donating a portion of profits to the company
  • Advertising choices your business makes to strive towards your mission daily, such as adopting specific sustainable practices
  • Utilize creative video and imagery to bring attention to a cause while highlighting your brand

Bonus Tip: Start a Conversation

From using a chatbot or live chat on your website to responding to customer’s inquiries on social media, conversational marketing is sure to take off in 2021. While some people are happy to take the time to browse through your website and learn more about your brand on their own, others would rather get straight to the point and talk with a representative to get answers. Many people need to develop trust in your company before doing business with you, and having a conversation is a more effective way to build a relationship.

On the other hand, companies that don’t prioritize conversational marketing may lose vital marketing opportunities. If interested in several businesses, people may be more likely to choose the company that responds the most quickly. Additionally, a timely response to any complaints from current customers is essential for mending the relationship and making the situation right.

However, if your company chooses to invest in conversational marketing, regular upkeep is a must. While customers may expect to receive a response several hours or even days after submitting a contact form or sending an inquiry over email, people often anticipate a response in less than one hour after a message sent through a chat platform. Statistics from the Live Chat Benchmark Report show the average wait time for chat is just 45 seconds. Delaying your response or not having an automated chatbot in place can result in a lost lead.

There is no cookie-cutter marketing solution that works for every business. Your company and the people that make it so successful are unique, and the best avenue to reaching your ideal client may not look the same as any other business. As you look forward to 2021, a new year the offers endless opportunities for growth, take time to consider your company’s goals and identify which marketing trends will help you achieve these results. Work with the right marketing agency and you may even exceed these expectations by the end of the year.

Want to learn your business’s true potential? Tell us your goals!

New Year, New You: Set Marketing Goals That Will Stick

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Sabrina Martinez

2021! Never before have we been so excited about the start of a new year! (At least, not since we welcomed the new millennium in 2000 – how was that two decades ago already?) The past 12 months have been like no other. If all your marketing goals went out the window, don’t be too hard yourself. You’re certainly not alone! However, with all the hope and good vibes 2021 is bringing in, there’s absolutely no better time to reset and invest your energy into planning for the year ahead.

We get that goalsetting can be intimidating. But without clear digital marketing goals, you’re basically throwing your time and energy into a great big black hole. Start by asking yourself what you want to achieve, because this will help the rest of your strategy fall into place.

Are you looking to:

  • Build brand recognition?
  • Generate more leads?
  • Get higher engagement rates?
  • Strengthen relationships with current clients?
  • Distinguish yourself from competitors?

Keep reading, because we’ve suggested five digital marketing goals you might like to consider for 2021. We’ve also given some tactics you can put into place to flip the script on the year that was. What’s that, you say? You’re starting to feel a little optimistic? So are we!

Tired of scouring the internet for answers? Contact us and let’s talk goals.

Goal #1: Refresh Your Brand

Your brand is a vital part of your business. It represents the first impression you make on all your clients, and if it doesn’t live up to their standards, you probably won’t see them again. Deciding to update your brand, whether that’s a refresh or a total rebrand, can go a long way toward generating leads and converting sales. However, it involves careful thought.

Refreshes are often expressed through subtle changes such as updating the logo, color palette, collateral, or tone, to modernize your look and attract attention. It’s important that your brand refresh rolls out across every aspect of your marketing presence, from the sign outside your office to your social media and website. Here are three things to consider:

  1. Reinforce Your Existing Identity

If you’re planning to refresh your brand, make sure to take existing brand assets into account. You want any changes you make to live holistically with what already exists. Remind people who are you are, what you have to offer, and why they should be your customers.

  1. Rediscover Your Brand’s Potential

Everything changed in 2020, and you’ll need to continue changing and adapting in the new year. To do this, you’ll need to rediscover your brand identity in order to remain relevant to your audience. What made you go into business in the first place? What drives you today? What problems do you solve? What values govern your day-to-day practices?

  1. Revise Your Brand’s Voice

Your brand messaging will evolve as your business grows and new competitors arrive on the scene. It’s a good idea to regularly review your brand voice because from time to time, you may find that your voice needs a bit of refreshing. This shows that you are listening to your customers, paying attention to what works, and actively looking for ways to improve.

Goal #2: Get a Content Strategy

If your content didn’t bring in the results you hoped to achieve in 2020, it’s time to re-evaluate your strategy. If you fail to create a solid content marketing strategy, you’ll also fail to drive traffic to your website, generate leads, and more. Good content strategies are driven by business objectives. If you’re not quite sure how to start developing a content strategy that aligns with your 2021 goals, ask few questions:

  • What do you want your content to accomplish?
  • How are you measuring the effectiveness of the content?
  • What is your target audience?
  • Where are the gaps in your current content?
  • What are your content strengths and how can you optimize them?
  • How will you distribute the content?

Goal #3: Revamp Your Website

When it comes to promoting your business, your website will be more important than ever in 2021. The pandemic accelerated the move toward digitization, and having a website allows you to market your business online in this highly digital world.

It’s clear that more people will be using the Internet to find products and services. Your website will need to be more reliable, faster-loading, and consumer-friendly, or you’ll get left in the dust by the competition. Is your website up to the task? Some benefits of updating your website include:

  • Your website will rank higher on search results.
  • Your target audience will connect with your story.
  • You’ll strengthen your brand image.

It also provides opportunities to diversify your business. U.S. consumers are estimated to have spent more than $709 billion on eCommerce in 2020, which is an increase of 18%. If you want a slice of this pie, your clunky old website has to go. On top of potential revenue growth, updating your website also means you may be able to automate some processes, such as scheduling appointments or managing inventory, which will help save valuable time as we kick into the new year.

Goal #4: Boost Your Socials

It’s no surprise that 2020 saw unprecedented changes in social media usage. For many companies, social media won’t just be a part of their business in 2021, it will be their business. The last 12 months have shown us just how important social media is in generating and maintaining human connections, not just when it comes to building a brand online, but from a personal perspective as well.

Social media plays a crucial role in driving sales, providing customer service, and improving brand awareness. A strategy is essential to social media success. Before you draft your social media plan, take a step back. Evaluate the current state of your social media accounts. Which platforms are you using? How are you using them? Have they been effective so far? Once you have these answers, you can start developing your social media strategy. Here are a few things that will get you started:

  1. Research the Competition

Start by gathering information about your target audience and what type of content they interact with. If you’re not sure how to do this, hashtags are a great way to determine trends. It’s important to remember that people interact with different social media platforms in different ways, so you’ll need to put some thought into which ones will be most effective for you. It’s also a good idea to check out what your competitors are doing on social – you can learn from their mistakes and adapt the strategies that are working for them for your own business needs.

  1. Develop a Content Plan

This goes back to Goal #2. (Gah! Seems like it was so long ago. We’ll wait while you quickly scroll up to check… OK cool, ready to proceed?) Quality content that resonates with your audience is crucial for the success of your social media channels. We feel like we can speak to everyone on this topic: no-one wants to see boring, generic, impersonal content in 2021. Surprise your audience! Aim for quality over quantity. Few high-quality posts will be much better for your brand than many half-baked ones.

  1. Time to Get Graphic

We all know that posts with images perform better. Visual content, such as infographics, can be powerful material in social media. It’s worth investing some time to get these right. Make sure the colors and fonts match your brand guide, to keep a consistent look and feel, and think outside the box to come up with creative and engaging ways you can present information visually.

  1. Engage meaningfully

Responding to your audience on social media shows them that you care. If you actively engage with your followers you can spark conversations and show them that your brand has a human side. It’s important to be consistent in your approach, so make sure you stick to your brand personality.

  1. Monitor Merformance

If you find that your social media metrics are down in 2021, that’s okay. Keep trying until you find out what works and make necessary adjustments across your platforms. Great social media engagement often requires a process of trial and error (nowadays we prefer to call it A/B testing), so don’t be afraid to throw a bit of spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks. It’s worth the effort.

Goal #5: Make 2021 Your Year

This is your year to dominate the marketing game. As you reflect back on your growth and success this year, don’t forget about the opportunities you have to do even better next year. Make 2021 your year – your year of progress, your year of trying something new, your year of acceleration, your year of insane can’t-even-believe-how-awesome-it-is growth.

Want to accomplish all of these goals in 2021 and more? The reality is you might need some help to do that. Especially if you want to set a strategy that will actually stick.  Fortunately, you don’t have to do it on your own. Hiring the right marketing partner to support your 2021 marketing efforts can make all the difference in seeing results.

If you want to maximize your impact, you may wish to consider partnering with a marketing agency. Whatever your goals may be, we’re here to help you set your goals, refine your strategy, and grow your business. We’re ready for a fresh start. How about you?

Want to make 2021 the best year yet? Let’s get started.

Holiday Marketing: Add a Festive Touch to Your Socials

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Sabrina Martinez

The holidays are finally here! This year has definitely felt longer than most, but now that the festive season is upon us, it’s a great chance to build brand awareness with holiday marketing. At this time of year, social media is key to connecting with your audience. Making a splash with genuine and targeted content will do more than spread a little holiday cheer. It will show your customers just how much you care about your community and create a genuine connection that will start the new year on a great note.

It’s time to break from routine and have a little fun. Who’s with us?

Want to add a little festivity to your messaging? Consider us your elves.

Holiday Marketing Essentials

Strategic content marketing is incredibly valuable in the holidays. The main reason for this is because people are relying on social content to inspire their gift shopping! In fact, 48% of U.S. holiday shoppers will be purchasing gifts promoted through social media ads, according to Smartly.io. Thanks to Facebook Ads, boosted social content, email campaign strategies, and other avenues, you can position yourself in the right place at the right time.

Smartly.io also reports that 61% of people look to Facebook or Instagram for relevant holiday ads. This is a great opportunity!

Holiday messaging is a great way to resonate with your audience while attracting new customers, because it shows your customers that they’re your number one priority while showcasing what your brand is really about. To help you spread some festive vibes, we’ve gathered our favorite ways to brighten up holiday marketing (nope, Santa and his reindeers aren’t the only ones prepping for the holidays!).

  1. Give back to your community
  2. Showcase your brand and your heart
  3. Increase engagement across the board

People want to feel like they are spending their hard-earned money with a brand that genuinely cares about them. Letting them get to know you with some fresh and friendlycontent is a great way to increase your engagement into the new year!

Give Back to Your Community

After the rollercoaster of emotions that this year has brought upon everyone, people are searching for more than just a red tag discount or big promotion. People want to know that the brands they love, love them back! What better way to show that love than to support their own local community?

Giving back is a great way to spark a large word of mouth marketing wave. It’s not just about offering donations and services so you can be seen to do good, it’s about sharing your values. When you show support for your local community, your social audience will be eager to share and engage with your holiday posts. Modern consumers are super conscious about who they are supporting online, especially if it means making a larger impact.

According to Unilever, 33% of people choose to give their business to brands that they believe are doing social or environmental good.

Take Odds and Ns, for example. It’s a small family-owned business in Tucson, Arizona, channeling the holiday spirit by delivering Christmas trees and decorations to families stuck at home due to COVID-19. In a local news article, the owner shared how the team was inspired to give back to people in the community any way it could. Through its community support, Odds and Ns is making an impression on future and current consumers who will remember its kindness for a long time to come.

Support a Charitable Cause

2020 has presented many opportunities to give back. If you haven’t had a chance to tie your brand to a charitable cause, this holiday season is a perfect time to pick one. By having a charity or cause dedicated to your brand, you make yourself memorable to your audience, especially among all the holiday noise. Find a cause that speaks to your brand personality, whether it’s giving back to schools, sponsoring soup kitchens, or if you can afford it, donating a product for every product bought.

This is really meaningful in light of your bottom line. Forbes reports that 90% of shoppers said they would make the switch to a product backed by a cause according to Forbes. Meanwhile, 63% of people would rather support a brand that stands for a meaningful purpose and has strong values.

There are lots of great examples of this in action at the moment. Any family with a loved pet will appreciate PetSmart’s holiday ‘Give the Gift of Hope’ social media marketing campaign. Ninety cents of every dollar donated to PetSmart charities goes directly to helping pets across the country. PetSmart’s email marketing strategy used messaging that directly appealed to its pet-loving community, solidifying its customer loyalty and showing how customers could make a difference by shopping with their brand. The company also pushed this message on social media, attracting other animal lovers and allowing them to share on their personal pages or tag their friends and family!

Add a Personal Touch

Gone are the days when brands put out one ad during the holidays and hoped it made its way to the right crowd. This holiday season, we are getting *personal*. Personalizing your holiday marketing is one of the key factors for every successful campaign, according to KEOMarketing. Whether it’s retargeting ads, providing custom holiday products, or bringing your product or services to people’s homes during COVID-19, there is a personalized solution that will work for everyone.

Starbucks, the holy grail of all things coffee and Christmas, has found its golden child of holiday content marketing. The signature red holiday cups are a yearly treat that is awaited by thousands across the country. Not only do they mark the beginning of the holiday season for Starbucks customers; they also promote the November 6th giveaway – a FREE holiday cup with the purchase of any holiday specialty drink. This campaign creates a huge amount of engagement and sparks social sharing throughout their channels in the lead up. It’s unique, it speaks to the company’s brand personality, and it goes a long way to making everyone feel a little more festive.

Zoom is also joining the holiday fun. Probably the savior of 2020, it’s making magic for millions of children across the country by beaming Santa into people’s homes. By providing a Zoom session with Santa Claus, or magical Christmas photos you can do yourself, the company is creating its very own (incredibly personalized) version of holiday cheer.  This fun and safe experience also promotes donating to children’s hospitals across the country in order to help Santa visit.

Holiday Marketing in Action

The key to great holiday marketing is to knowing your brand values. This includes your business strategy, your target audience, and clear marketing goals, because these will tie everything together and help you find effective ways to connect with your audience.

Whatever you choose to do to create a strong holiday marketing strategy, your brand personality and values should always remain front and center. Your authenticity will always speak to your audience and create a natural connection, which will shine through all of your messaging and allow you to generate genuine and lasting social media results. In order to refine your messaging, you may want to consider working with a marketing agency, because this can take away some of the guess work and save you some time. After all, it’s time to start focusing on your goals for 2021!

Ready to spread holiday cheer? We’ll start harnessing the reindeer.

Fitness marketing 101: Making your brand stand out

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Sabrina Martinez

The fitness industry is a crowded space, so it’s important to create a memorable brand to attract and retain customers. In order to stay competitive and relevant in today’s business environment, you need to embrace and adopt a strong fitness marketing strategy. Here are the basics you need to know.

Want to set your business apart?  Talk to one of our experts.

Creating a strong and authentic brand

Having a strong and authentic brand is crucial to your fitness marketing strategy.  So how do you create that brand? Building a brand is never straightforward, and when you’re in an industry that deals with people’s health and fitness, it’s important to brand yourself correctly to gain trust with your customers.

A strong brand is more than a fancy logo and tagline. It’s a way to set your business apart from the rest. And fitness marketing is more than just posting photos of your gym or fit people via ads. It’s about communicating with a real audience by providing them with real messages that resonate.

Just like your clients, you need to make sure your brand has a strong heart. Your brand should clearly communicate the philosophy that drives your fitness business and conveys the top-notch quality of your service or product. Your brand is an articulation of your core beliefs, specifically your:

  • Vision: What future do you want to help create?
  • Mission: How do you create that future?
  • Values: What matters the most to you?

Vision

Everyone in the fitness industry understands the importance of settings goals. Your vision is your goal, and it should communicate the difference you will create in your customer’s lives.

Mission

Your mission statement will define your fitness marketing goals. What are you doing to reach your goals? Why? For example, do you want to enhance performance? Or do you want to create a sense of community?

Values

Whether you realize it or not, you have likely already built your entire gym or fitness brand around your core values. And while those values probably include health and fitness, you’ll need to think outside of the box to stand out from your competition. In an industry that’s rife with myths and misinformation, what you stand for can demonstrate your credibility and attract the right customers. This is the key to your fitness marketing strategy.

Your vision, mission, and values all drive what you do, but it’s impossible to be everything to everyone. If you’re marketing messages are going to cut through the noise, they need to be designed with a specific audience in mind.

Winning over the right clients online

When you’re developing a fitness marketing stategy, it’s extremely important to focus on who your customers are, because they’re the center of your business universe. A great way to determine your target audience is through well-crafted customer personas. This is a detailed description of exactly who your customer is, including information such as demographics, goals, behaviors, hobbies, and more. Customer personas help you visualize specific groups within your current and audience.

These groups might have different reasons for seeking fitness services. If you can understand their needs and motivations, you can create more effective marketing campaigns. For example, let’s say you run a yoga studio that offers group classes to its members. Your audience might include personas such as:

  • Sarah Sometimes: She’s an avid hiker who only comes to the studio when outdoor conditions are unfavorable.
  • Weight Loss Wayne: His goal is to feel comfortable and supported as he works on his weight loss goals.
  • Timid Tommy:  He’s never gone to a yoga class before and is nervous about the idea of trying something new in a group setting.
  • Newcomer Natalie: She’s an avid yogi, but recently moved to the area and doesn’t have a preferred studio yet.
  • Friendly Fran: She comes to yoga classes to socialize with friends.

You’ll need a slightly different strategy to reach each of these customers. Once you develop customer personas, you can target your fitness marketing efforts to services that speak to their preferences and challenges.

For example, maybe Sarah Sometimes would enjoy a group hike that ends with yoga in the mountains. Friendly Fran might find a yoga and happy hour fun, so she can enjoy a drink with her friends. Or Timid Tommy might feel more comfortable in a beginners-only yoga class so he can learn the poses.

Overall, fitness marketing is more effective if it’s personalized to specific audience segments.

Building an strong online presence

Having an online presence is imperative for businesses today, since it allows you to generate more leads and target your audience more effectively. Here are a few tips to help you grow and maintain your online presence.

Boost your local ranking

If you’ve ever used Google to search for a service or product, you will surely have noticed one thing: the search results appear based on the location set or that is automatically detected, either from a smartphone or from a computer.

If you’re trying to attract more local leads to buy your services or products, Google My Business is the ideal online advertising tool for you. Google My Business results provide business information including photos, location, hours, contact information, and reviews. Creating a My Business listing for your gym or fitness business makes it as easy as possible for potential customers to find it, maximizing the chances that you will get a new customer.

Here’s how to optimize your Google My Business page to get noticed and stand out from other business.

  • Enter complete information: Make sure you fill out as much information as possible on your My Business profile, including your phone number, physical address, and category. This makes it easier for Google to match your business with relevant searches, increasing the odds that you’ll show up in a potential customer’s search.
  • Verify your location: Google provides several verification methods to prove your business is where you say it is, which increases the chances it shows up on Google Search and Maps.
  • Update your hours: Make sure your hours and holiday hours are up to date on your My Business listing. This lets potential customers know when you’re open for business and improves the reliability of your listing.
  • Respond to reviews: Read and respond to the reviews your customers leave about your business. This shows your customers that you care about them. Receiving high-quality, positive reviews from customers will help your business’ image and increase the chances it’ll show up on Search.
  • Add photos: Uploading photos to your listing helps you show potential members your facilities, equipment, and amenities, increasing the chances that they’ll choose your business.

Put the “social” into social media

Having your business online is not enough. Your fitness marketing strategy needs to include business accounts on all social media platforms that your customers favor. These accounts help you promote your business and nurture the relationships you have with both current and prospective customers.

Some things you can post on social accounts include posts about students’ progress (if they give you permission), nutrition tips, and video clips of workouts – the point is, you want to be as visual as possible, and social media makes that easier than ever!

Capitalize on content marketing

In addition to social media, content marketing stands out as a powerful and cost-effective strategy to reach an engaged audience and grow your client base. Traditional fitness marketing is geared toward selling a particular product or service, the goal of content marketing is to provide informational content for readers in an effort to establish your company as an authority. This increases awareness of your brand without explicitly promoting your fitness business, making people feel like they’ve stumbled across you all by themselves.

There are many different types of content marketing, including blog posts, emails, podcasts, infographics, and videos. As long as the content is educational, entertaining, or informative and not overtly ‘salesy,’ content marketing can be a highly effective way to demonstrate your expertise and establish yourself as an industry leader.

Developing a clear sales funnel

The final step to a strong fitness marketing strategy is building a sales funnel. This is essentially your customer journey, from the moment they first hear about your fitness company to the moment they sign up for a membership or make a purchase. Most sales funnels start with a general audience and use retargeting campaigns to deliver increasingly segmented ad campaigns to potential customers, depending on where they are in their buying journey.

Start with Facebook Ads

One way to initiate the sales funnel is through Facebook Ads. Facebook advertising, specifically, can be a hyper-targeted way to get the word out about your fitness brand and reach your target audience on social. The best part: Facebook ads are relatively inexpensive.

Follow with Landing Pages

Landing pages are a great fitness marketing tool. They work alongside your website to capture a completely different source of online traffic. While your website is capturing leads from those actively searching the web for “fitness programs near me,” landing pages are enticing viewers with an attention-grabbing promotions.

A landing page is a single page on your website built to achieve a single conversion objective. It’s a page that’s designed, written, and created for a single purpose. For your fitness business, this could mean a number of different things, like booking a gym tour for a potential new member or signing someone up for a free trial class at your yoga studio. Landing pages don’t want you to sign up for a gym membership AND buy workout clothing AND contact a trainer – they have only a single ask.

Bring in the Experts

If you don’t have time or aren’t sure where to start with your fitness marketing, consider hiring a digital marketing agency. Agencies have the tools and expertise to help make your brand come to life. Think of it as a supplement regime – in order for your marketing to be effective, sometimes you need a little help. A digital marketing agency can provide your fitness marketing with a boost of energy to launch effective campaigns that work.

See how we can help grow your business. Get in touch today.  

Is dental marketing worth the investment?

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Sabrina Martinez

The U.S. Small Business Administration recommends spending 7-8% of gross revenue on marketing. Why? When it comes to dental marketing, the pay-off can be huge. An online marketing strategy does take time and money, however. As a dentist running a practice, it can be difficult to find the time and resources to effectively run an online marketing strategy. Here are a few tips to get you started and get your phone ringing.

Looking for more information? Talk to our marketing experts.

Dental marketing is key to staying competitive

The dental workforce has been projected to grow 19% from 2016 to 2026 — much faster than the average growth rate for other industries – rising from 153,500 dentist jobs in 2016 to a projected 182,800 jobs by 2026.

The American Dental Association (ADA) Health Policy Institute contributes this anticipated growth to an influx of younger and more diverse dentists, something they predict will continue through 2037. Not to mention that more and more dentists are waiting even longer to retire. The result is a marketplace that is oversaturated with qualified dentists who are competing for the same clients.

The good news is that despite this increased competition, the overall demand for dental services remains strong. In 2019, 64.9% of American adults visited the dentist at least once within the past year, up from 58% in 2018.

But patients won’t automatically file into your office. If you aren’t attracting new customers to your office, then you’re losing patients to your competitors. Other practices are marketing themselves, even if you’re not.

With the market not getting any less competitive in the coming years, the key to success is to create an effective and forward-thinking dental marketing plan. Branding is critical in marketing because otherwise your business will get lost in the competitive crowd. This is why investing time and money in branding is worth it.

Building trust and loyalty online

Building a trustworthy brand for your dental practice is the single most important thing you can do to set yourself up for success in the long term. A better brand means better marketing results, which means more patients and more revenue for your company.

Your brand will give patients a reason to choose you over another dentist. But if you expect patients to put their health in your hands over someone else’s, you first have to earn their trust. Your dental marketing can help you build that much-needed trust to create a loyal customer base you can depend on for many years to come.

You don’t want to focus all of your dental marketing efforts on attracting new patients, though. New patients are critical, but beware of concentrating too much on them. Acquiring new patients is costly in comparison to retaining current patients. For most dental offices, the cost to acquire a new patient is between $250 and $300. By focusing on existing patients first, you are subsequently investing in prospective patients for a fraction of the cost.

Prospective patients often pay careful attention to the opinions and experiences of current or past patients. What an existing patient has to say about your dental practice will significantly influence whether a potential client chooses your practice. Conversion rates for new patients are usually much higher for practices that invest in improving patient satisfaction and patient loyalty.

With the internet creating a hyper-connected environment, patients pay a lot of attention to things such as online reviews, website testimonials, and ratings. If your practice builds up positive reviews and ratings from existing patients, this can help create a strong online reputation for your brand.

Strategically manage your reputation with dental marketing

Dental marketing and reputation management has greatly evolved over the past few decades, and even more so in 2020. As mentioned above, dental practices are now able to receive feedback in multiple public spaces, through the help of the internet.

According to Google Trends, there has been a 6x growth in searches for “dentist near me” over the past 5 years. When current or potential patients see your practice on Google, a certain amount of stars will appear next to it based on your overall patient reviews. Customers may also be able to see your ratings and reviews on Yelp or Facebook.

According to The Local Consumer Review Study, 91% of people read online reviews, with 84% trusting online reviews as much as their friends.

A positive star reassures current patients that they already have the best dentist around and encourages potential patients to contact your practice to learn more. However, no reviews, or a less than 3-star rating could be a red flag and may steer potential new patients away.

So, how can you take control of your dental practice’s online reputation?

Make it easy for patients to find you

Your Business Listings

If you haven’t already, claim your dental practice’s listings on third-party review sites like Google My Business, Yelp, Angie’s List, and Healthgrades. You should ensure your profiles are completed and optimized with accurate information about your hours, phone number, address, and any other details that can give potential patients a high-level overview about your practice and the services you provide.

Your Website

There’s about a 70% chance that a patient’s first interaction with you will be through your website, so it needs to make a good impression. Your site needs to look professional, be well-organized for easy navigation, and be thorough in the information it offers visitors.

Your Social Media

Social media gives your practice an opportunity to reach out to potential and existing patients to build and strengthen relationships. In addition to staying in touch with patients online, you can also provide updates and information. This is also a great place to collect reviews from existing patients. A positive social media community for your practice provides new patients with more potential touchpoints, and a better immediate first impression whenever they find you.

Generate More Positive Reviews

The best way to get more positive patient reviews? Ask! Here are a few of our favorite ways to get more reviews online:

  • Follow up with patients via email or text after their appointment. Digital communication is great way to ask patients if they were pleased with their appointment. If they say “yes!” ask if they’d be willing to provide a review for you online. Make sure to include a link to the exact review site that you’d like to have a review left on to make it easier for the patient.
  • Train office staff. After each appointment, train your office staff to ask how their visit was. This way, if a patient was disappointed with how something went, your office can address the issue right then and there. If the patient responds positively, staff can quickly follow up with a request to leave a positive review online.
  • Add signage in your office. Let patients know you want positive reviews by having signs in your office that politely asks patients to leave a review online. Sometimes you just need to get it on a patient’s radar and they will happily oblige!

Embrace Negative Reviews

If and when you receive a dreaded negative review, the first thing to remember is to always remain calm. Respond within 48 to 72 hours so other viewers can see that you’re actively monitoring online reviews.

Getting a negative review isn’t the end of the world – if potential patients see you provide a genuine and professional response, they will understand that things can happen. The most important things you can do after receiving a negative review are:

  • Analyze the complaint and note the validity of your patient’s points; if your practice made a mistake, this is the time to own it – it instills accountability. Apologize to the reviewer and let them know that you want work toward a successful resolution.
  • Consider the bad review as opportunity to improve. Bad reviews can help you understand what you’re doing wrong, and where you can make improvements in your practice.
  • Finally, make sure to follow-up with the patient. Give them a number or email address where they can reach you and keep the lines of communication open. This lets patients know you’re dedicated to making the situation right.

Bring on a marketing partner

Reputation management can be both a mysterious concept and stressful situation for dental practices. You likely have a multitude of questions on how to get reviews, improve your online reputation, as well as the effect reviews can have on your business from both a patient-perspective in addition to SEO. The right marketing agency can help your practice increase new patient numbers and thrive with cohesive dental marketing strategies.

Ready to up your dental marketing strategy? Call us now.

Five fun financial marketing strategies to try in the year ahead

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Sabrina Martinez

This year has been a wild ride. Our dreams of visiting Europe, or even visiting family and friends interstate for the holidays, may be on hold – but our business goals are still in full play, and so are our marketing plans. The sector has changed drastically in the past 12 months. We’re seeing companies having real conversations on social media, personalizing  experiences, and reinventing themselves as real people behind a screen.

It’s been a year of experimenting with new digital marketing strategies to reach your target audience and start generating new leads online. There’s never been a better time to have a little fun with your financial marketing strategy.

Want to generate new leads? Schedule a free consultation.

Content, content, content

Content marketing is a beautiful thing, and a great way to drive people to your website. Whether you’re starting a conversation, doing a giveaway, or sharing an educational video, content marketing can create valuable relationships with your audience.

It’s no secret that finance is probably not everyone’s first language. That’s why it’s crucial to educate prospects about what your products and services can do for them. Everyone has that one website that they go to for information. Our goal is to make YOUR website everyone’s first stop. Giving yourself a credible and trustworthy reputation is worth it in the long run because people are always learning.

But it’s not just your audience that you have to convince about your credibility. Google is always prioritizing websites and social media channels by targeted keywords. If you’re posting quality content but only posting once a month, Google probably won’t give you a good ranking. This is why creating a quality content marketing calendar may be beneficial.

Break it down into bite-sized chunks, use fun analogies, experiment with creative media, and take customers along for the ride. Mapping out your content for the month on all channels will help you stay ahead of the game, plan for upcoming national or industry trends, and give yourself the time to tailor everything to fit your brand. Remember, the people you’re targeting are not experts, so take the time to connect with your audience on a human level and explain why you’re different.

The power of influencers

Before you reject the idea of using influencers for financial marketing, get the image of Kim Kardashian, Justin Bieber, or Taylor Swift out of your head. We would never do that to you.

Influencer marketing has taken the world by storm. Whether you know it or not, you have been exposed to influencer marketing ever since you were a child. Remember that big man with the red suit who made Coca-Cola look magical? That’s right, Santa Claus is the original influencer. Following the release of Santa in their 1995 holiday campaign, Coca-Cola’s net income increased from $708 million to $802 million, compared to 1994, while the New York Times reports that revenue rose 9.7%. It’s not that companies couldn’t vouch for their products themselves, it’s just that families trusted the big guy in the red suit.

It turns out it’s not about what the message is saying, it’s about who is saying it. This is a great opportunity to think outside the square and try something new.

According to a recent study conducted by the McCarthy Group, most millennials trust their relationships on social media for information more than most news sources. Who are they looking to find their right home? The right baby products? The right home decor? Whoever that is, that is your influencer. If a rapper like Snoop Dog can attract 50,000 new users in just one week to make Klarna, a Swedish bank app, into Europe’s largest fintech product… then the possibilities are truly endless. How can you use this technique in your business?

Capitalize on digital storytelling

Stories stick. Historically, when it comes to financial marketing, we’ve found that many firms play it safe and stay a little on the stiff side. The ads they run are usually text-heavy and cover topics that people without a basic background in finance wouldn’t even begin to comprehend. Storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to reach your audiences – this can include videos, blogs, reviews, testimonials, and can be as serious or as silly as you like.

A popular idea for most financial small businesses would be to feature customers who have been loyal or have an influential story tying them to you. 82% of Gen Z would be more trusting of a company if they use people who are customers according to Business Wire.

If someone has an established connection with your small business, they will sit through that 15-second ad you have on YouTube or anywhere else. Specifically, 58% of young people according to a study from Defy. A great example of this is Amazon’s “Meet” ads, which feature short stories from people throughout the entire company like warehouse workers, truck drivers, and packagers. These people share uplifting and inspiring stories about their time at the company to make customers feel emotionally invested.

These stories are examples of ways that digital storytelling can evoke strong emotions, create a lasting memory, and give your small business a human persona. They’re short enough to share on social channels and websites, all the while being shareable and accessible, which will help set you apart from the competition and create a lasting impression. And remember, it’s okay to use a little humor to set your brand apart.

Strategize on social media

Social media is such a powerful tool in today’s world. People of all ages are using it to connect with companies and brands that resonate with them and people who influence them. It’s even becoming a part of our daily routines – according to the Pew Research Center, 74% of users are on Facebook and 63% on Instagram daily, making them incredibly powerful platforms when it comes to financial marketing.

Making sure your business is a part of the global conversation happening online can help you reach an audience broader than you ever thought possible. The fact that a small financial business in the middle of nowhere Indiana can be seen online just as easily as a million-dollar Wall Street company is one of the many beautiful facets of social media.

A strong social media strategy isn’t usually built overnight. It takes genuine content marketing, an engaging brand personality, and creative approaches to campaign. Giving yourself the tools you need to make this happen will pay off in the long run. Implementing a social media strategy means you can enter a whole new ball game. It’s time to have a little fun with your audience and surprise them with something new.

Make finance easy-breezy

Millennials and Gen Z consumers expect convenience and accessibility. Their time is quite literally (your) money. To be fair, companies and services have no excuse to not be progressing with the times – I mean, these days even little kids running lemonade stands are accepting cashless payments with Square. Times are seriously changing.

We’re entering the age of automation, which means digitizing the entire process and having everything you need with a touch of the button. With streamlined paths to purchases and easy access to business contact information, people are making purchasing decisions in the blink of an eye. A great website is a big factor in this. How long does it take from placing something in your digital card to getting a confirmation email? If it takes longer to checkout than it does for a Keurig to fill up your mug, you’ll need to take a second look.

Digitizing your processes isn’t always a walk in the park. Finance companies like SaleCycle are finding that they have the highest digital abandonment rates – reaching up to 75%, according to Forbes. It’s important to keep the process simple and avoid any confusing steps. You can also streamline processes by automating things like form fill, adding progress indicators, and looking into mobile apps. User experience is critical, so focus on your audience and what they need from you as a business, and let your brand personality shine as you guide them through the process.

Want help with a financial marketing strategy? Let’s connect.

Tips to level-up your financial marketing before 2021

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Sabrina Martinez

Leadership is important in every industry. However, given the year we’ve all just had, it’s never been more important in financial marketing. American businesses of all sizes, in all industries, have ridden a rollercoaster of government policy, shutdowns, booms, busts, and technological advances. Now that 2021 is on the horizon, it’s time to start planning.

Since we’re all friends here, we want to give you a tip: this is a huge opportunity for you. Everyone is looking for direction and guidance, and you have the expertise they need to make it through these tricky times. It’s time to step up and be the leader they need. To take a quote from William Shakespeare, “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” (Does that send tingles up your spine too?)

That means it’s time to talk about thought leadership. This is a financial marketing strategy that leverages the experience of your team to build an audience and generate leads.

Have we piqued your interest? Schedule a free consultation.

Thought leadership in financial marketing

The most effective way to display thought leadership is through content marketing or publicity. The former can include virtually every type of media from blogs to videos, social media, and more. The latter can include speaking at events like conferences and webinars in order to build brand awareness. There are lots of ways you can establish your expertise:

  1. Discuss the latest industry news and offer an opinion
  2. Create a step-by-step guide to tackling a common problem
  3. Answer questions your clients frequently ask during appointments
  4. Write long-form articles that give advice using strong keywords
  5. Examine trends and predict where the industry is heading
  6. Share case studies about the way you achieve success
  7. Collaborate with colleagues and other experts

Truthfully, the sky is the limit when it comes to thought leadership in financial marketing. Since you work in finance, we know you like numbers, so pay attention to the analytics. Check in regularly with Google Analytics and Facebook Analytics to see what kinds of content are getting the greatest reaction. Which blog posts are people most likely to click? Which ones are people reading all the way to the end? What types of social media content get the best engagement? What are people talking about in the comments?

Paying attention to the data will help you refine your strategy over time, capturing as much attention as possible and presenting your brand in the best possible light.

Pay attention to financial marketing trends

What’s trending in the finance sector? How will this affect your business? Most importantly, how will this affect your customers? It’s really important to stay up-to-date with industry news, because this is great fodder to not only improve your practices, but fuel your strategy.

Financial marketing is changing rapidly, just like the industry it promotes, and there are several reasons why it’s important for you to stay ahead of the curve. The first one is so that you can provide a calm port in a storm for existing clients and give them the best possible service. The second to build trust with prospective clients to start winning them over.

Think about it. There are generally two ways people find a new financial services partner: they ask for recommendations from people they trust, and they start Googling. You’ll catch their eye with snazzy Google Ads and a sparkling SEO strategy, and then you’ll only have a couple of seconds to make an impression and win their confidence.

Here are some thought-starters. What’s your take on these topics?

  1. Artificial intelligence integration
  2. Best practice in cybersecurity
  3. Importance of data analytics
  4. The rise of Blockchain technology
  5. Re-thinking the concept of money

This isn’t a random list. It’s the result of a quick search for “finance trends,” which means they’re the kinds of topics people are talking about online. Are you taking part in the conversation? What are you going to do if a client asks for your take? The best way to be prepared is to include them, and any other trending topics, in your financial marketing strategy. That way, the next time people are searching for answers, your content will start to appear in search results lists.

Make sure your content works double-time

If you’re going to invest in thought leadership as a financial marketing strategy, you’re going to need strong content. Content requires a considerable investment of time and effort, so it makes sense to get the biggest possible return on investment. Right? If you’ve ever heard of the marketing guru Gary Vaynerchuk (we’re big fans here at the Beacon office), you’ll know he’s the king of repurposing content. There’s no reason to reinvent the wheel.

Digital marketing is versatile. There are many platforms, many mediums, and many methods you can use to share your messaging with the masses online. Here are some simple and time-saving ideas you can use to maximize your impact while minimizing your effort:

  1. Share video of your speaking engagements on your website and social platforms.
  2. Combine blog posts into an eBook to boost your credibility as a thought-leader.
  3. Present blog posts as videos (or vice versa). Then share the audio as a podcast!
  4. Screenshot Tweets and share them on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
  5. Share content from colleagues and experts with a thoughtful comment.
  6. Freshen up your old content and reshare it with a modern twist.
  7. Create a quick infographic to accompany a report.

The progression is simple. Thought leadership needs content marketing. Content marketing needs a marketing strategy. A marketing strategy needs a strong brand with clear goals. This will lay the foundation you need to successfully start growing your audience online.

Secrets to financial marketing success

Before we let you go, we’re going to run you through some very practical tips to help you level-up your financial marketing strategy for the year ahead.

The most important, by far, is consistency. Thought leadership, and content marketing, are both long-term strategies. Each piece of content will build on the ones that came before it, leading to exponential growth over time. There’s nothing to be gained by publishing one or two think pieces and then simply hoping for the best. Consistency means you’ll need to budget the time to research trending topics, plan a publishing schedule, and create the content you need. You’ll also need to check-in regularly to ensure it’s hitting the mark and that you’re across any sub-topics that need further explanation.

The other thing we’d like to mention is the importance of making content marketing a two-way conversation. Don’t just shout into the void of the internet! Respond to all the comments people leave on your blogs or videos, and dedicate at least 30 minutes a day to interacting with people on social media. This doesn’t mean simply dropping a few likes here and there, but asking questions or leaving thoughtful comments to encourage people to engage in a dialogue with you.

Looking to hire a marketing partner? We can help.

What is financial marketing and why is it important?

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Sabrina Martinez

Marketing refers to the methods you use to promote your products and services to your customers. When we talk about digital marketing, we are referring to all the different ways businesses can do this online. And when we refer to financial marketing, we’re talking about the way you specifically can grow your business. Are you ready to start scaling? Read on! In this blog post, we’re going to run you through the basics so you can reach your goals.

We’ve worked with a lot of financial services firms over the years, helping with everything from merchant services, to local banks, and even Alaska’s infamous Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) program. We’ve worked hard and generated some awesome results:

Want to see numbers like these? You know where to find us.

Step one: Define your voice

Ready for a rapid-fire round? Here we go. Who are you as a company? What do you offer your clients? What makes you different from any other bank, credit union, accountant, financial advisor or stockbroker? What are your values? Why should a client choose you?

These are all really important questions, because from a financial marketing perspective, they lay the foundations for a memorable brand that will encourage client loyalty. Financial services can be confusing for people who aren’t up to their elbows in spreadsheets every day, so you need to make sure you’re accessible and approachable to the kinds of people you want to help. Position yourself as a friend who speaks the same language.

Financial marketing tone example

Here’s an example of the kind of thing we mean. Our client, eComm, is committed to re-inventing the merchant services industry. It’s a national brand owned by an Alaskan financial services company called Cornerstone Credit Services, and it launched in 2017. Looking back, the owners say: “We were entering an industry that had a bad reputation, but we were doing it for a reason… We knew that the business community deserves better.”

This attitude defines the client’s brand voice, which sets the foundation for a financial marketing campaign. The message is simple. The tone is straight-talking. The communications are transparent. This company works with small business owners all over the United States, who don’t have time to beat around the bush, which is reflected across all of eComm’s digital assets. This is immediately clear through the use of phrases like:

  • “You probably have first-hand knowledge that the merchant services industry is wildly unethical.”
  • “Some merchant services providers don’t seem to understand the golden rule: don’t lie to people.”
  • “Our aim is to be undeniably up-front with you about everything from mark-up fees to monthly charges.”

This is strong language. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. However, the up-front style is very effective from a financial marketing point of view, because it connects with this client’s target audience. These are people who need answers now and want to work with someone they feel they can trust. The voice reveals everything you need to know straight away.

Step two: Build trust in your community

The best way to build trust in your community when it comes to financial marketing has always been, and will always be, word of mouth. People are much more likely to trust the recommendation of a friend or family member who has had a great experience than take a risk on an unknown company. The logical conclusion, of course, is that the best way to build trust is simply to give every single customer a great experience. Listen to them. Solve their problems. Save them money. Make them great coffee. Write them thank you notes.

Financial marketing example

Cornerstone Credit Services has a range of divisions, including payment solutions. The company has an outstanding reputation in Anchorage, Alaska, and it’s the go-to merchant services provider in the region. From a financial marketing perspective, this is gold, but it doesn’t mean no further efforts are required. Cornerstone has actually capitalized on this reputation across their digital assets as well – take this homepage, for example. For one thing, it recognizes the positive impact clients have on the business, and makes them feel special. For another, it encourages them to go ahead and make even more referrals in their personal circles by offering an enticing cash reward.

Ready for another set of quick questions? Here we go. What are your strengths? What are some things you’re already hitting out of the park? How can you use them as part of your financial marketing strategy to grow your business even further? This is important, because it will help you work as efficiently and effectively as possible to reach your goals.

Step three: Nail your value proposition

Once you’ve defined your brand, and you’ve built a strong reputation, you need to work on your value proposition. Catch the attention of your prospective clients and make them an offer they can’t refuse. This is the part where you’ll be encouraging people to click onto your website, guiding them down the path to purchase, and hopefully converting a sale.

Financial marketing example

A key part of this is a strong landing page. Our client, Bookkeeping Alaska, is currently in a growth phase. The owner, Tabitha, asked us to create a landing page to encourage more people to sign up to a special offer that will help them organize their accounts for just $97. She’ll help you set up QuickBooks, start reconciling your statements, start reconciling your transactions, generate system reports, and provide email and phone support along the way.

Landing pages can be really simple. In fact, there’s a recipe for success, because there are a few key touch-points every prospective client will consider in making a decision:

  1. Professionalism of your appearance (i.e. design, layout, text, etc.)
  2. An offer that is immediately very clear and easy to understand
  3. An explanation of what exactly the offer includes (i.e. a list)
  4. Some social proof or a testimonial to encourage trust
  5. An explanation of why your business is a great choice
  6. Several very clear calls to action so they can take next steps

Once you’ve addressed all those points, you’re good to go. When it comes to building effective landing pages, we recommend a tool called Leadpages, which has templates tailored to different industries and different types of offers, making them easy to create. It’s a great way to qualify leads and ensure the people who reach out are a good fit.

Why you need financial marketing services

Once a client has clicked through to your website, the only thing left to do is streamline the path to purchase so it’s easy for them go to ahead and do business with you. Make sure that the next steps are clear, with a strong call to action, and ensure your contact details are prominent so they can get in touch with any questions. It’s that simple.

Want it to be this easy in real life? Give our helpful team a call.

Trends you need to capitalize on in financial marketing

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Sabrina Martinez

If you’re working in financial services, there’s a fair chance you’re a left-brained person. Along with your aptitude for numbers, and your talent for problem-solving, we’re guessing you also like being organized, you like planning, you like details, and you like executing a well-developed financial marketing strategy. Right?

You like researching the most effective techniques, methodically putting them into place, and watching the leads roll in. Marketing is an interesting sector in that it blends science with art. On one hand, it’s very methodical (and we always tell our clients that consistency is key). On the other, it can be incredibly creative and fun.

In this blog, we’re going to run you through three trends you need to capitalize on to ensure your financial marketing strategy is giving you maximum return on investment. We’ll tell you which bits are about process, and which are about personality, to help you grow.

Ready to get started? Schedule a free consultation.

1. Google Ads: Help clients find your financial services

The first trend you need to capitalize on when it comes to financial marketing is Google Ads. It’s no longer enough to rely on word of mouth, or start a company Facebook page, or build a website without taking further action. These are all great methods, of course, but when it comes to financial marketing, there are simply better ones you can use –like Google Ads.

There are a lot of reasons why Google Ads is amazing, but the main one is simply because it helps people find you when they’re looking for you. BAZINGA. Modern marketing doesn’t get any better than that! Google Ads allows you to target specific keywords, and zero in on your key demographic by selecting things like location, age, income level, and gender.

Let’s put it this way. It makes sense to cast a wide net in the hope of catching a nice fish… unless you have a dependable strategy that will help you catch a trophy king salmon.  You’d take the second option every time, right?

(Well, we would, but then again, our headquarters are based in Anchorage, Alaska, and many members of our team know their way around a fishing boat! Ask us for tips any time!)

The second reason Google Ads is awesome is because the client already knows they need you. They’re actively searching for you, so all you have to do is capture their interest and convince them you’re the best choice to solve their problem. (And let’s face it, people usually engage financial services firms because they have an issue they’re unable to deal with on their own.)

2. Landing pages: Tell your clients why they need you

Google Ads are like a one-two punch. Boom. The client is yours! The first part is setting up the ads; the second is making sure you’re sending clicks somewhere that will seal the deal. This is where landing pages come in. A “landing page” simply refers to the first page a client will see when they visit your website. It’s the first impression you have, so make it count!

When Google Ads first started, it was customary to direct traffic to an existing page on your website, like your home page or services page. More recently, there has been a trend towards directing people to custom sales pages. This is definitely best practice, because it will significantly increase your chances of converting a client and making a sale. So what does a great landing page look like? There are three main points we recommend:

  • A clear offer or deal to show people why they should act now.
  • A value proposition, such as a free download, so people feel like they’re getting value.
  • A number of very clear calls to action to help people know what to do next.

Landing pages don’t have to be long. A really common mistake people make is to stuff landing pages full of key words, thinking that will increase their ranking through SEO (we’re definitely guilty of this too – we’ve mastered our strategy over many years with a lot of trial and error). The trouble is that SEO isn’t really the point of a landing page.

Running Google Ads means you’re already targeting the keywords you need, and because you’re paying per click, you don’t need to worry so much about SEO. Instead, you need to kick your sales brain into gear, and think about the key information a prospective client would want and need to know because deciding to take action.

If in doubt, less is more. Make it snappy. Make it interesting. Make it helpful.

Most of all, make sure the next step is crystal clear and very inviting.

3. Personalization: Let clients know how much you care

Let’s take a moment to recap quickly. Step one was capturing people’s interest with shiny Google Ads. Step two was making them an offer they can’t refuse with a sparkling landing page. Step three is showing the client exactly how important they are to you and reassuring them they’ve made the right choice. We’re not talking champagne and corporate suites at the basketball (although hey, surely no-one would complain about that!).

Here’s a word we know you’ll love: data. Personalization starts with data collection and analysis. You’ll need to figure out exactly who your ideal client is, who is responding to your Google Ads, and who is taking action on your landing page. Are they the same types of people? If not, why not? You may find an audience persona really helpful here to help focus your efforts and ensure you’re targeting the most profitable demographics – i.e. those who are most likely to convert.

Once you know who you’re talking to, tailor your messaging accordingly. Don’t be generic. Target their specific interests. You’ve discovered this group loves football? Great. Make some football puns. Or do they all come from the same neighborhood? Great. Make some local references. Make them feel like you know them, that you understand, and that you can help.

And remember, a follow-up phone call after they take action on a landing page is always a classy touch. Nothing shows a client how important they are like you taking a few minutes out of your day to introduce yourself and thank them for their interest in working with you.

Stay on top of financial marketing trends

Modern marketing moves quickly. It’s an innovative industry, because marketers are always trying new ways to capture people’s attention and make their message heard. Staying on top of the latest trends can feel like a full-time job (and for us, it is! Seriously!).

If you’re running a financial services firm, you’ll have a lot on your plate, so it makes sense to work as efficiently and effectively as possible. You may find it valuable to bring on a marketing partner, who can stay across all the latest trends to ensure you’re capitalizing on the ones most likely to grow your business. If that’s the case, please reach out.

What are you waiting for? Let’s talk business.

Web traffic stagnant? It’s time to start a business blog

Picture of Sabrina Martinez

Sabrina Martinez

When 2010 rolled around, it felt like every other person had a blog. CEOs? Check. Amateur chefs? Check. Avid travellers? Check. Moms? Check. Businesses? Hmm. Not so much. But why not? After all, people come to your website to see what products and services you offer, and what kind of company you are, right?

The first question we hear you asking is whether blogs are even still relevant in 2020? It’s a fair question. After all, there’s only so much time in the day, so why would you invest your time in writing a business blog? The answer is simple: traffic.

A blog offers you the opportunity to potentially get a lot more eyes on your website, educating potential clients, and generating leads. Unless people are already acquainted with your business, they won’t Google you specifically. They’ll Google similar products and services. It makes sense, then, to dominate those keywords online and ensure your business ranks right at the very top of the list. By creating a business blog, you dramatically improve your chances of ranking… and who knows, it may convert new visitors into customers.

Creating a blog can be quite daunting, as there is a lot to learn – especially around search engine optimization (SEO). This refers to the techniques used to get your posts ranking at the top of Google’s results page, and can feel like opening a can of worms. If you don’t have time to figure it all out yourself, remember you can always outsource. But if you’re ready to learn all there is to know, then keep on reading!

Want help with your website? Call our helpful team today.

What is a business blog?

We all know that having a website is important. It’s your own little piece of digital real estate, and one of few things on the internet you’ll ever fully control. Blogs are essentially signposts that increase virtual foot traffic into your business to that you can make sales. While Google is known to change its algorithms, affecting your rankings, blogs are not nearly as volatile as social media results that can spike or plummet overnight.

Blogs have come a long way since the weblogs, or diary updates, that first started in the mid-90s. Nowadays, a “blog” simply refers to the section of your website that gets updated on a regular basis. It’s designed to keep your website fresh and relevant, and keep the Google algorithm happy, so it keeps ranking your articles as high as possible. This means it works very differently to regular webpages, which generally focus on sales.

Content marketers believe in the creation of blogs as a marketing strategy because they have seen the results. On average, companies that have a blog section on their website produce 67% more leads monthly compared to companies that don’t. Alongside the additional leads, blogs also increase brand loyalty by bringing in new readers and interacting with them in a meaningful way… which can boost revenue.

Let’s talk about SEO

The best way to grow traffic to your website is by creating the kinds of content people are actively looking for in search engines like Google. Once they click through to your website and see that you know what you’re talking about, it will be much easier to convert them into a paying customer. The best way to do this is to take a look your website analytics, so you can see the kinds of pages people are most interested in reading about.

However, creating a lead generating content strategy is not as simple as writing something that you think your audience might like and throwing it up on the internet. These days, it’s important to have an SEO strategy in place that will allow you to build up content and keywords on your website that are relevant to your audience and to your product or service. This means that you should be thinking about what your consumer might be looking for and using the available SEO tools to see whether they actually are. This way, you’re letting the customers come to you on their own than paying for their clicks.

How do I write a blog?

There are many types of blogs that you can create for your business. Truthfully, you can turn almost anything into a blog post, as long as it’s something your target audience will find valuable. This can include handy how-to guides, news items relevant to your industry or business, think pieces, infographics, listicles, cheat sheets, interviews, guest blogs, commentary on current news items, key terms explained, and much more.

Whichever type of content you decide to write, make sure you start your blog strategy with a clear goal in mind and a realistic path to reach that goal. Know who you want to reach, what they’re looking for, where they hang out online, and most importantly, what action you want them to take when they click through to your website.

An essential part of a successful blog strategy is keyword research. To put this simply, you need to pick the best combination of words that describe your business and DOMINATE. The researching phase is critical, so you might want to consider engaging a SEO professional to ensure you’re on the right track. This will help you work as efficiently and effectively as possible, by finding words that are well-trafficked but not too competitive.

Once you’re confident about your selection, create a content calendar so that you know how your target keywords are going to work together in real-time. This way, you and your team will know what’s coming up, so you can plan ahead to create high-quality content whilst building up authority in those essential keywords.

Should I start a blog in 2020?

Yes! A thousand times yes. Blogs are a powerful tool to drive traffic to your website, and a well-executed content strategy has proven to be one of the most efficient ways to grow your business by boosting your online traffic. With every blog post, you are adding relevant keywords to your website. This, in turn, signals to Google that you have a highly-relevant business within your industry, so the algorithm sends more traffic your way.

A business blog allows you to provide your target audience with value that they cannot get from a sales or landing page. Modern consumers research the brands that they’re planning to purchase from, which means education and transparency are more important than ever. Consumers want companies to be helpful and provide them with value before they are willing to invest. Having a blog allows you to provide that information, to educate your customer about your service or product, to capture their attention, to build trust, and to create a positive connection. If the end-goal is to drive the sales of your business, this is a fantastic way to get started!

Need a little help getting started? Outsource to the professionals! 

What it really takes to grow your Facebook audience

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Sabrina Martinez

The average American spends 38 minutes per day on Facebook, so it’s no surprise that it’s the most-used social media platform in 2020. Many businesses spend a lot of time on the platform, trying to catch the attention of digital passers-by, but it doesn’t necessarily translate into results.

Do you feel like you’re talking to an empty void full of distractions? Stay tuned, because our social media experts are about to reveal their top tips and tricks for growing an audience.

Don’t have the time to spare? Cut straight to the point and schedule a consultation with one of our social media experts.

How does Facebook work?

Facebook is a constantly evolving platform, which means keeping up with the latest algorithm changes and social trends can seem like a full-time job. The starting point for businesses on Facebook is to create a Business Facebook Page, but the act of creating and managing one doesn’t guarantee success like it used to. Even tactics that worked six months ago might not work anymore. So how do you get your content seen on Facebook?

What good brand engagement looks like

First things first, it’s important to understand how your audience engages on Facebook. Your audience can talk to and engage with your brand in many different ways. In Facebook terms, when we’re talking about engagement, we mean reacting, commenting, or sharing.

  • A reaction: Remember the time where Facebook only had the “like” function? Nowadays, your audience can react to your comment with a range of emotions, rather than a single positive gesture. They can like, love, laugh, be surprised, be sad, or be angry. This year even brought in a new emotion, reflecting a very relatable sentiment many of us experienced, which is that people can now also “care” about a post.
  • A comment: When your audience takes a few seconds to comment on your post, it means that they have something to say! In the busy and loud world of Facebook, this is a fantastic signal that you are connecting with your audience by posting relatable content. Comments are really powerful, as they can create more traffic, give constructive feedback, and even generate leads! They’re a really powerful form of engagement, and you’ll definitely want to track them so you can refine your content strategy as you go.
  • A share: If a reaction is worth a bronze medal, and a comment is worth a silver, shares take out the top prize every time. It means your audience feels so strongly about your content that they want to share with their own circle! Marketers love the words “going viral,” and this is always how it starts.

It’s important to remember that Facebook actually wants your audience to engage with your brand as much as you do. Why? If your audience is engaging with your content frequently, Facebook will show your content to more people, because they know that will translate into people spending longer on the platform, so they can serve more ads. As such, Facebook’s ultimate goal will always be keeping people online for as long as possible.

Why organic engagement is still important

Organic content refers to things people view on Facebook just because they’re interesting. It’s different from paid content, in which brands pay Facebook to ensure their content is seen by a targeted group of people. The higher your organic engagement, the higher your organic reach (This just means “the number of people who have had an unpaid post from your Page enter their screen“), and the faster your audience on Facebook will grow.

(As a side note, if you want to learn more about paid engagement, we deep-dive into Facebook Ads here and we talk about what you should pay attention to when setting up Facebook Ads  here.)

Organic engagement is still the most sustainable way to build and grow an audience on Facebook that actually cares about your brand. The best way to achieve this? Posting good content! It’s a really simple equation. With that in mind, you need to plan content and create a posting schedule to ensure you never run out of great ideas. Consistency is key to building connection and trust with your audience, so work smarter, not harder.

How to track and analyze your results

So you’ve written lots of fantastic content, and put it out into the world on a consistent posting schedule? Fantastic! Does that mean that your work is done? Time to Netflix and chill? No!

It’s crucial that you take time to look into your Facebook Insights or Analytics every month, before you even think about setting up the next content calendar. You can do this by tracking your organic reach, the organic likes, comments and shares on the insights page. Play around with the benchmarking tool to see how well you’re tracking compared to the last period. We recommend keeping track of these in a regular social media report.

How do I create good content?

Instagram focuses on visual content, and Twitter focuses on written content, but Facebook allows you to have a lot of fun by playing around with both. The world is your oyster… as long as you don’t forget about video. In recent times, there has been a big increase in video content on the platform, and for good reason. Facebook allows you to choose between video ads, video posts, stories and live streams, so there are plenty of opportunities to capitalize on the 8 billion Facebook video views each day. You are almost guaranteed increased engagement when opting for video over photo or text, and people are four times more likely to watch a live video over a pre-recorded video.

Of course, video is not the only way to engage your audience. Audiences still love ready snappy written content and soaking up beautiful imagery. Here are a few pointers to get the best out of both media:

  • When it comes to photography, professional photography isn’t an absolute necessity, but we do recommend being selective with the images that you choose. You want all images to fit your brand, to incite a reaction out of your audience, and to fit well with the message that you want to communicate. If you are struggling to find a way to produce beautiful imagery, there is no shame in using stock images.
  • When deciding on copy, it is incredibly important to think strategically about your content calendar. You need to consider not just what you want to share, but what your audience actually wants to read. Stick to your niche when it comes to choosing topics that are relevant and try to provide your audience with value. You can do this by sharing educational content, something funny, solving a problem, addressing a trending topic, and much more. Just remember to use a consistent tone of voice throughout it all!

Simple tricks to grow your audience

We know, you got all excited about diving into your content calendar and coming up with new ideas to increase your organic engagement. But before you go, here are a few tips and trips to give you that extra push!

  • Be active: Facebook is still a social media platform and that means that you will need to be social on the platform itself. Post consistently and have conversations with your target audience outside of your own business page to show that you are interesting, engaging, and actively using the platform.
  • Facebook is relational: You probably know that you can invite friends to follow your Business Page, but did you know that you can invite anyone who has left a reaction on your post? If your audience shares your content on their personal pages and their extended circle reacts, you can invite them to like your page as they have just interacted with your content. This is a great way to activate an audience.
  • Create a public or private group: If you want to have a strong relationship with your target audience on Facebook, then you should consider starting a Facebook Group. Facebook has been putting a lot of effort into Facebook Groups as they are often home to more meaningful engagement. It recently announced a new suite of tools to better manage groups and to spark more discussions.
  • Engage your existing community: Prompt people who are signed up to your mailing list to like your Facebook Page by mentioning your page or by adding links to your email signature. You can also encourage audiences you have on other social media platforms to like your Facebook Business page.
  • Do your research: Just like with any other social platform, it is important to do your research about the audience that you are trying to reach on Facebook. Are you sure that they are active on Facebook? What type of content do they look for and interact with? Make sure that you are creating well-targeted content on Facebook so that you can ensure that you are promoting your page to the right audience.

All that’s left to do is get started! Don’t worry if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed. With its constant changes and updates, keeping up with Facebook can easily feel like too much to handle. Remember you can outsource Facebook and the rest of your social media marketing strategy to professionals.

Want to talk to the experts? Schedule a free consultation!

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