Digital Marketing is a broad term which encompasses your website design, social media, online advertising and email marketing – and these are just the core areas. As technology and the way we communicate progresses, digital marketing will no doubt evolve with it. These channels allow you to touch base with your market on a previously unachievable scale, without breaking the bank.
Direct interaction online, company transparency through information sharing, reviews and considered advice allow you to showcase your service online while building trust among your potential clients. And perhaps most useful of all – these areas can all be measured simply and instantaneously with real-time tracking tools.
In this guide, we give you the basics in optimising your website and offer tips for using email marketing and social media effectively, helping you to get results from your online marketing efforts.
Google notes that 97% of consumers search for businesses online. For this reason, it’s essential to get the basics right.
Setting up an account on Google will allow your businesses name and location to be placed in Google Maps. Once you’ve done this, you can set up a Google Business Page, which is an information box to the right of any search results. This shows things like your opening times and reviews, and links directly to your website.
Offer information which is clear, concise, and visual to get across what you do and who you are in no uncertain terms. Before and after shots would work particularly well in explaining your services, while an interior of your consultation room will let them know what to expect. Video testimonials from happy customers will also help reassure your visitors and encourage them to book.
This links to the previous point about clarity of information. Web visitors want to know three things about a product or service: who you are, what you do, and where they can find you. Make sure that this information is never more than three clicks away from your homepage.
A blog is a perfect platform from which to inform your website visitors through topical articles, FAQs, top tips, and in-depth advice. Keeping your blog updated also helps to increase your business ranks in a Google search. Constant activity and engagement, such as updating a blog, sharing it and people reading it, shows search engines that your website is not only in action but popular.
You can get your blog off the ground and gaining readers by:
Facebook has 32 million users in the UK, Instagram has 14 million, and Pinterest sees 3 million “pins” a day. These three highly visual social media sites are paramount to supporting the growth of the cosmetics industry, as procedures break out of the Hollywood bubble and into the mainstream.
While the potential audience is immense, you need to consider how to reach them amidst the noise.
Free tools:
* Instagram Analytics Tools
* Hootsuite
The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) due to come into force in 2018 is the perfect excuse to overhaul a tired database and cull any disinterested parties or invalid emails.
Email marketing is still very relevant, as it can feel a lot more personalised than social media, and doesn’t vanish among the noise of a busy feed.
Emails generally come in two forms. E-shots are short and to the point, and serve the purpose of highlighting offers, events, changes to opening hours and the like. E-newsletters typically include a few articles of varying length to encourage more in-depth reading, much like a print newsletter.