The 4 Pillars of a Steady Digital Marketing Strategy

26 Jun The 4 Pillars of a Steady Digital Marketing Strategy

Digital marketing should now be the primary focus for most businesses, both when it comes to bringing in new customers and retaining existing ones. But what, exactly, does a good digital marketing strategy look like? If you’re just getting started, you’re probably trying to figure out which digital channels are worth investing in and which you can skip. Here are the four pillars that can support a solid digital marketing strategy for nearly every type of business:

1. SEO
   Search engine optimization, or SEO, is central to any web-based marketing strategy. That’s because about 93% of online experiences start with a user typing a query into a search bar. The simple reality is that a website that isn’t ranking well in the organic results might as well not exist when it comes to bringing in traffic from new customers. Keep in mind when you first start working with an SEO company that SEO is a long-game strategy. It may take up to a year to see changes if your SEO company is using a reputable strategy, but those are lasting gains that will continue to benefit you.
2. PPC
   In order to supplement your SEO efforts, or to help drive traffic to your website if you’re not doing well in the organic rankings, you’ll want to consider pay per click advertising, or PPC. Although ads across the Internet can be PPC (meaning you only pay for them when they’re clicked on, no matter how many times they’re displayed), the term most often refers to placing paid ads on search engine result pages. Keep in mind that while PPC can be a lifesaver when it comes to quickly gaining site traffic, 70% of the links users click on search engine results are organic. So PPC can’t be used to completely replace SEO — and it would be expensive to try.
3. Social
   You don’t need to have accounts on every social media platform out there, but you should be engaging your target market on the sites and apps they use the most. Social marketing efforts tend to dovetail nicely with SEO, as the content marketing efforts that largely comprise SEO these days create lots of fun articles and videos you can share with your followers on social media.
   

4. Email
   Email is one of the most underestimated digital marketing channels out there, and you don’t want to make the mistake of writing it off. For every dollar you spend on email marketing, you’ll get an average return of $44.25. Just be sure you’re not using spammy practices that will annoy your mailing list. And don’t forget to keep your email marketing mobile friendly; the amount of emails being opened on smartphones and tablets around the world has gone up by 80% in the last six months alone.

Do you have any recommendations on web marketing that works? Share your feedback in the comments.