Digital marketing in 2021: How to prepare your company for the changes?

The world has changed, and your company must be prepared for what’s coming. Why? To stay relevant in the market. All the leading companies are riding the digital marketing trends in 2021 and achieving greater growth, all thanks to technology and the most relevant digital channels.

We understand, change is difficult. However, it is crucial to manage change effectively within a company of any size. What can you do to achieve this?

Understand where you stand

Knowing the current situation of your company is more important than you might think. Have you used digital marketing strategies in the past? Did they work? Were you surprised by the results? Asking yourself the right questions is a good start to knowing where you are at this moment.

Seek professional help

At first, you may feel lost. That’s normal. The world of digital marketing is vast, from SEO, SEM, Content Marketing, Inbound Marketing, Emailing, Copywriting, Video Marketing, among others. There is so much information that can overwhelm you and lead you nowhere. Hiring a marketing consultant can be a good start, a professional or a company that helps you chart a course from start to finish of everything you need to begin positioning your brand.

Build a team or delegate

To start big, you can hire several profiles related to the digital marketing sector, or you can also hire a digital agency that helps you with everything you need. Which one suits you best? It depends. That’s why it’s important to know where you stand. Hiring a multidisciplinary team has its advantages, but it can also be a long and costly process.

A digital marketing agency with years of experience can provide you with a complete team without the need to hire all those profiles on your own. It’s a great option you should consider when you’re ready to grow.

So what now? How can you start right now without having to do everything we mentioned earlier? A digital marketing plan is a good start. Doing so will help you complement what was mentioned in the first point above and also get to know a bit more about the context of this fascinating world. Besides, no one knows your business better than you. How to start with your digital marketing plan? Here’s everything you need to know:

Who is your buyer persona?

Wait a moment, first we’ll explain what a “buyer persona” is. It’s a semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer. You are the person who knows the most about those interested in your products and services; you can be the one responsible for giving them a name and defining what they like.

Is it really that important to do this? It’s essential for achieving the best results. The right way to delve deeper into their interests is through interviews, research, surveys, social listening, etc. But don’t worry, to start you can research the following:

Geographic location: Are your customers local, regional, or from anywhere in the world? Knowing this is basic for creating your buyer persona. If your business is local, you can segment by cities or regions. Digital businesses are different because customers can come from anywhere in the world.
Average age: There are products and services for people over 45 years old, while others are created for young people aged 20 to 30. Identifying the average age in your sector will help you focus your message, design, and marketing strategy more effectively.
What are their interests?: You should know your customer as well as you know a friend. Understand their likes, preferences, hobbies, work, among others. What will you achieve? Giving them exactly what they need.

Without objectives and strategy, everything can fail

Now that you know your ideal customer, it’s time to define the second most relevant thing. What is your goal on social media or other digital channels? Increase sales? Gain more followers? Setting measurable and clear objectives is key to completing this step.

For example: Increase website visits by 50%, and thus sell 10% more within 30 days. It’s an example of a clear and measurable objective.

Which channels should your brand be on?

For this step, it’s important that you have created your brand’s buyer persona. Why? This way, you’ll know which channels your potential customers are on. Remember this: You shouldn’t open a profile on every existing social media platform. Your efforts will be in vain because you won’t reach your potential customer.

Owned, earned, and paid media. What are they and why do they matter?

Owned media refers to everything that is yours. A website, social fan pages, blog articles, brand branding, content marketing. Everything that your company has control over.

Let’s talk about earned media. This includes recommendations left by your customers on social media or your website, mentions of your brand in third-party articles, among others.

Now for the last but not least important: Paid media. As the name suggests, this refers to the channels where you pay to promote your products and/or services.

Television channels, billboard advertising, Facebook & Instagram Ads, Google Ads, Twitter Ads.

Take everything into action with digital marketing in 2021

You are one step away from having everything in order. By this point, you should have this ready:

Buyer persona profile
Specific objectives
Digital channels
Owned, earned, and paid media.

What’s next? Do something with all the information. A good step is to start creating valuable content to achieve all your business objectives. Remember that content is the beginning of everything. But don’t worry, now that you have the first steps ready, starting to create is easier and more manageable. Success will depend on the consistency of your efforts. You know this better than anyone.

A winning digital strategy is the combination of different efforts, a lot of strategy, and constant changes. Would you like to have a partner to reach your goals faster? Contact us, at MINTEC we are an agency focused on your results.