You’ve got a website, LinkedIn, a Facebook Page, Google Business, and maybe Instagram or some other type of social media set up for your business. That’s a lot of places to keep track of. What’s the best way to make it all work together?
The first thing to remember – your website is the only place you control 100 percent. Social media is controlled by private companies and algorithms that serve them, not you. People only see what those platforms want them to see. It makes sense that your website should be the base of your operations.
Facebook defines organic reach as “how many people you can reach for free on Facebook by posting to your Page”. Google calls it organic search results. Other platforms have similar names for the free visibility they offer.
Unfortunately, organic reach declines every year. As more content floods the internet and algorithms evolve, free visibility becomes harder to achieve. Even if someone has liked your Facebook Page or searched for something you offer, they might not find you.
So, what’s the most effective way to communicate with current and potential clients/customers?
Step 1 – Set up a Basic Content Strategy
Before spending money on social media ads, start with a content strategy.
A content strategy is a defined plan for how you will communicate with your customers. The first step is simple and free:
- Add content or products to website.
- Using specific page URLs from the website, post links on social media to drive traffic back to the website.
This can help generate traffic, which search engines use as a ranking signal. Success depends on your social media audience size, the quality of your content and your website’s SEO.
Step 2 – Add a Blog
Search engines reward fresh, regular content. Adding a blog helps keep your site active and relevant.
Your content strategy now looks like this:
- Add content or products to website.
- Create a blog post, announcing the new content.
- Using specific page URLs from the blog or website, post links on social media to drive traffic back to the website.
A blog helps boost search engine engagement and gives you more content to share.
Step 3 – Add a Newsletter/Email Marketing
If traffic is still low, the issue may be reach. You need followers and you need to work around algorithms. That takes time.
Many businesses already have a list of customer email addresses. Email Direct Marketing (EDM) is still one of the most effective ways to communicate, because you’re speaking directly to people who already care.
You can send emails manually, but EDM software adds features that make your efforts measurable. You can track who received, opened and clicked your emails, which helps refine future campaigns.
With EDM, your strategy now includes:
- Add content or products to website.
- Create a blog post, announcing the new content.
- Send a regular newsletter using the same content to your email list.
- Using specific page URLs from the blog or website, post links on social media to drive traffic back to the website.
This gives you multiple ways to reach your audience. Congratulations – you’re now doing content marketing.
Step 4 – Paid Advertising
You can also add paid advertising, such as Google Ads or Facebook Ads.
The good news is, if you already have a content strategy, it’s easy to layer advertising on top. Even if you stop advertising later, your other channels are still working for you.
Now your content strategy looks like this:
- Add content or products to website.
- Create a blog post, announcing the new content.
- Send a regular newsletter using the same content to your email list.
- Using specific page URLs from the blog or website, post links on social media to drive traffic back to the website.
- Create targetted ads to boost specific links or reach new audiences.
There’s plenty more you can do, and over time you’ll learn what works best for your business. But this is a solid place to start.
Need help building a content strategy or improving your digital presence? Get in touch.
