Digital marketing tactics are constantly evolving to keep up with the constantly changing habits of Internet users. As the way people use the Internet changes, smart digital marketers change too. As digital marketing tactics evolve, old tactics that once yielded results need to be left in the past in favor of new practices. Here are some of the older trends that you should leave behind in the New Year!
Automated Responses
It’s important to engage with your followers on social media. Many businesses opt for automated responses to ensure that every commenter gets a response and feels heard. However, it’s very easy to tell that these responses are automated. When a customer receives an automated response, often times they feel passed over and as if their comments don’t matter. Instead of automated responses, personally respond to as many comments as possible and accept that some comments might go unanswered. Making a constant effort to personally reach out to your customers will leave more of an impact than generated automatic responses to every commenter will.
Organic-Only Social
Organic social isn’t completely dead, but it doesn’t have the reach that it once did. Facebook is crowded with sponsored content, causing organic content to have a mere 5-10% reach. Paid social content is essential to promoting your brand and gaining new followers. However, the most successful social media strategy in 2018 will combine organic and paid. Paid content will reach potential customers and organic content will keep your followers interested and entertained. In the coming year, you should use these strategies together to maximize your reach and engagement.
Focusing on “Going Viral”
Many companies focus on crafting the perfect post that will “go viral,” assuming that this method is the fastest way to gain a large following. However, research has shown that after the initial spike in traffic, overall traffic does not increase after a viral post. Instead, you should focus on creating posts that will receive steady shares and engagement. People are more likely to follow a strong brand that pops up on their news feeds more than once than a company that has one viral post.
Short-Form Blogging
For a long time, many businesses focused on short blog posts stuffed with keywords in hopes of improving SEO. However, blogs have become much more advanced in recent years. Blogs are much more detailed than they used to be, with the overall length of the average blog increasing significantly. Blog posts should focus on educating consumers and establishing brand authority rather than keyword stuffing. Detailed, thoughtful blogs will actually improve your SEO more than keyword-stuffed blogs while establishing your brand as an expert in your field.
Impersonal Emails
Most companies understand the importance of reaching potential customers via email. However, bombarding customers with impersonal mass emails on a regular basis will not help your brand. Instead, you should send personalized emails that are relevant to the recipients. With today’s advanced technology, it’s easy to separate your email list based on different attributes such as age, gender, location, etc. Sending only emails that are relevant to your customers will increase their open rates and help promote your brand.
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