Online Marketing – 3 ways to stand out from the crowd.

The Internet is a crowded space so how are you going to stand out from the throng with your online marketing?

If you’re a business owner, looking for ways to carve out your niche is probably not a new thing for you… You’ve likely been up against your local competitors for years… Then along came blogging, email marketing and social media, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that everything just got a whole lot more difficult. But if you embrace online marketing and follow these three simple tips you’ll find your own way to stand out from the crowd.

1. Own your own space – Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and every other social channel are great ways to share your content and expertise, but it’s important to remember that you don’t own these channels. The number one way to cement your own online identity is to have a slick website that represents your uniqueness. I’m often astounded that there are still business owners that rely on third-parties for their online presence. Having your own website that is eye catching and most importantly kept up-to-date is vital if you want to be successful with your online marketing. If your website is over two years old it probably needs a review, at KateCoote. we offer this as a complimentary service.
2. Keep Mr G happy… By keeping your customers informed – Everybody wants the coveted number 1 spot on Google; and there’s no quick fix. A few years ago, search engine optimisation was widely considered a specialist area employing secret tactics and hiding behind smoke and mirrors. Since then search engine optimisation has evolved, and Google is becoming more and more accountable every day for supplying its end user, with what they want… Valuable information. At Kate Coote. we don’t profess to be search engine optimisation experts, but we are online marketing aficionados. We believe your main focus for any inbound marketing campaign should be great content. Content can be a blog post, an eBook, a video, an email newsletter, a social media status update, or pretty much anything that’s going to be seen by your audience, liked by your audience and shared by your audience. This focus on valuable content is a tactic we have employed for ourselves and many clients who can certainly attest to its success. Here’s what one happy client said…
   

   “The LinkedIn posts and blogs Kate has written for me are translating to real dollars, introducing me to a completely new market. I have just finished a half day training session with a group who had (unbeknownst to me) been following me on LinkedIn! They said “We’ve been sharing your blog posts everywhere!” Plus one of their colleagues contacted me separately for a 2 day in house training proposal. These clients are new to me. They are influential in what they do. Without Kate they would never have found me!” – Rosemary Killip, Director and Lead Learning and Development Consultant for Building Networks NZ Ltd.

3. Turn contestants into customers – Everybody loves a great competition, and that’s no different in the online marketing space. But not all competitions are created equal. The prize needs to be relevant to your audience and you need to get something in return. Facebook is a great platform for promotions, but all too often I see businesses running contests from their wall, “Comment on this photo of our sweet new product, and be in to win a sweet product“, this method offers little hope of receiving much in return except a flurry of activity that may boost the reach of that particular post. By contrast, using third-party software allows you to request more information from the people who enter your Facebook competitions, like the all important email address that will allow you to market to entrants via other platforms. At KateCoote. we regularly set up and administer promotions for our clients, boosting their database and increasing their online marketing reach.