1. digital MARKETINGA strategic overviewWith Calvin Jones

2. About mehttp://bit.ly/CJGooglePluswww.linkedin.com/in/CalvinJoneswww.twitter.com/WriterCJ Web content specialist, digital marketing consultant and author based in West Cork. Co Author of Understanding Digital Marketing and The Best Digital Marketing Campaigns in the Worldwww.digitalbusinesshub.com www.cjwriting.com 3. Some things well CoverWhat is Digital Marketing and why is it important?Digital marketing strategyYour Website: the hub of your digital world Search and the art of getting found Web analytics and online measurement E-mail marketingEngaging customers through Social Media Digital Marketing TrendsCase studies and Examples 4. digital MARKETINGWhat is it, and why should I care? 5. If you remember just one thing, remember this:THE PRIME DIRECTIVEDigital marketing is about PEOPLEnot TECHNOLOGY! Technology is just the bit in the middle that helps us communicate more effectively 6. What is Digital MarketingDigital marketing is the act of promoting a business, brand, individual or cause through a variety of digital media channels, principally the internet, but also through digitaldisplay or mobile messaging platforms 7. Why Digital Marketing?More than 2 billion people with internet accessUSA 78%, Europe 58% Ireland: 65%, UK: 82%, Scandinavia 90+%The internet is: Changing how people look for, research and buy productsand services. Changing the way people interact with businesses andbrands. Changing customers expectationsMake more efficient use of your marketing Useful link: www.internetworldstats.com 8. Do I need a digital marketing?The key questions:1. Are your customers / prospectsonline, or are they going to be?2. See question 1 Consumers are spending more time online,and increasingly expect the businesses they buy from to be there too! 9. Defining your digital marketing strategyKnow your businessIs your business ready for digital marketingRemove internal road-blocksKnow your competitionWhat are they doing well (emulate them)What are they doing badly (learn from them)What arent they doing at all (seize the opportunity) 10. Defining your digital marketing strategyKnow your customersWho are they, and what do they want from you?Are you servicing the same customer base online?How do they use digital technology?Know what youre trying to achieveIf you dont know where you want to go, theres a good chance youll never get there.Set clear, measurable, achievable goals. 11. Meet Consumer 2.0Same people its the medium thats changed, and its altering consumer behaviourImpatient information junkies: they want it all, andthey want it nowTheyre in control: play on their terms or youll lose them before you startTheyre fickle: if your value proposition doesnt stack up, theyll go elsewhere 12. digital MARKETINGCreating Your Website 13. Your Window to the Digital WorldYour website is your most valuable piece of digital real estateIt is the only place online where you are in controlThink of it as a conversion engine for the traffic you drive to itYour website turns visitors into leads / customers 14. Whats in a name? Choosing the right domainDomain names are cheap but the right one could prove pricelessThink memorable, descriptive... and relevantIf you target a local audience think of registering a country specific TLD (Top Level Domain)You can easily buy multiple domains and redirect them to your primary domain. Useful links: www.mydomain.com, www.letshost.ie, www.blacknight.com 15. Hosting: where your website livesHosting = space on a computer permanently connected to the internetShared Hosting, VPS, Dedicated Server, or Co- location? What about Cloud Hosting?Choosing the right hostLocation, reliability, reputation, supportWhats the buzz online, what are people saying about them?Ask for recommendationsUseful links: www.letshost.ie, www.blacknight.com 16. Planning your websiteWho is your website really for?Usability: make your visitors lives easier.Accessibility and Web Standards W3CWords matter the most pretty pictures still come secondSearch engines are your market research friends: look up your competition Useful links: www.usability.gov, www.useit.com, www.w3c.org 17. Content: the workhorse ofyour online businessUse keyword research to inform content decisions (base decisions on data not speculation)Arrange related content into clearly defined themesGrab attention, use compelling, engaging languageInverted pyramid most important elements first, drilldown to supporting detailStructure for scan-ability, use headings and bullets tobreak up text 18. Website DesignFocus on usability help visitors achieve their goalsIf youre not a designer, bring in a professionalForm follows function: dont let design impact usabilitySave some budget for your content: words matter more than looks on the web 19. Choosing a Web DesignerCheck the designers websiteCheck reference sites from their portfolioContact reference clients and ask about their experienceDo the sites they design perform well in search?Do their sites comply with W3C web standards? 20. digital MARKETINGSearch Engine Marketing 21. Search: The Holy Grailof online marketingSearch Engines are the best source of targeted traffic to your siteGet your details in front of people at the precise moment theyre looking for what you offerMore than 80% of web users rely on search engines to navigate the webIn March 2011 search engines fielded 16.9 billionrequests for information 22. Search: dealing with HUGEnumbersThe first Google index in 1998 already had 26 million pages, and by 2000 the Google index reached the one billion mark. Over the last eight years, weve seen a lot of big numbers about how much content is really out there. Recently, even our search engineers stopped inawe about just how big the web is these days -- whenour systems that process links on the web to find new content hit a milestone: 1 trillion (as in 1,000,000,000,000) unique URLs on the web at once! Official Google blog post, July 2008 23. How Search WorksSearch engines earn money from advertisingTo attract advertisers they need an audienceTo attract / retain audience they rely on RELEVANCE Improved Relevance = Better User Experience= More Users = More Advertisers = More Revenue Putting users first makes search engines richer! 24. Search nuts and boltsCrawler / Spider scours the web and stored data in a massive database called an indexUser types a search query search engine retrieves matches from the indexSearch engine ranks millions of results for relevance based on complex search algorithmOrganic results presented to the user, along with relevant paid advertising based on the same keywords Google Explains Search: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNHR6IQJGZs 25. Avoid Search Road BlocksDont make life difficult for search enginesFlash / Ajax: avoid all-flash / all ajax sites they aredifficult for spiders to crawlScript based navigation: can cause problems for spiders. Have a text based workaroundFrames: bad for search, and bad for usersImage based navigation: again, you need a textbased alternative if you use image based navigation Example of a Flash heavy website: www.leoburnett.com 26. Keywords unlock the power of search successBrainstorm seed keywordsWhat would your customer type in the search box? Come up with half-a-dozen terms.Find out what they are actually searching forUse keyword tools like Googles free adwords tool, Wordtracker or Keyword DiscoveryIts not all about volume: focus on keywords specific enough to drive targeted traffic 27. Long tail versus short tailKeywordsShort Tailshort generic phrases or single wordshigh volumes of trafficlots of competitionLong Taillonger descriptive phrases (3, 4 or more words)much lower search volumes individuallyless competition and more likely to convert 28. Help Search Engines to help youEffective search engine optimisation (SEO) makes it easier for search engines to find, index and rank your pagesREMEMBER: search engines rank pages, not sites each page gives you a unique opportunity to rankOptimise each page for your target keywords: 1-3 per page 29. On Page SEO: Meta TagsThe HTML tagAppears at the top of your browser windowDescriptive, keyword optimised phraseWill be the clickable link in search results pageYour first chance to grab peoples attentionThe Description HTML tagDescriptive overview of the page often used as the snippet of text in search results 30. On Page SEO: ContentYour content bodyWrite naturally and incorporate target keywords organicallyFocus on great content for your readersUse headings ( tags) and lists to structure content logicallyUse descriptive anchor text for internal linksWhenever possible have descriptive text alternatives for images and rich media content. 31. Links: votes for your siteIncoming links from reputable sites boost searchrankingsWhen another website links to yours, theyre saying this content is worth readingNot all links are created equal:The weighting of links depends on the perceived authority of the referring site.Links that dont comply with search guidelines will notcount. 32. Links: how to get themAsk for themOnline and offline networking, social networks, customers, suppliers, etc.Create compelling content and encourage people to shareLink bait: content designed specifically to attractlinkscontests, coupons, reports, infographics, widgets,plugins... anything that adds value 33. Social signals and SEOSocial buzz feeding into search algorithmsWhos talking about, retweeting, +1ing and sharing your content can affect rankingWhat your online social circle is sharing can impact personalised search resultsActivity on social media platforms is now an integral part of your SEO 34. Pay Per Click Search AdvertisingSearch ads appear beside and occasionally above organic resultsShort, keyword targeted text based adsTypically a clickable headline and two short lines of textAd placement based on combination of relevance, bid value, quality score and other factors.You only pay when your ad is clicked 35. Effective PPC AdsConcentrate on highly targeted, conversion focused keywords (you pay for every click)Benefit focused headline and ad copy: attract attention and encourage click-throughSend people to a dedicated conversion optimised landing pageMonitor campaigns closely, apply budget constraints, measure and refine constantly 36. Search Marketing Sum-upSearch Engines are a core elements of online marketingUse keywords unlock the power of searchOrganic SEO can drive free targeted traffic to your site, but takes time and sustained effortPPC Advertising can send instant traffic to your site, but you pay for each click, so conversion is crucial for ROI 37. digital MARKETINGWeb Analytics 38. Website Intelligence: AnalyticsWeb analytics provides valuable insight on your visitorsMake decisions based on actions by real people, rather than blind speculationTrack and measure results fine tune yourstrategy, do more of what works, stop doingwhat doesnt workTest different options to improve ROI 39. Analytics OptionsStart with Google Analytics enterprise class analytics for freeEasy set upComprehensive featuresIntuitive web based interfaceCommercial options include Coremetrics, WebTrends, Omniture etc.Google Web Analytics for more options 40. What can Analytics tell me?How people find your siteHow they navigate through itHow they become customers / convertIf they dont convert, where do you lose them?How well your content is performingTrack conversion stats via AdWords and otheradvertising channels... and much, much more Google Analytics support resources: http://www.google.com/analytics/support.html 41. digital MARKETINGSocial Media 42. Social Media People are talking...... are you ready to join the conversation? 43. What is Social MediaSocial media is the umbrella term for web based software and services that allow users to come together online and exchange, discuss,communicate and participate in any form of social interaction.- Me, Understanding Digital Marketing 44. What is Social MediaSocial media is nothing newOnline social interaction pre-dates the web by some 20 yearsAlways on broadband, mobile and web 2.0technologies make it easy to shareSocial media is naturally compellingWere social creatures: were hard-wired to interact with other peopleSocial media is nothing to be afraid of 45. Why you need to get involvedMarketing has evolvedBroadcasting a message no longer works, this is a conversation, not a lecturePeople are talking anyway better to be involved in the conversationOnline equivalent of word of mouthInstead of sharing with 5 friends down the pub,people are sharing with 500, 5,000, 50,000. Arethey saying good things about you? 46. Why you need to get involvedLearn more about your customersFind out what people like, dont like, want and needUse that knowledge to inform your marketing and deliver what theyre looking for.Build enduring, mutually beneficial relationshipsEngaging with customers regularly helps build trust, improves your reputation and builds online advocacy around your brand. 47. Types of social mediaSocial bookmarking: www.delicious.comSocial submissions: www.digg.comForums and groups: www.boards.ieBlogs: www.icecreamireland.comMedia sharing: www.youtube.comSocial Networks: www.facebook.comMicroblogging: www.twitter.com 48. The Social Media Rules of EngagementListen before you leapDraw on what you already knowBe open, honest and engagingBe relevant, interesting, entertainingAdd value, dont just push your messageRespect rules written or otherwiseRespect people 49. Adding A Social Elementto your own siteFeeds from your social media accountsBlogsSupport ForumsLive Online SupportReviews and ratings (www.amazon.co.uk)Social applications (www.ideastorm.com)... use your imagination, and engage! 50. digital MARKETING Email Marketing 51. E-Mail MarketingE-mail is perhaps the most universally accepted digital mediumHow many people you know actively use social media every day? How about email?Engage regularly with existing customers, build relationships with new customers, reach out to prospectsCustomers will still open your email, if you routinely add value 52. Email Marketing ToolsDONT try to manage your email marketing in Microsoft Outlook!Dedicated email marketing software isAffordableEasy to useConforms with relevant anti-spam legislationWill grow with your online businessMakes subscription and list management a breeze 53. Email Marketing ToolsEnterprise email marketing with CRM IntegrationDesktop based email softwareWeb based Software as a ServiceBenchmark Email, Aweber, Newsweaver ... and many moreIdeal for small to medium businessesAffordable, great feature set, scaleable 54. Benchmark Email: flexible, affordable, full-featured email marketing ideal for SMEs 55. Building your e-mail listOpt in is crucial you need peoples permission to contact themExplicit opt in is best people actively sign up to your newsletter or mailing listSoft opt-in its generally fine to add email addresses collected when people completes a transaction on your website to your listALWAYS make sure its easy for people to unsubscribe if they decide its not for them 56. Building your email listPut a sign up form prominently on your websiteMake it easy for your subscribers to share your email offerings via email and social mediaEncourage sign in on a dedicated landing page on your siteAsk for an email address in exchange for value added content (a downloadable whitepaper, free webinar, etc.) 57. Creating compelling emailDesign your HTML email template as you would a web pageMake it visually compelling, and complimentary to your site design Continuity enhances the user experience and builds trustEnsure your message degrades gracefully Email client software often blocks images by default, andsome people choose not to view email in HTML format. 58. Writing email contentYour subject line is importantIt is the only content subscribers see BEFORE deciding if theyll open your messageAbove the fold present your most important content up frontWrite as you would for the web keep your copy clear, engaging and shortInclude a compelling call to action: tell peoplewhat you want them to do! 59. digital MARKETINGWhere next? 60. Future trendsMobile... the internet in our pocketsBy 2014 mobile devices will overtake PCs globally for internet accessIncreasing market share for smartphones and tabletsMove away from proprietary locked down apps to cross-platform, device independent standards based applications (HTML5) 61. Future trendsLocation based services / marketingUsing mobile location data to make advertising more usefulTargeted offers based on where you are at any given timeMore innovative location based applications and marketing as devices become more capable and marketers get more creative 62. Future trendsPersonalisation and behavioural targetingTargeting ads to individuals based on past preferences and other behavioural cuesCombine with location data to deliver extremely targeted advertising tailored to the individualAds become useful because they give you relevant information about things your interested inPrivacy is the main stumbling block 63. Future trendsIntegrated marketingStop thinking in terms of traditional and digital --its just marketingChoosing the most effective combination of complimentary channels spanning multiple mediaThe demise of campaign-based marketingWell see less isolated campaign based marketing, brands moving towards a model of iterative engagement and conversation 64. Over to you.... @WriterCJ on Twitterwww.linkedin.com/in/CalvinJones calvin@cjwriting.com