4 Important Lessons I’ve Learnt Working In Digital Marketing
Having worked in digital media in one form or another — from blogger to producer to digital marketer — for about five years now, I thought I’d share what little wisdom I’ve been able to gather during my time in the industry.
Lots of this will seem obvious to veterans, but you’d be surprised how hard it comes to anyone who’s only just dipping their toe into the industry. If you’re a mere grunt in the digital space, the most important lesson I can impart is to learn everything you can.
You’re lucky to be in an industry where no skill is totally irrelevant, whether you’re really good at Excel, competent at coding, have a flare for UX, are a confident public speaker, write eloquently, or have a strong business acumen. Truthfully, I would recommend availing yourself of anything and everything you can. And maybe follow the advice I’ve laid out here.
1. The customer’s experience is always right.
The old retail adage invoked by countless indignant customers the world over has been updated for the 21st Century. The customer is still right, but it’s not enough to simply ensure the customer gets what they want. Not when you have dozens of competitors out there offering a more convenient and pleasant way to get it.
You may have heard that in 2017, people aren’t interested in products, but experiences. You may have taken this to mean that millennials are more interested in travelling than they are in buying consumer items, but it goes deeper and applies to everyone.
People don’t pay for products but to have their problems solved–you know this. But these days, it’s not enough to simply solve the problem, you have to make sure the customer is having a good time solving their problem.
The evidence is everywhere. Just look at any big Silicon Valley success story–your Googles, Ubers, and AirBnBs. What do they all have in common? They are dedicated to offering their users the best experience possible and they invest in continually improving that experience.
2. If you’re not Attracting, Converting or Transforming, you’re wasting the client’s budget.
Don’t fall into the trap of seeing ad spend or a client’s maintenance fee as just numbers on a screen. That’s somebody’s money you’re handling and it’s important you deliver a satisfactory Return On their Investment. That’s money the client could’ve spent on something else, but they’re giving it to you because they believe it will improve their business.
The easiest way to ensure an effective use of budget is to make sure you’re always acting purposefully, even if you’re in an experimental or research stage. The best way to do this, I’ve found, is by following Shama Hyder’s marketing cycle: Attract –> Convert –> Transform.
Ask yourself: what am I doing with this particular action? How will this improve the results of the campaign and my client’s business? Am I attracting the target audience? How? Am I converting an attracted prospect? If not, why? How can I ensure they will transform into a repeat customer, someone who promotes the client on their own because they’ve had such a positive experience?
Marketing and business in general run on these kinds of questions. Always ask yourself relevant questions and give honest answers. The most important question, I’ve found, is ‘What is the problem and how can I solve it?’ This one typically results in a successful campaign every time.
3. Relevance is king.
You’ve probably heard the maxim that “content is king”. You may have also heard that content is not, in fact, the king, but rather “the kingdom”. That’s all well and good, but how do you get people to pay attention to the king or visit the kingdom? Relevance.
Say I just created the most mind-blowingly value-packed, 10x, downloadable asset about pregnancy. Now when I say this thing is 10x, it’s the stuff content marketers and their clients dream of. It’s filled with unique content, including case studies, original research, and expert tips, and all we’re requiring from users who want to get their hands on it is their email address.
And then I go and target it to 18-to-25-year-old males who are single, whose hobbies are playing FIFA, and who are fans of The Fast & the Furious. Now shake your hypothetical head as I stare blankly into Ads Manager and wonder why no one is converting.
It’s an extreme example, but the lesson should be clear: without relevance, your magisterial metaphors aren’t helping anyone, which leads me to my next point…
4. A great campaign is one that unites the client’s objectives with the audience’s interests.
Great campaigns live in that sweet spot between what your audience wants to see and what you want your audience to see. The principle is hardly new–companies have always attempted to link their brand to the things they know their target demographic enjoy. Just look at how many sports events Red Bull sponsors.
But in the age of content marketing, giving the audience what they want to see with an effective touch of what you want them to see so they actually end up converting is an increasingly tough balance to strike.
Audiences are becoming more and more sensitive to bad, spammy content and they can sniff a clickbait headline a mile away. And even if you do get them to click through, what then? Just because someone was willing to spend their bandwidth on your content doesn’t mean they’ll spend their money on your product.
So how do you get over this click-buy hump? By demonstrating genuine value.
Exercise and bodybuilding blog T-Nation has this nailed. Their content is so rich in unique information and their writers are so good at breaking down complex ideas into a digestible vernacular that by the time you’ve come to the end of a single post, you’re ready to buy whatever it is they want to sell you. As luck would have it, they sell all the supplements they recommend in their web store.
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