FIVE STEPS TO MARKETING SUCCESS

Transcription

1 MIGHTYBYTES march 2011

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Content Engaging content that adds value is the only content Adapt for Mobile Optimize your campaign for different mobile platforms Design Smart, catchy, and simple design leads to conversions Social Sharing The right strategy could pull in exceptional exposure Analytics Tracking your compaigns will guide future efforts

3 TURBO-CHARGE YOUR CAMPAIGNS Now, you re probably thinking, marketing? Why, that s so We beg to differ, dear friend. marketing is still going strong, and can be a powerful asset in your marketing toolbox, especially when it s integrated with other marketing techniques such as social or mobile.. This ebook explains five ways to develop a successful campaign, whether for a large corporate company or your grandma s secret recipe muffin business. There are about a gajillion tools available for creating content and managing campaigns, but there are just as many clients that need to interpret and display your campaigns. This poses a significant number of implementation challenges when optimizing graphics, coding HTML, embedding video, and so on. Regardless of the challenges, however, when creating content, the same strategic approach you use for your blog, website, and social media endeavors applies: figure out what your audience wants and give it to them. Add value in every story. Sounds simple, right? Here are five ways to make that simple plan work for you. 3

4 CONTENT IS CRITICAL How many times have you opened up a marketing-based to find that its content scrolls beyond the bottom of your screen... and scrolls, and scrolls and scrolls? In this age of microblogging and two-second sound bites, few have the time, or attention span, to read more than a few sentences. In baseball, the first four batters are typically the best hitters. This strategy applies to -marketing campaigns as well. The subject line the first thing that people see could be the most important element of your , followed by the header graphic, title copy, and so on. Kevin Potts, author of Web Design and Marketing Solutions, states that an effective subject line for the newsletter can dramatically increase the open rate among recipients, just as a poorly phrased one can ensure prompt attention of the Delete key. A subject line that is direct, factual, and to the point will get more attention than one that is gimmicky or tries too hard. For example: Good: Organize your social media accounts with FriendFeed Bad: Hurry! Viagra! Click now! This offer ends soon! Don t be left out! The first subject line provides a tangible potential benefit to users. In addition to being unnecessarily histrionic, the second has too many exclamation points and is likely destined for the recycle bin. Stick to something that gets the point across in a few words as possible, represents the integrity of your organization, and, most important, outlines specific benefits to the person on the receiving end. 4

5 In the body of the , it is important to whittle your information down to a few key points. Here are some tips for writing good content: Write clear, concise topic sentences that showcase benefits to readers Follow up with short, smart paragraphs, 2-3 sentences tops Include header and sub-header copy where relevant Create small text blocks that are easy to digest Build bulleted lists to showcase features Provide links where readers can get more information It is also important to also keep in mind the CAN-SPAM Act, which is a law that sets the rules for commercial , establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have you stop ing them, and spells out tough penalties for violations. 5

6 ADAPT FOR MOBILE According to Strategy Analytics, global smartphone shipments reached 293 million units during full-year 2010, almost doubling from 151 million in 2008 and 175 million in 2009, highlighting the rapid growth of this high-value segment. Emma, a Nashville-based -marketing company, has a few ideas to get you started for your mobile campaign: Take a survey from your audience and find out how many of your audience members are using mobile devices. Is it three percent? Six percent? These results will determine if you need to actually focus on developing the campaigns for mobile devices. If it s an extremely low percentage, perhaps it s not worth focusing on mobile campaigns. Include mobile phones in your test . Have someone on staff view every on a mobile phone before send-off. Show the plain text version some love. Since most mobile phones will display the plaintext version of your , you ll want to spend some time with HTML s less sexy sibling before you consider the campaign officially ready for send-off. Get the point faster. With less physical space on a screen and less time to look at the while on the go, you must get straight to the point. 6

7 SMART DESIGN IS CRUCIAL One of the most important aspects of design in an -marketing campaign is making sure that it matches the feel of your brand. In other words, having the same colors, font, and regularly inserting your logo. This sounds simple, but you d be surprised at how many companies don t design campaigns that are in line with their brand standards. Consistent, brand-friendly design provides instant connection and recognition for readers. If a user can identify with a familiar brand or campaign, their experience is more personal and they re more likely to engage with the campaign s content. If not, you lost them on first glance. As a company, it s a good idea to establish a set of design guidelines specific fonts, color palettes, etc. that can be used consistently. Embrace reading gravity. Our eyes are trained to read from the left-toright, top-to-bottom. Incorporate the most important visual elements in the top-left corner and add clear calls-to-action in the bottom-right corner. 7

8 These calls-to-action can make stand out by: Providing an abundance of white space around it to draw attention. Using an alternative color if the rest of the site has a fairly limited palette. Making it big - the bigger your call to action, the more chance it will noticed. Just don t make it ridiculously monstrous or that will make it seem you re trying too hard. For fonts and typography, don t waste your readers time by making them figure out the visual hierarchy of your campaign on their own. Give them solid and simple typographical structures that support easy scanning to identify headlines, links, and so on. And of course... Bulleted lists Are easy On the eyes It is also important to keep it spicy. Add some flare, some fizz, and occasional image or animation. But remember, jaggy images and animations that take until tomorrow to load will undermine your integrity fast. 8

9 SOCIAL SHARING BOOSTS PERFORMANCE Once you have a strong marketing campaign with solid content that adds value and good brand-friendly design, the next step is to share it with the world. What social sharing does for your marketing campaign can be equivalent to what Mentos does for Diet Coke. For example: our blog post on Twitter tips performed dismally when we sent it out via our newsletter. However, this same piece performed very well when shared to social networks. When Business Insider picked it up, it received over 10,000 views in under 24 hours. According to an article on The Customer Collective, a sales and marketing executives forum site, including social sharing options in s increased click through rates by an average of 7.2% to 8.7% and at least three social sharing options boosted the rate to 11.2%. Facebook claims that the average user has 130 friends, so every 1,000 subscribers represents a potential audience of 130,000 (exponentially, it s actually way more) once social sharing options are thrown into the mix. 9

10 ANALYTICS INFORM YOUR NEXT MOVES Now that your -marketing campaign has been distributed, tracking its performance offers valuable data for creating more targeted and valuable future campaigns. All marketing systems are built on the concept of tracking click-through data, but many don t offer built-in analytics software integration, so there ends up being a disconnect between site performance and campaign engagement. Google Analytics does offer several features that will help you maintain the connection between and website. It provides complex information on site visits, pageviews, unique views, bounce rate, geographical sources, etc. 10

11 Google recommends using campaign tags applied to links. Once clicked, information is passed to Google Analytics and can be interpreted accordingly. Several marketing solutions automatically apply Google Analytics campaign tags to the links within your s: Campaign Monitor MailChimp VerticalResponse AWeber Utilizing some sort of performance tracking program will also allow you to see what kind of techniques work and what don t for sharing your campaign via different channels and outlets. 11

12 IN CONCLUSION Now that you have some more tips in your arsenal, go out and make that sexy marketing campaign. But remember, this is an iterative process: what works for one company might not work for the next, so experiment where you can to see what works. Test ideas, try new techniques, and keep your strategic approach fresh as possible. 12