ONLINE MARKETING FUNDAMENTALS How to Get More Customers and Supporters Online By Shane Rasnak www.shanerasnak.com
What We ll Be Covering Why most organizations get terrible results with online marketing What you can do to get better results The most effective channels, technologies, and tools used by successful startups and businesses today Where you should be focusing your attention to level up your organization s online marketing
And You Should Care Because You can stop wasting time, energy, and money on marketing that doesn t drive results Avoid feeling confused or overwhelmed by all the options for marketing your business/organization Get better results: more customers, more revenue, and more impact
Who are you?
Hi, I m Shane Rasnak. Founding member and former Director of Marketing at ReWork (www.rework.jobs) Digital marketing consultant for impact-driven companies (www.shanerasnak.com) Writer for Unreasonable.is on online marketing and customer acquisition Expert in Residence for Digital Marketing at General Assembly
Who s in the room?
Set an intention: What s the one thing you want to get out of this workshop?
Why Most Organizations Fail at Online Marketing
Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted The trouble is I don t know which half.
1. Vague Intentions Beware when people say things like We re promoting thought leadership. We re raising brand awareness. We need to get our name out there. (Especially if you re the one saying it.)
2. Not Measuring Results What outcomes do you want? What does success look like, in measurable terms? How will you know that it s working? How will you know that it s not working, and that you need to do something different?
3. Spreading Resources Too Thin
Bruce Lee I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.
4. Reinventing the Wheel
5. A.D.D.
Principles of an Effective Online Marketer 1. Set clear objectives and choose your strategy, channel, tool, etc., accordingly 2. Focus on a handful of tools and strategies 3. Follow best practices in everything you do 4. Measure your results. Measure what matters. 5. Adopt a Kaizen Mindset: Test, Measure, Tweak, Study, Repeat
And most importantly never lose sight of the bigger picture. The goal of marketing is to get Customers. Period.
How People Think Online Marketing Works Likes & Followers
How Online Marketing Actually Works Step 1. You create a website. Step 2. You get people to come to that website. Step 3. Your website educates visitors and (hopefully) convinces them you re the right person/company to solve their problem. Step 4. They contact you, come into your store, or buy from you online. Step 5. You give them what they need to solve their problem and they give you money in exchange (i.e. Profit!).
The Magic Online Marketing Formula
Traffic x Conversion = Customers
The Basic Functions of Online Marketing 1. Drive Traffic (Visitors) 2. Convert Traffic Into Leads and Customers
Other Benefits of Online Marketing 1. Improve Customer Retention 2. Increase Frequency of Purchase 3. Increase Average Size of Sale 4. Decrease Time/Costs for Lead Generation and Sales 5. Boost Credibility and Reputation 6. Drive Referrals 7. Generate Customer Insights
To Start, Focus on This 1. Drive Traffic 2. Convert Traffic Into Leads and Customers
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TRAFFIC Strategies, Tools, and Best Practices
Common Traffic Sources Organic Search (SEO) Digital advertising Content marketing Social media PR/Media
Traffic Comes In Many Forms Free vs. Expensive Low Volume vs. High Volume Short Term vs. Long Term Limited vs. Sustainable Low Quality vs. High Quality Easy vs. Difficult Asset vs. Commodity
Direct Search (SEO) Advantages: Disadvantages: Volume Potential: High Timeframe: Long-term Long Term Value: High Cost: Expensive/Timeintensive Difficulty: Technical/High Risk: High
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) You Should Use It If You have a product or service that people actively seek out by searching online, and keywords can be used to effectively target potential customers. Improving your rankings on Google for a set of keywords would bring a significant number of qualified visitors to your website. You see the long-term value in consistently growing the number of people who don t know your brand but discover you online by searching. Bonus: you ve tested and validated a specific set of keywords using Google ads
Digital Advertising Banner/Display Ads Search Advertising (ex. Google AdWords) Facebook Ads Yelp Email advertising
Digital Advertising Advantages: Volume Potential: High Control: Very High Time-frame: Short term Disadvantages: Cost: High Difficulty: Technical/High Risk: High
Digital Advertising You Should Use It If You want to test a particular audience, ad, value proposition, landing page, etc., before investing in a large ad campaign. You are willing to invest in a monthly budget for driving traffic to your website. Your ideal customers can be targeted by keywords (Google ads), demographics and preferences (Facebook ads), website, or other factors. You have access to a numbers-oriented marketer who a.) has experience in digital ads, and b.) can consistently monitor campaigns to optimize the performance of ads over time.
Content Marketing Blogging Ebooks Guest Articles Webinars Slideshare E-courses Podcasts Videos Interviews
Content Marketing Advantages: Disadvantages: Cost: Free (monetarily) Upfront Investment: High Long Term Value: High Risk: Low Secondary benefits: High Volume Potential: Limited (in the short term) Difficulty: Medium (requires expertise and skill in content creation) Control: Low
Content Marketing You Should Use It If Your product or service requires some level of education for your customers to see the full value in it, or for a relationship to be developed for them to trust your solution. Your product or service can be tied to a topic that people want to learn more about. You don t have a budget for paid ads or you want to stay in touch after the first impression and stay on top of your prospects minds.
Social Media Advantages: Cost: Free (monetarily) Disadvantages: Upfront investment: High Difficulty: Low Risk: Low Asset Value: High (if used right) Volume Potential: Limited (in the short term) Control: Low Ability to Monetize: Limited/Difficult Potential for Distraction: Extreme
Social Media You Should Use It If Your ideal customers are active on social media. You have a strategy for converting your followers to customers by making offers, running ads, and/or driving clicks to your website. Your business is brand- or community-driven.
PR/Media Advantages: Cost: Free (monetarily, unless using an agency) Volume Potential: High Risk: Low Disadvantages: Barrier to Entry: High Difficulty: High Control: Low Asset Value: High Secondary benefits: High
PR/Media You Should Use It If Your business has a great story to tell that is relevant to the types of articles that websites with relevant audiences like to publish. You are well-connected and can get into relevant media with high, qualified traffic. Social proof is a key element of your marketing strategy.
Principles of an Effective Online Marketer 1. Set clear objectives and choose your strategy, channel, tool, etc., accordingly 2. Focus on a handful of tools and strategies 3. Follow best practices in everything you do 4. Measure your results. Measure what matters. 5. Adopt a Kaizen Mindset: Test, Measure, Tweak, Study, Repeat
Bruce Lee
Suggested Readings
CONVERSION Strategies, Tools, and Best Practices
Traffic x Conversion = Customers
Your Website As a Salesman
Basic Tools of Conversion 1. Words ( Copy ) 2. Navigation & User Experience 3. Calls to Action & Opt-ins 4. Email Marketing 5. Direct Sales
Your Website As a Funnel
Advanced Tools of Conversion 1. Analytics 2. Testing & Optimization 3. Marketing Automation
I chartered my course by figures nothing but figures. - John D. Rockfeller
Know Your Numbers Conversion Rates The % of visitors who take the next step of your sales process (ex. from Home page to Product page, from order page to check out, etc.) Cost Per Website Visitor - How much it costs you to get somebody on your website from a given channel Cost Per Email or Phone Inquiry - How much it costs you to get somebody to come to your website and contact you by email or phone to take the next step Cost To Acquire A Customer - How much it costs you to get a paying customer, for each channel and across the board Return On Investment - The profit you make when you subtract the cost to acquire a customer from the average revenue per customer
Suggested Readings Beginners Advanced
Prioritizing Your Marketing Efforts
Principle 1: Leverage The right levers in your business will produce wildly disproportionate returns.
Levers of Profit Let s say you have 5,000 visitors per month 2% convert into buyers $50 profit per customer $5,000 profit per month
How could we double this business?
We could Double visitors to 10,000 visitors per month, or Double conversion to 4%, or Double profit per buyer to $100 $10,000 profit per month
Leverage in Small Numbers Conversion > Economics > Traffic
Not this. Bring visitors to this
Principle 1I: Test Small, Then Scale
Conversion x Traffic Economics
Automated Emails Conversion A/B Testing Analytics x Traffic Economics SEO Google Ads Premium Offers New Products Facebook Ads
Sales Reps Automated Emails A/B Testing UX CRM Conversion Analytics Branding SEO Traffic Referrals Google Ads Word of Mouth Facebook Ads PR x Economics Memberships Premium Offers New Products Cost Efficiencies Upsells Repeat Sales
Time?
Stages of Growth
Level 1 Focus on Understanding your customers and interacting with them directly Finding product-market fit Establishing clear value propositions and differentiators from your competition Making it as easy as possible for people to find you online and contact you Keep It Simple: develop a clear, concise explanation of who you serve, what problem you solve, and what the benefits are and put that on your website
Level 1 EMPATHY > SOPHISTICATION Validate that your product fulfills a real need through personal interactions before obsessing about your website, growing an audience, or advanced online marketing.
Level 2 Focus on Creating a simple website with strong copy and conversion best practices Establishing a basic online presence with consistent branding/ messaging that directs visitors to the website Setting up basic analytics to monitor traffic sources, conversion metrics, campaign results Developing 1-3 consistent ways of driving traffic to your site
Level 2 FOCUS, FUNDAMENTALS, CONSISTENCY Build a strong foundation for your online marketing with a solid website, online presence, and analytics.
Level 3 Focus on Developing multiple streams of traffic (paid ads, SEO, content, social media) Ongoing testing and optimization to improve website conversion Reinvesting profits into top-performing marketing channels and marketing automation Becoming data-driven in everything you do Recruiting an experienced direct-response marketer
Level 3 DATA, SYSTEMS, TECHNOLOGY Build your marketing engine by systematizing key processes, using data to continually increase the ROI of your marketing channels, and using technology to drive scale and efficiency.
What level are you in?
How to Be an Effective Online Marketer 1. Set clear objectives and choose your strategy, channel, tool, etc., accordingly 2. Focus on a handful of tools and strategies 3. Follow best practices 4. Measure your results 5. Adopt a Kaizen Mindset: Test, Measure, Tweak, Study, Repeat
Action Steps 1. Write down your most important takeaway and action steps. What are you going to do differently with these new insights?
Action Steps 2. To get summary articles on these concepts, visit www.shanerasnak.com
Action Steps 3. To download these slides, visit www.shanerasnak.com/marketingworkshop
Let s Connect Online Marketing Consultant for Impact-driven Companies Business Coach for Entrepreneurs & Independent Workers www.shanerasnak.com hello@shanerasnak.com