Digital Marketing is a science that brings together the psychology of awareness and persuasion to drive the economy of the business. And, just like science, there are metrics to measure, and missing links to account for. A Typical Digital Media Strategy distributes its action plan amongst some (or) all of these areas.
- Social Media Management
- Email Campaigns
- Mobile Promotions
- Content Marketing
When done intelligently, the sales metrics could rise exponentially. But, on the other hand, when these efforts do not pay up as expected, one is left to wonder about the gaps. Here are some common pointers that might help you identify the cracks, and make amends before they become into a gaping hole.
Relevance Gap:
Is this campaign relevant to the audience I am reaching out to?
Being the marketer / sales personnel you are, would you barge into a dentist’s office to sell garden supplies or automobile spare parts?. I guess not.
Aggressive marketers in their bid to grab maximum eyeball, thrust their advts, promos on unsuspecting users by spamming the mail box, or dumping the links on social media. This is particularly common on “social media groups”, where there is a large congregation of users discussing matters of interest, (and concerns) over a certain niche.
Such link dumps are very annoying (not to mention, unprofessional as well). Soon, you will be blacklisted and banned from the group. The result is, you stand to lose valuable audience for a future campaign that is more relevant to the objective of the group.
Without context, though, even quality content risks coming across as pushy brand intrusion. – The Gaurdian
Context, in other words, takes not only the ‘who’ into account, but also the when, where, why, and how. Simply put, it’s deeper targeting and more on-point messaging- Rebecca Lieb
Engagement Gap:
Why don’t my visitors linger a bit longer?
Landing pages are an integral part of digital marketing strategy. These are the billboards that advertise the merits of the products /services without being pushy. Getting the visitors to these landing pages can be done effectively by bridging the Relevance Gap. However, keeping them on your website requires a bit of thoughtful planning and adept execution.
Recall high school English grammar lessons. Instead of bragging “Our product / service has an awesome ABC-feature”, restructure your sentence to reflect “Your business can achieve great results by using our product’s simple ABC-feature”.
This is an intriguing statement, and visitors are likely to explore the additional features in the offing. An engagement trail has been set. Now, let your product/ service convince the visitor.
Good social adoption starts with a focus on people, …… That means investing in people and processes, as well as technology. – The Gaurdian
Let’s Get Personal: Focusing On the Human Side of Your Digital Presence – By Greg Stockmaster
Response Gap:
Do not miss out on the handshake.
If you approve of this illustration, please superimpose the text Response and Followup on the arrows
By bridging the Engagement Gap, you have convinced the visitor to extend his share on the handshake. Now it is your turn to return the favour.
Intrigued by your product / services, there will be enquires on the same. This is an indicator that you are generating interest from the visitor’s business perspective. These enquiries come in as live-chat (embedded within the website) or via contact us or as social media mentions etc.
The best way to bridge this response gap, is to start with an acknowledgment (albeit an automated one) and follow up within 12-24 hrs. The closer to achieving the customer’s intended objective, higher the chances of securing a deal.
A recent MIT study demonstrated that leads convert 22 times more often when they are contacted within the first five minutes of making an inquiry – Irv Shapiro
24% of American internet users 12+ who have contacted a brand in social media, expect a reply within 30 minutes, regardless of when the contact was made – Jay Baer
Technical Gap:
Does your digital platforms talk to each other? Do they pour in their analytics in one jar for quick review and detailed study?
As discussed earlier, digital marketing strategy is not a single act. It is a cumulative act across diverse platforms. So, it is extremely necessary to track the metrics in a unified system that allows measuring the performance of digital marketing efforts.
In a haste to speed things up for the campaign, do not forget to set tracking units in your analytics tools. Most tracking data can be set up by making minor changes to the url. Assuming Google Analytics is the popular tool of choice, this url builder can build custom urls that tracks your campaign performance.
Run periodic reports on metrics that matter to gain an insight into your strategy’s implementation and performance.
8 Major Hurdles to Marketing Measurement; Whether you are trying to determine customer lifetime value or put in place a media mix model, marketing measurement can often be a complex and daunting task. – Brand Nexus
Disruptive digital technologies and the new expectations of the global consumer are forcing global firms to adjust and innovate – Forbes
LogicSpeak:
Digital Media Marketing Strategy is akin to weaving a tapestry. Multiple strands of fine threads are woven together in a precise and orderly manner to create a work of art, to be appreciated as whole. The trick is to identify the areas where the finale picture emerges, and underplay the rest to get a holistic result.
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