However, what makes it really effective is the introduction of real people into the process to have those all-important conversations with your leads.
While LiNCS is creating some amazing result for our clients, we never lose sight of the fact that successful marketing is never down to just one type of approach. To gain the best results, companies need to look across their whole digital chain and make sure that everything in that chain is performing efficiently.
So many companies will concentrate on producing a great newsletter every month or simply put all their efforts into an amazing Facebook campaign but everything else in your marketing mix has to align as well. Potential customers are unlikely to buy something just because of a single newsletter, meeting with a sales representative or Instagram reel. In fact, when it comes to great marketing, the long held Rule of Seven, very much still exists.
The Rule of Seven suggests that a customer needs to be exposed to – or touched by - your message or brand seven times before taking action. And, these exposures can include seeing an advert (online or offline), receiving an email (as part of an email campaign), reading a blog post, watching a video, visiting a website, attending a live event, seeing a social media post, getting referred by a friend or meeting someone from your company.
This process take a while or – in today’s fast-moving marketing environment – this can actually happen much quicker, particularly where social media is involved.
Why seven times? It can take customers a while to build trust – and every touch point should add value, not just sell. In this process, a business needs to make sure that each of those ‘touches’ with your business delivers the same messaging and consistency of brand. Every element in your marketing mix should be well thought out and work effectively.
Even with LiNCS, it isn’t just a case of making connections. In fact, we will typically suggest that our social media expert at Target Ink reviews the LinkedIn profile of our client and suggests ways to tidy it up or update it. We might suggest they start to engage more with LinkedIn, if they haven’t been already and share relevant content to make their profile more engaging.
At the heart of all your marketing should be your website; it serves as the hub for information about your business’ products, services and your brand, and it’s where all your digital marketing efforts converge. It's the destination where potential customers are directed from all your other marketing – those all-important seven touches - such as social media, email campaigns or online advertising.
As this key cog in your marketing wheel, your website has to work for you – like any marketing you invest in. Many digital marketing efforts drive users to take a specific action, such as making a purchase, filling out a contact form or subscribing to a newsletter. This actions typically take place on your website; it is your conversion point.
Your website can track customer behaviour, site traffic and other key metrics; data which helps you measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns. In turn, this enables you to make informed decisions about the direction your business is taking.
If your website is at the heart of everything you do, then it has to play its part and convert those potential customers who have arrived from somewhere else. Again, the Rule of Seven comes into play and that could be via one of your social media platforms, or it could come through a real life encounter. Nowadays, conferences, exhibitions and award ceremonies are firmly back on the agenda and we are out networking again.
If somebody has met you, the chances are they will check you out afterwards on LinkedIn and also on your website. They might sign up for an email newsletter or check your business out on social media. Importantly, your organisation’s branding and culture should be consistent across all your platforms.
Potential customers also want to be assured that you care about your business and are investing in it. In addition to design that reflects your business ethos, good photography or videography also matters. There’s no point in having amazing content on your website, if you are let down by your images.
In rather the same way as you might pop back into a shop to look at a purchase, a potential customer might make a few visits to your website to have another look, to give themselves additional confidence in your brand.
If you’d like to talk further about how all your marketing works together, call our team at Target Ink on: 01892 800400
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