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Richard Corley

The place to connect when it comes to social networks and social marketing. Offers the latest news, strategies and best practices to help you succeed and create a strong brand identity in social.

The Ultimate Content Planning Workshop

The Ultimate Content Planning Workshop written by John Jantsch read more at Duct Tape Marketing







Marketing Podcast with John Jantsch







In this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast, I’m going to be talking about the final part of a three-part solo show Marketing Hourglass series I’m doing. In part one, I talked about the customer journey and the marketing hourglass. In part two, I discussed creating content that powers each stage of the customer journey. Then in part three, I’m wrapping up the series with what I’m calling a content planning workshop. Here’s part three.













Key Takeaway:



Waking up on Monday and deciding what to write about on your blog is not a content strategy. Content is such an essential element in the marketing puzzle you must plan your content like you might your promotional calendar or budget for the year.



Taking a strategic view of content means you must understand the body of work you need to create over time to turn your content efforts into an asset that will serve your business long-term. In this episode, I’m wrapping up the Marketing Hourglass series with a content planning workshop. I’m covering how to plan your content the right way to align with business goals, objectives, and the customer journey.



Discussion points:





[1:12] The right content can power every aspect of the Marketing Hourglass


[3:21] Content planning starts with coming up with monthly themes and creating a global sketch


[4:27] What your content should be about


[6:27] Breaking down your year to quarterly objectives and priorities


[7:30] Example content objectives


[9:12] Planning your content by quarter that supports your set objectives


[11:59] Crafting your monthly content calendar


[12:56] Planning makes it easier to delegate


[13:31] The success of the plan depends on measurement and if your content is moving you towards your goal




Resources mentioned:





Pre-order my upcoming book


TheUltimateMarketingEngine.com






More About The Duct Tape Consultant Network:





Check it out here.






Like this show? Click on over and give us a review on iTunes, please!







This episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast is brought to you by Monday.com.



There are a lot of tools out there to help companies get work done. We recently switched over to a tool called Monday, and we love it. Monday is more than just a project management tool. You can use it in many ways to run your entire business, marketing, sales, task management, even recruiting, and certainly project management. Check it out yourself here.







Original source: https://ducttapemarketing.com/content-planning-workshop/



The post The Ultimate Content Planning Workshop appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/the-ultimate-content-planning-workshop/

Boston digital agency

Going digital in business is the world we are in today. Online businesses and websites are tools to grow and expand your customer base. As competition increases, the more it demands you to do things perfectly to match or exceed competitors. Boston online agency is an expert in dealing with SEO services and social media marketing. The company has been ranked top for offering the best online services. Fuel online has the best talent and expertise to handle all your online needs. Below are some of the online services you will receive from the Boston online agency.



SEO services



Site building and backlinks



We are the best-rated SEO company that helps you start, optimize, and increase the rank of your website. The first thing we do is site architecture. A user-friendly site is a key to where your visitors and customer can access the site and get the information they need in an orderly manner. Fuel online will help in link building. Having a site is one thing, but having content that is relevant and credible is another thing. Through our agency, you will only have backlinks from a reputable website and look for fresh ones. Wise choosing of keywords that will make your site rank high is important. Having anchoring text and social media sharing will increase backlinks.



Content creation



The main goal of a website or blog is to offer information about a particular topic to its users or customers. Content is key to the site. Detailed informative and relevant content is vital for top search rank. Fuel online takes up the challenge and aid in the creation of SEO content for your site. We do competitive keyword research, keyword optimization, content organization, addition page content, blog posts, and product pages. The whole process will give your site a massive boost on SEO platforms.



Reputation management



A site that is doing well and ranked highly has many visitors, to keep your reputation positive is crucial to the growth of your business or blog. Fuel online offers reputation management where the agency carries out a reputation sweep for its customers. The strategies used include business listing where Fuel Online ensures all listings are placed and updated when change occurs. Use of funnel to source and direct positive reviews plus eliminating the negative reviews. Pages with malicious information are removed and, new content is added. The sourcing of credible testimonials attracts new clients.



Local SEO



A business that relies on local traffic to get customers is not left behind. Fuel Online offers local SEO services to reach out to more potential customers. Some of the mechanisms used to draw traffic for your business include listing on local maps, having daily deals like limited coupons for locals, and providing your location. The use of smartphones to look for the stores and business near the customer has made local SEO important hence Fuel Online will help you tap all the potential local customers. Local SEO is budget-friendly and less competitive. Fuel online agency will help you rise to the top with local SEO.



Enterprise SEO



This is a major tool to make more of your diverse website. A website dealing with multiple unique pages for different locations, unique products, or services enterprise SEO is the best for you. Fuel Online helps you to maximally attend to all aspects. When you give the agency the mandate, they will ensure massive keyword workup, system automation, templates, efficient data entry, and every page or product will be unique. Businesses with different locations will have a separate page for their location and a social media account. Fuel Online agency being a top company, our SEO services are multiple. Other services include



• Mobile SEO



• Advanced organic white hat



• Link removal



• Measurement and reporting



• Penalty assessment and repair



• Seo audit



• Advanced proprietary SEO



• SEO training



• Seo consulting



• Seo audits, analysis, and compliance



• SEO employee interviewing



• High-end competitive SEO services



• Corporate SEO strategy development



Social media services



Social media strategies



We are an expert in social media strategies to build your brand and expose it to customers. Fuel Online does the analysis and comes up with a creative approach, content, and target audience for your site or business. We start by formulating marketing goals that go with your business objectives then know what social media campaign will work. The online audience should be understood, in terms of which platform to source them. The agency will do a competitive analysis to up your game and create different accounts on different platforms to increase brand awareness. Social media is all about consistency, Fuel Online uses a content calendar to post regular fresh content for your business. Bringing up conversations on your account to inspire, share, like, and comment increases traffic.



Social media content



Fuel online helps you to create social media content with blog posts, ads, links, inspiration posts, standalone social media post among others. We use user generated content, infographics, videos, freebies advocacy, and humor to attract a wide audience on different platforms.



Influencer outreach



On behalf of your business, we identify social media influencers and make the connection, to increase the audience. Such influencers include celebrities, micro-influencers, and casual contact. When a famous person identifies or mentions your brand on social media, it will attract a large audience since they have a bigger following. Your brand gains popularity and credibility.



Social media customer service



With the wide use of mobile phones, most people will access your information through social media. Commenting and making inquiries about your business on social media needs proper customer service handling? At Fuel Online we will help with faster replies, encourage private conversation for negative comments, respond to everything, and mitigate negativity on social media.



Due to our experience and expertise we also offer;



• Social listening and sentiment reporting



• Training and consulting



• Advanced social media analytics and data



• Social media advertising management



• Social media content management



Pay per click managements



Best known as PPC or CPC is online advertising to drive potential customers to your site. If not managed properly, you can experience the worst as you can use a big marketing budget and gain nothing. Boston digital agency helps to conduct full PPC campaigns across all platforms. This way, you can have more customers on your site and have better lead conversion at a low bounce rate. The platforms used are Google Ads, Oath Ads, Bing Ads, and Facebook business.



PPC management is a detailed process that requires experts to review, measure and tweak every week. Through our advanced techniques services, you can double a click-through rate. Web design and word press development are other are the Boston digital agency will help you out. We can handle all hard and complex projects since we have high-end expertise on board.



The post Boston digital agency appeared first on Social Media Explorer.



Original source: https://socialmediaexplorer.com/content-marketing-2/boston-digital-agency/



The post Boston digital agency appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/boston-digital-agency/

Weekend Favs July 4

Weekend Favs July 4 written by John Jantsch read more at Duct Tape Marketing



My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week.



I don’t go into depth about the finds, but encourage you to check them out if they sound interesting. The photo in the post is a favorite for the week from an online source or one that I took out there on the road.





Wix– Create your client sites on the ultimate platform for agencies. Build powerful web experiences and integrate the business solutions your clients need.


Pixelhunter-AI-powered image resizer for social media.


Designmodo – We’ve got a great infographic to help you better understand the elements of typography and fonts in design.




These are my weekend favs, I would love to hear about some of yours – Tweet me @ducttape



Original source: https://ducttapemarketing.com/weekend-favs-july-4-2/



The post Weekend Favs July 4 appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/weekend-favs-july-4/

How Genetic Testing is the New Era of Medical Tech

Since we dont know who could be at risk of developing severe COVID-19 symptoms how can we effectively roll out a vaccine? Genetics has a hopeful window into the future of medical treatment. Understanding genetic testing and its relation to predicting severe COVID-19 risk could change the way we distribute the COVID vaccine. What does it take to achieve herd immunity? According to most medical experts a population needs 70% to 85% of its members vaccinated to reach the goal of herd immunity. But with vaccination rates going so slowly new variants will trigger the need for another round of mass vaccination. If the second round does not move faster than its predecessor the pattern will continue. With all this headache surrounding the actions of billions around the world vaccines alone cant be trusted to protect some people. Understanding COVID-19 risk is vital for people with a wide variety of health conditions. Those with chronic lung disease diabetes heart conditions and compromised immune systems are the most vulnerable when it comes to infection and severe disease. Even as the rest of the country goes back to normal these people may want to continue social distancing and avoiding crowds. That said not every individual with one of these conditions will develop severe COVID-19. As many as one quarter of adults could be incorrectly categorized for their risk of developing severe COVID-19. Lucky for them a genetic COVID-19 test can help. This at-home test kit considers 16 comorbidities and genetic markers. The test can improve risk prediction by 25% over standard clinical models. The post How Genetic Testing is the New Era of Medical Tech appeared first on Social Media Explorer. Original source: https://socialmediaexplorer.com/infographic/genetic-testing-covid-19-vaccine-risk/ The post How Genetic Testing is the New Era of Medical Tech appeared first on connect social networks. via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/how-genetic-testing-is-the-new-era-of-medical-tech/

Helping And Inspiring Small Business Entrepreneurs All Across America

Helping And Inspiring Small Business Entrepreneurs All Across America written by John Jantsch read more at Duct Tape Marketing







Marketing Podcast with Zach Lezberg







In this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast, I interview Zach Lezberg. Zach is the Founder & CEO of The Show Producers, Small Business Expo, eComCon, ShowBiz Expo, and Small Business University.













Key Takeaway:



The Small Business Expo is all about helping small businesses, entrepreneurs, and startups. It’s a huge gathering. The event gets thousands of small business owners gathering in each city to network, build business relationships, find new vendors that can help their business grow — from payroll services to legal help to accounting services or office space, social media help SEO services, you name it, it’s there.



With events in over 45 cities around the country, the Small Business Expo has built a community that supports the growth of small businesses and brings people together all across America. In this episode, I talk with the Founder of the event Zach Lezberg about how he’s built such a strong small business community and the state of small businesses in 2021.



Questions I Ask Zach Lezberg:





[0:53] What does a traditional small business expo look like?


[2:22] Would you say you learned some valuable things producing virtual small business expo shows?


[3:13] Are there elements of what you had to do virtually that you’ll continue doing because people really enjoyed that aspect?


[4:08] So you’re shifting back to live shows now — are there elements of the live shows that you feel you weren’t able to emulate virtually?


[5:47] How do you build that strong kind of community that’s like cheering for you to come back?


[6:44] As a small business with a limited budget, what’s been your most effective way to fill these shows up?


[7:43] What would your events offer to somebody that is afraid to take the leap and what would attending an event like this inspire that person to do?


[9:32] What key things are you seeing that maybe came out of this last, crazy kind of year?


[12:36] Where’s the happy medium between advertising and word of mouth for small businesses?


[15:03] What does your Expo series look like for the rest of 2021?






More About Zach Lezberg:





The State of Small Business 2021 Report


Small Business Expo: Agenda & Information




More About The Certified Marketing Manager Program Powered by Duct Tape Marketing





Check it out here.






Like this show? Click on over and give us a review on iTunes, please!







This episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast is brought to you by Wix Partners.



When your agency partners with Wix, you unlock an entire digital ecosystem for creating, managing, and growing your business online. So you can run your agency the way you’ve always wanted to. Get the full coding and design freedom to create anything your clients need along with the tools to manage and collaborate with your team seamlessly from anywhere. And when it comes to growing your business — you can get matched with new leads every day, and earn revenue share for every website you create.



They’ll all be backed by Wix’s industry-leading security and site performance. You’ll also have dedicated account managers on standby 24/7, so you can reach your goals and start setting new ones. Head over to Wix.com/Partners and reimagine what your agency can accomplish.





Original source: https://ducttapemarketing.com/inspiring-small-business-entrepreneurs/



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via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/helping-and-inspiring-small-business-entrepreneurs-all-across-america/

How Local Businesses Can Improve Their Landing Pages

During the COVID-19 pandemic, customers looking for safer services purchased from a local business for the first time. They found local businesses based on web searches and made buying decisions based on the availability of delivery, curbside pickup, and contactless payment. All this information was present (or absent) on local landing pages (LLPs for short).



A Local Business First Exposure to a Consumer



Customers first see an LLP is through Google’s Local Pack, which displays map results, star ratings, and more above organic search results. Ranking within the local pack is based on a variety of factors, including Google My Business (GMB) listings, backlinks, reviews, and social media engagement. Businesses wishing to optimize their GMB listing need to claim their business profile, complete all its sections (including name, address, phone number, hours, website, and more), and keep the listing up to date. Single location businesses can simply optimize their GMB listing and link to their website homepage, but multi-location businesses need LLPs to thrive.



What makes a successful LLP? As LLPs are standalone web pages dedicated to a specific business location, they allow a business owner to link each page to a separate listing on GMB. Features that improve an LLPs local search ranking include hyperlocal content, location photos, Google Maps embed, social media profiles that are location-specific, and Google 360 tours. Strategic implementations of these features are bound to help a local business climb in the search results.



Local Landing Pages Need to be Accessible to all Platforms



Another important factor are mobile features; 84% of local searches are made on mobile devices. Designing a mobile-friendly site is more important than ever. Features that enhance the mobile experience are floating call to action buttons, click-to-call phone numbers, and mobile-friendly coupons. Additional items for LLPs to use on both desktop and mobile are trust elements, like client logos, security seals, or company awards, and coupons and sales featured in a prominent spot on the website. Listing options for convenient 2-way communication like texting and updating information like store hours and temporary closures also improve customer experience.









The post How Local Businesses Can Improve Their Landing Pages appeared first on Social Media Explorer.



Original source: https://socialmediaexplorer.com/infographic/path-to-top-rank-in-a-local-business-google-search/



The post How Local Businesses Can Improve Their Landing Pages appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/how-local-businesses-can-improve-their-landing-pages/

Jeff Ber Discusses How Social Media Helps Smaller Nonprofits Stand Out

Jeff Ber has extensive experience in business management and is currently focused on smaller Nonprofit organizations. By discovering the overall impact social media has on business, Jeff Ber examines its ability to create awareness for smaller organizations.



Recognizing Smaller Organizations



Most nonprofit organizations are grassroots-oriented. Even with financial help, small organizations are often resourceful by necessity. Nonprofits that focus on the environment, youth development, and animals are usually smaller than other nonprofit organizations and need to maximize their awareness.



The impact of nonprofit organizations can be felt on a community level. For example, the United States currently has 1.3 million charitable nonprofits that help those who need necessities such as food and shelter. While many of these organizations are easily recognizable, spreading the word about smaller businesses often takes time and hard work.



There are many ways to market a small nonprofit organization, including donations in the organization’s name and hosting events and fundraisers. However, to reach a larger segment of the population, Jeff Ber has noticed the widespread effect of social media.



Philanthropy And The Internet



Social media is not just for posting pictures and chatting with friends. By using social media to spread awareness, charities and nonprofits benefit in ways that can’t be done outside the internet.



Online avenues for philanthropy are hardly new. Crowdfunding, for instance, has encouraged other users to donate money directly to the organization. Newsletters updating a select group of interested people can also play a part in donations.



Retailers who are affiliated with certain nonprofits or charities often benefit from online giving portals. By linking their online store or business to a foundation or charity, a percentage of a customer’s money is used for a good cause. The percentage that is donated, however, is usually up to the retailer.



According to America’s Federal Trade Commission, online businesses or organizations that advertise donations must be extremely transparent. Canada’s guidelines may be even stricter. Information provided to the donors should outline where the money is going, potential fees, and timing.



Social media is a natural next step for raising awareness because it can reach individuals on a broader scale while encouraging involvement. Nonprofits that create business pages for their organization can be easily accessed on social sites. Linking to others in the community or using SEO tactics to expand their presence can create curiosity and interest among new individuals.



There are several social media channels to choose from in 2021, and each platform can reach a slightly different audience. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and others have slightly different methods to spread awareness. Depending on the nonprofit organization, this can be used to find specific groups who may be interested. Using social media marketing can cut down on an organization’s risk of seeming “spammy” by presenting its services to the right people.



How Does Social Media Create Awareness For Small Nonprofits?



Social media is unique in its ability to engage large segments of the population. In addition, spreading awareness does not have to be done through paid advertisements or asking for donations.



Contests



Nonprofit organizations can raise awareness through promoting contests or other types of involvement. For example, the “bucket challenge” was used to spread awareness of ALS by encouraging individuals to dump a bucket of ice on top of their heads. Videos of people engaging in the bucket challenge spread far and wide throughout social media channels.



Response Time



Social media makes it easier for individuals to connect directly to the organization. By directly messaging the organization, people interested in knowing more have someone to chat with. Since many people prefer using online methods of communication instead of talking on the phone, this is a particularly efficient form.



Spreading Information



Updating posts on social media is likely to draw attention. Organizations that post relevant information on a daily basis can reach more people. This is a way to boost awareness without spending money. When an organization can save money on marketing, finances can be used elsewhere.



Advertising Events



Sponsoring and promoting a foundation’s event online can gain real-life engagement. By using social media to involve real-life interaction, nonprofits can then share photos of the event online. This circular form of marketing is especially beneficial for spreading awareness because of certain tagging features and cross-promotional posts.



Feedback



Using social media can help organizations understand what they are doing right and what they are doing wrong. Messaging apps and statistics articulate trends in the way a foundation is being run. A small nonprofit knows it needs more awareness and user engagement if there are no clicks or messages. If a part of the organization seems unnecessary or difficult to understand, direct messaging can help an organization process feedback.



The Impact Of Social Media



Social media is increasingly used as a tool to promote brands. When charities and nonprofits use social media to raise awareness, they involve the public in a worthwhile cause. Since social media is easy to use and interactive, an increasing amount of individuals are getting involved.



Smaller nonprofits do not have the same resources as bigger foundations such as the Salvation Army or Goodwill. With less funding, marketing costs are drastically cut. Expenses for nonprofits largely depend on the organization itself. Depending on the kind of cause and individual effort needed, limiting expenses may be crucial.



Social media has helped smaller nonprofits in their mission to benefit communities. By providing statistics and world-known platforms, nonprofits can raise more money and volunteers to support the arts. In addition, many charities and nonprofits are struggling through economical hardship, and promoting these foundations can help everyone involved.



The post Jeff Ber Discusses How Social Media Helps Smaller Nonprofits Stand Out appeared first on Social Media Explorer.



Original source: https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/jeff-ber-discusses-how-social-media-helps-smaller-nonprofits-stand-out/



The post Jeff Ber Discusses How Social Media Helps Smaller Nonprofits Stand Out appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/jeff-ber-discusses-how-social-media-helps-smaller-nonprofits-stand-out/

The 3 Essential Ingredients For Long-Term Happy Clients

The 3 Essential Ingredients For Long-Term Happy Clients written by Sara Nay read more at Duct Tape Marketing















Agency Spark Podcast with David Gersh









The Agency Spark Podcast, hosted by Sara Nay, is a collection of interviews from thought leaders in the marketing consultancy and agency space. Each episode is designed to spark ideas you can put into practice for your agency today. Check out the new Spark Lab Consulting website here!



In this episode of the Agency Spark Podcast, Sara interviews David Gersh, founder of Outreach Local Marketing. Previous to starting Outreach, David built and sold 3 other businesses over the past 25 years. His main focus in those businesses was sales & marketing.



Questions Sara asks David Gersh:







Tell me a little about your story and how you’ve launched and sold three businesses prior to where you’re at today?


Do you have a niche or do you work with a range of local businesses?


What’s been the most successful marketing tactic for growing your agency?


How have you made the combination of direct mail and cold calling successful?


How do you keep getting long retainer clients while other agency’s struggle?


Is there an area or tactic that you see a lot of local businesses wasting their marketing budget on?




Learn more about David Gersh:





Outreach Local Marketing




Like this show? Please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts here!











This episode of the Agency Spark Podcast is brought to you by Unstack, a no-code marketing platform and ecosystem. Start building a site today for free by visiting their website.



Stop waiting on developers and leveraging multiple tools to manage your marketing stack. With Unstack, you get a no-code website builder, landing page builder, A/B testing, forms, analytics, contact insights, payments, memberships, blog, and more all in one platform. Start building a site today for free by visiting this link and receive 20% off for six months when you sign up.







Original source: https://ducttapemarketing.com/the-3-essential-ingredients-for-long-term-happy-clients/



The post The 3 Essential Ingredients For Long-Term Happy Clients appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/the-3-essential-ingredients-for-long-term-happy-clients/

How The 3-Day Weekend Lifestyle Gets You The Life And Legacy You Want

How The 3-Day Weekend Lifestyle Gets You The Life And Legacy You Want written by Sara Nay read more at Duct Tape Marketing















Agency Spark Podcast with With Wade Galt









The Agency Spark Podcast, hosted by Sara Nay, is a collection of interviews from thought leaders in the marketing consultancy and agency space. Each episode is designed to spark ideas you can put into practice for your agency today. Check out the new Spark Lab Consulting website here!



In this episode of the Agency Spark Podcast, Sara interviews Wade Galt. Founder of the 3-Day Weekend Club, Wade helps people create the life, lifestyle & legacy they most desire. Pulling from 15 years experience as a productive employee and over 20 years as a software company founder & owner, corporate consultant, sales coach, accountability expert, superstar recruiter, provider of mental health counseling (psychology) services, life coach and 4-day entrepreneur – Wade teaches others to create the life they most desire personally & professionally.



Questions Sara asks Wade Galt:







What is the 3-day weekend club and lifestyle all about?


What are the first couple steps when working towards a 4-day workweek?


What advice do you have for those who work from home?


How do you help people learn how to delegate?


When should someone know when it’s really time to grow and scale their business?




Learn more about Wade Galt:





3-Day Weekend Club Website












This episode of the Agency Spark Podcast is brought to you by Unstack, a no-code marketing platform and ecosystem. Start building a site today for free by visiting their website.



Stop waiting on developers and leveraging multiple tools to manage your marketing stack. With Unstack, you get a no-code website builder, landing page builder, A/B testing, forms, analytics, contact insights, payments, memberships, blog, and more all in one platform. Start building a site today for free by visiting this link and receive 20% off for six months when you sign up.







Original source: https://ducttapemarketing.com/how-the-3-day-lifestyle-gets-you-the-life-you-want/



The post How The 3-Day Weekend Lifestyle Gets You The Life And Legacy You Want appeared first on connect social networks.







via Connect Social Networks http://connectsocialnetworks.com/how-the-3-day-weekend-lifestyle-gets-you-the-life-and-legacy-you-want/

Getting Started With Influencer Marketing for Your E-Commerce

Are you trying to think of a new marketing strategy that can get your brand out there and noticed by more people? Maybe this is the case. Or perhaps you have already tried influencer marketing and are interested in commencing a new campaign. As one of the most current methods of advertising youve come to the right place to establish how to set up an influencer campaign for your e-commerce. With our lives rapidly moving more and more online as an e-commerce brand its definitely worth taking advantage of marketing through influencers on social media. Why influencer marketing? In the digital age that we live in today whether an e-commerce business or not influencer marketing is a strategy that can reap incredible results. In fact as many as 90% of marketers say that influencer marketing has been an effective form of marketing. By finding ambassadors that can represent your brand on social media you can reach a much larger yet potentially more relevant audience. Not only can you increase brand visibility with influencers but you can reduce marketing spend as this can be a low-cost advertising alternative. So without further ado lets establish how you will get started with an influencer campaign. Planning As with any new campaign or strategy the first thing you need to do is to sit down and set out a plan. From an outsiders perspective it can be easy to assume that influencer marketing is a fairly simple strategy requiring little time or effort. But what makes the best campaigns stand out from those that are unsuccessful is the planning that has been put into them. Consider the following elements within your initial planning process: Define your goals Youll want to strategically plan your campaign by asking some simple questions. Start by considering why you are commencing an influencer campaign. What do you want to achieve through influencer marketing? By defining your key objectives from the beginning you can start to outline some key performance indicators (KPIs). These can be tracked along the way to measure the success of your campaign. Some common aims from brands partaking in influencer campaigns would be to increase brand awareness grow social media followings and increase content creation to name a few. Target audience The next step is to establish your target audience. Who do you want this campaign to reach? Your brand may attract a wide variety of audiences but its important to understand who this exact campaign is to be directed at. Are you releasing a new line or product that would spark interest from a clear group of consumers? Its important to create a buyer persona taking into consideration the characteristics of your target audience like age gender location and interests. Budget Budget is a big thing when it comes to influencer marketing as you can spend as much or as little as you like. Its all about the impact that you make. However your budget will help to determine the type of campaign and size of influencer that you can work with. So how much do you intend to spend on this campaign? Make sure to not forget about hidden costs like shipping handling agency fees etc. Timeline The final stage of defining your plan would be to consider timings. Do you have a specific timeline to adhere to? This will also impact your influencer search as many will have their schedules booked up far in advance. Think about whether your product is to be released in line with a special holiday or event maybe a festivity or a season. Brands will often want to work on a campaign alongside a particular sale or promotion too. By defining your timeline and these other key elements of your campaign its going to really help with the next step of influencer discovery. Finding influencers When it comes to your influencer search there are a few ways that you can go about doing this. Again this is dependent on factors previously defined like your budget and timeline. Also you should consider whether Instagram influencers or YouTube influencers are best for your campaign. Dont forget there are influencers across all different social media platforms. The three methods to choose from would be: searching yourself directly through social media using an influencer marketing platform working with an agency Of course there are pros and cons to each. And without going into too much detail lets quickly touch on this. Conducting the influencer search manually can be time-consuming. However for those brands with a small budget and that are only intending on hiring one or two influencers this could be a perfectly reasonable method. On the other hand you could try using an influencer marketing platform to search for influencers. These platforms offer several types of subscriptions often with a free option so they are typically affordable to a variety of budgets. From the discoveries you learned during your planning process you can input these and let the platform do the rest. Platforms like Heepsy have dedicated search filters that allow you to choose the qualities to search by with AI-driven data to provide profile insights to be analysed. The third option of working with an agency can be totally out of the question for some. Although agencies create some of the greatest campaigns they are generally expensive and only of interest to those with a large budget. Agencies will conduct all of the work from start to finish which can be a good or a bad thing depending on your needs. Tracking your campaign and measuring results Whether youre new to this or not youll be eager to find out how to establish whether the campaign was successful right? Well in influencer marketing success is relative. Remember those objectives that we talked about? Sure your sales may have boosted so the campaign brought success to your business. But if your main objective was to increase brand awareness in a new location was this reached? This is why your goals will need to have clear ways of measuring them. In order to track the success of the campaign Id recommend working with a tool like Google Analytics. This is probably the most popular tool out there especially amongst e-commerce brands. If the campaign appears to be running well then remember to check in with your influencers and let them know of their great work. Equally if there are issues youll want to communicate this clearly too. When the campaign is over and its time to collect all of your data to establish success youll first need to determine the total investment that you put into the campaign. This is absolutely everything that you spent money on not forgetting about things like shipping! Then you should look at data on: sales and revenue web traffic new social media followers impressions influencer discount codes used When looking at these your success will be determined based on whether they met your initial goals and also outweighed the original investment that you put into the campaign. Influencer incentive and discount codes Unfortunately we cant cover everything about an influencer campaign in one article. However as an e-commerce brand its important that we go over influencer incentive. A popular technique is to use trackable discount codes that are personalized to every individual influencer working on your campaign. These are so popular for the many benefits that can be gained to the consumer influencer and you! For the consumer a discount is always going to be attractive. Also they are eager to use these codes when they see them though worry that they may not be available at a later date. For the influencer they will typically work on a commission-based incentive where they earn per person that uses their link. This usually encourages influencers to create even better quality content. For your brand these links are not only attracting more traffic to your website but increasing sales volumes too. Youre also benefiting from the increased content creation and quality of it too. When it comes to campaign analysis trackable links are the perfect source. You can identify where your website traffic is coming from pinpointing which influencers are bringing the most. These links will require UTMs to be set up which is much more simple than it sounds dont worry! You can then access data to analyse their success through Google Analytics or another similar tool. Make sure to keep your codes short and concise. They should be personalized to influencers for example EMILY20. Conclusion As social media continues to boom and online shopping becomes increasingly more readily available the benefits of influencer marketing to e-commerce brands are undeniable. No matter your business size type or budget its a strategy worth investing in. As long as a thorough planning process is conducted and you find the right influencers for your brand then you are guaranteed success with your goals! For more information about how to conduct an influencer marketing campaign or for some help getting started then head over to Heepsy! This influencer marketing platform will help you to find influencers and ace your first campaign! Author: Olivia Adie Bio: Olivia works on the Marketing team at Heepsy an influencer marketing platform that helps you to find influencers for your campaigns. The post Getting Started With Influencer Marketing for Your E-Commerce appeared first on Social Media Explorer. 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