The internet is filled with huge possibilities for businesses, however, less than 5% of brands achieve goods results and only through a long term planned engagement strategy that has a learning curve.

If you want your brand to succeed in the long term forget viral success as they are short term and the results aren’t lasting. Some brands do use viral campaigns as part of their long term social media strategy often for sales or to boost new products or services but building your social media strategy only around viral marketing will not lead to long term success. But never fear, social media marketing can be fun but nobody said it was going to be easy!

These are 5 sure ways to help improve your business’ position online:

Branding Graphic Identity
Your brand differentiation, values and mission must be reflected in your graphic identity. Don’t feel the need to follow trending designs colors or patterns as your brand’s graphic identity needs to be built to last. As such you don’t want your logo or brand identity tied to something related to a specific trend as it can quickly become outdated or irrelevant. This doesn’t mean you can’t include a bit of personality in your graphics, in fact we encourage it but moderation is key so the best thing you can do is seek the assistance of a professional, after all your logo is the first impression people get of your business and it will be judged on that…remember first impressions are lasting.

Communication
This is the single most important factor in your strategy, it’s all well and good if you have a great logo and you’re receiving plenty traffic but that needs to be turned into actual sales. It needs to be clear what goods and services you provide and who is your target audience. Also, does that target really exist in your brand’s context? If so, how can you achieve it through communication?

Marketing Strategy
Think about your marketing strategy, who are you targeting and how will you reach them? Think also about the brand’s channels, make a plan (like a realistic one) and remember the first year is generally the hardest for new businesses and brands as they need time to gain a following and a reputation.

Google
Is your brand googleable (yes it’s a real word, google it)? Google is the world’s number 1 search engine but even it can’t find you if your buzzwords don’t match your product and your target. A great example is this, you have a bakery and you want to be found them then you need to ensure that when someone searches “cookies in Port of Spain” you’re one of the top results pulled up, after all people go to google for help and if google can’t find you then neither can they. As such, your SEM (Search Engine Marketing) and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategy needs to be top of the line and just like with the graphics, it might be best to seek out a professional.

Organic and Sponsored Content
Social media is generally free, consequently social media marketing can also be free but free is not always best. An advantage of social media marketing over traditional marketing is cost effectiveness. It is quite easy to churn out amazing content that will organically (i.e. free) reach your target group but there are times you will need to put money behind your work and boost or sponsor content for the widest reach possible. It may seem unfair but it is hard for any brand to reach their full market and achieve considerable attention on Social Media without having to pay for some space there, even large, established businesses have to sponsor content. Just remember the more content you sponsor the faster your brand grows and this can lead to a greater reach organically.

These are great tips for anyone interested in marketing their business online. Questions, comments or just confused? Shoot us a line…we’re here to help!