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Video

In case you hadn’t already noticed, video content is huge right now – and seems like it will continue to be so into the foreseeable future. CISCO’S VISUAL NETWORKING INDEX predicts that by 2019, video will make up 80% of all consumer Internet traffic. So, if you’re not already utilising video content in your marketing, now’s the time to start!

Facebook, Instagram and of course YouTube are the most popular places for video content. Facebook allows you to post live videos as well as regular ones, and Instagram has recently introduced IGTV, a feature allowing users to create a video channel and share videos that are up to an hour long. Whichever platform you’re using for video content, make sure you’re creating clips that encourage engagement and provide followers with useful and/or entertaining content.

‘Temporary’ content

Here one minute, gone the next – that’s the approach many platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat are taking these days. Instagram has the popular Stories feature, which allows you to post photos and video that disappear after 24 hours; Facebook also has a Stories function, and though it is less popular than Instagram’s, it’s worth utilising. The whole premise of Snapchat is its ephemerality (all posts have a viewing time limit), and while it’s primarily used by individuals, businesses are also using it for content, advertising and GEOFILTERS.

This kind of temporary content is especially useful for your small business if your target audience falls within a younger age bracket (18–34). If that isn’t your ideal client base, perhaps don’t spend too much time on this approach, but it’s still worth giving it a shot to keep your content fresh, fun and current.

Influencer marketing

Influencer marketing involves an online personality being paid to advertise or promote a product or service to their audience. You’d be forgiven for thinking that this is only a tool for big-name brands and companies, but that’s no longer the case. As the focus gradually shifts from celebrities and Instagram stars to authentic content creators (‘micro-influencers’), small businesses can use this marketing approach too.

Instead of focusing on who has the most followers, small businesses do better working with influencers who are prominent in their niche (think: specialised bloggers), who will be able to promote a product genuinely, and whose audience is more likely to be highly engaged.

‘Pay-to-play’ social networks

Platforms like Facebook used to be fairly simple for small business owners. You’d create a post and it would automatically appear in the newsfeed of all your page’s followers. However, Facebook’s 2018 ALGORITHM CHANGES mean that the platform now prioritises ‘posts from friends and family over public content’ (i.e. content from business pages). This has made it much harder for small businesses to get their posts seen by Facebook’s audiences – unless they pay to ‘boost’ them. Instagram has followed suit somewhat, ditching its chronological feed for a predictive algorithm and sprinkling sponsored posts from advertisers throughout.

This kind of ‘pay-to-play’ mentality on social networks seems to be here to stay, so if you haven’t previously been spending anything on promoting your social media posts, it might be time to review your marketing budget. Sinking a little money into social media advertising will help you overcome some of the limits platforms are placing on organic reach. 

Measuring services

There’s no point having a great marketing strategy if you can’t track, analyse and quantify its results. That’s where measuring services like MIXPANEL and GOOGLE ANALYTICS come in. These tools allow you to track traffic to your website and measure how people are interacting and engaging with your online platforms. Combine these with social media tools like FACEBOOK ANALYTICS for business pages, as well as TWITTER ANALYTICS and INSTAGRAM INSIGHTS, and you’ll get a good general overview of how your online channels are performing.

Through insightful analytics and data, you can better understand how your marketing campaigns are performing, who you’re reaching, and how you can better target your ideal customers through a customised marketing approach.

Modern networking channels

Networking is often thought of as a separate activity to marketing – not so. Connecting with other business owners face-to-face, whether they are potential clients or not, can measurably help you grow your business – which, after all, is the main goal of marketing. So how has networking changed in the digital marketing age?

Although traditional networking events like Business Network International definitely still provide value, more and more networking is now happening online. Sites like LinkedIn are often the first port of call for connecting with people, and a lot of networking also happens through more casual channels like social media. Furthermore, through sites like MEETUP (which has a DEDICATED BUSINESS SECTION), you can create and join groups with others in your area of interest and network online, as well as organising traditional in-person get-togethers and events.

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