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It’s Time To Plan Your Marketing For 2023
We’re still a few months from the new year, but that doesn’t mean your marketing shouldn’t be prepared. It’s time to plan your marketing for 2023. Aside from inflation and economic changes impacting businesses nationwide, technological advances and new, emerging trends in marketing mean it’s even more important to start planning your marketing for the upcoming year.
As a full-service marketing group, we believe it’s important that your marketing attract new clients while retaining your current customers. Here are three reasons why it’s time to plan your marketing for 2023:
1. Marketing Trends Are Always Changing . . . And So Should You
Between a global pandemic and constant advancements in technology, it isn’t surprising that advertising trends are changing. While we believe in celebrating your milestones, the marketing machine is constantly evolving, which means your marketing strategies should, too. Whether you need help with your website or a social channel, it’s time to map out marketing strategies for 2023.
2. New Consumers’ Habits Requires A Mobile-First Mindset
While the pandemic might have slowed in-person business for many consumers, those same consumers not only continue to spend more time online, but they also use their mobile devices to shop, search for businesses, and view websites on their mobile devices. And with this move here to stay, businesses need to ensure their websites are responsive, consider increasing their mobile advertising budget, and make decisions with a mobile-first mindset to continue to attract today’s consumers.
Source: FinancesOnline
3. Marketing Experts Could Give You The Upper Hand
Many people are overwhelmed by the prospect of trying to design their own website, get their business in all the proper listings, and post regularly to multiple social channels in addition to all the other marketing avenues they could be utilizing. What often helps a business stand out from the crowd is bringing in a third-party expert. Why? Because marketing firms stay up-to-date on the latest trends and specialize in providing marketing services for businesses big or small. They can even manage your marketing completely if you rather focus on running your business. Whether you need an outside opinion or guidance, firms like Paragon Marketing Group can provide the necessary expertise you need.
Source: Paragon Marketing Group
Marketing trends will continue to change, so it’s vital that your business embrace the future. Whether you choose to hire a marketing firm for outside expertise, mobilize your website to create a better online experience for your mobile users, or map out a marketing strategy to prepare for the new year, now is the time to plan your marketing for 2023.
Why Marketing Your Startup Business Matters
If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve started a business, or maybe you’ve been a small business owner for the last couple years. And you know better than anyone that starting, much less marketing your startup business, is no easy task. You can’t just perform one simple task. Owning a business means wearing a lot of hats, juggling a lot of balls, and maybe coming up with a better metaphor to express the challenges a small business owner faces.
Sometimes the to-do list of a startup business owner is so long, marketing might not seem all that important. With everything else you’re supposed to manage, could marketing your startup really make that much of a difference?
At Paragon Marketing Group, we’re passionate about marketing, so of course we could share many reasons why we believe marketing is a key ingredient to your startup’s success. But don’t take our word for it – the numbers speak for themselves.
Millions of Small Businesses Are Vying for Consumers’ Attention
As of 2020, there were 31.7 million small businesses in the United States (Over 1 million were startups between 2019 and 2020 alone!) And guess what? Every one of those 31.7 million businesses want a slice of the customer pie. If you don’t want your startup business to get lost in the shuffle of 30 million other businesses, there’s something key you can do to build your brand and reach those potential customers with whom you want to share your message, service, or product. Come on, you know where we’re going with this. Let’s say it together: “Marketing!”
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy
Digital Marketing Is the Primary Mode of Communication between Small Businesses and Their Customers
In a survey of over 1,000 small business owners, results clearly indicated the top two modes of communication between businesses and their customers were email at 71.8% and Facebook at 60.8%. What does that mean? If you want to communicate with your customers, utilizing digital marketing channels could significantly boost the number of potential customers your business could reach. If you’re just getting started, now is the perfect time to start marketing for your startup!
Source: Campaign Monitor
Marketing Your Startup Business Creates Authenticity in a Increasingly Distrusting World
According to a Havas Group report in 2021, almost 70% of consumers do not trust advertisements they see. Even worse? Those same consumers distrust 71% of brands. So where does authenticity fit in? Businesses without an established brand, say little or no social media profiles, lack of a website, minimal or no advertising, no testimonials – nothing to point to your business’s legitimacy means that your business is hard to trust. In other words, how can customers believe your startup business can solve their problem or provide a solution when your marketing is nonexistent? The short answer: building trust with consumers starts with marketing.
Sources: Entrepreneur, MarketingDive, Havas Group
Okay, if you didn’t know before, we’re certain you understand now: marketing is essential for your startup. But let’s face it, it’s really hard to not get overwhelmed by the long marketing to-do lists. There’s web design, and print marketing, and social media, and graphic design, and PPC, and SEO, and wait, what do all these acronyms mean, and how do you learn and execute all these marketing channels AND run your business . . . ?
That’s where we come in. As a small business, we understand the challenges that small business owners face, especially when you’re first starting out. Whether you’re trying to stand out in a crowded market, unsure of how to connect with your target customers, or want to establish a trusted brand, we’d love to answer your questions about taking your startup marketing to the next level.
Marketing Phobia: It’s A Real Thing!
When you run a business, you have to market yourself. Period! But many businesses do not do this continually. Why? Marketing Phobia! Some may say that it’s not a real thing but it is actually true. Throughout the course of every year, we run into people all the time that are scared to market their organization. It may sound silly, however there are some important reasons for it.
1. The business owner just doesn’t know where to start.
Getting started can be overwhelming. A well constructed marketing plan can relieve this anxiety and put your business on a clear path for success. Some first steps: Define where you want to go with your business, identify who your target audience is, and determine a proper budget for your business. This is critical knowledge for you to have as you decide on how to construct your plan.
2. Misconception on cost.
Business owners create in their own minds some pretty grandiose price tags when it comes to marketing. When in reality, they may be way off. This happens many times because they hear what X person is spending or what Y company spent. But that’s not you or your business. The cost of what your company would need to spend to reach your goals could be a fraction of what someone else paid. Marketing towards your goals and your desired results can paint an accurate picture of what your true costs will be and not a figure from someone else’s experience.
3. Fear of success.
Yes, that’s right, the fear of success. Many business owners actually do not market their business because they fear they may gain too much business. Understandably, this one can keep a business owner up at night. However, you have to put your name out there and keep it foremost in people’s minds, so they know you exist and can call upon you whenever they need you. It can definitely bring in more business, but if you have a well constructed plan on how to handle the growth without sacrificing your quality and customer service, you can face this fear!
4. You may have had bad experiences with marketing companies in the past.
This one is big, whether it was a personal experience or one you heard from a third party. Unfortunately, the reality is, there are some marketing firms out there that are less than stellar. We’ve seen, however, there are a lot more that are really good at what they do and are worth every penny invested. The key to overcoming this issue is to do your homework as an owner. Get references, talk with the team who will be working with you, understand what they can do for you, and look for a team who holds transparency and accountability at the center of your relationship.
Anyone can overcome marketing phobia. It takes having that satisfying relationship with the right marketing company to help you get past your fears. If you find a marketing company that will partner with you throughout your journey of growth, we promise you’ll be glad you made the investment.
Benefits Of Email Marketing For Small Businesses
Email is a tool most people use everyday. Email marketing is a cost effective solution to directly communicate with your customers, especially for small businesses. Whether it be a monthly newsletter, “Happy Birthday” message or seasonal specials, sending emails to your clients or prospects can be a great way to increase brand awareness and help drive sales. Here are five benefits of email marketing for small businesses:
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Increased Awareness
Email marketing is an easy way to stay in front of your target audience. Send them messages to stay on top of their mind. Be consistent for the best results. If your email marketing schedule is inconsistent, people might not remember your business and will be less likely to open the message. Keep your messages fun and relevant for best results.
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Consistent Communication
Like mentioned above, it’s important to send out your messages consistently. Whether it’s once or twice a month or quarterly, make sure you have a plan. You don’t want to send too many emails and appear annoying but you also want to stay in front of them. Sending out an email once or twice a year is not going to be an effective solution for your marketing plan.
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Increased Website Traffic
It’s important to have strong call to actions in your emails. Often times, an important call to action would be sending recipients to your website. This needs to be done strategically. You can’t just send them to your home page. Which page is going to have the most relevant information? It could be a service page, a product page, or the contact page. Send them to a page where they would be expecting to go based off the information in the email and a page that will give them necessary information to increase conversions.
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Build Credibility
People are more likely to open a message from a sender they know. Make sure subject lines are relevant so the recipients can see who you are and how you can help them. You don’t want your messages to look like spam. Know your readers and make sure your content is relevant to the people receiving the message. All of these things build credibility for your business and can help increase sales through your email marketing. Get people to trust your business.
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Cost Effective Option
The benefits of email marketing can be more cost effective than other marketing efforts. For an even more cost effective solution, collect emails from your customers and potential customers to build an email list so you don’t need to purchase a list. This will lead to best results and ROI as you’ve already established credibility and a relationship with these recipients.
Importance of Digital Advertising
Nearly everything is digital in this day and age. Buying products and chatting with your loved ones is easily accessible, and so is advertising for your business. Here are some important digital advertising tools to enhance your business’ marketing strategy.
YouTube Pre-Roll
Also known as in-stream video advertising, pre-roll ads are a great tool to get your business out there. You know when you go to watch a video on YouTube and an advertisement pops up before or during your video that gives you the “Skip Ad” option? That could be your business’ advertisement! Most people aren’t a fan of commercials. But if they’re done well, they provide an entertaining and helpful break, which may lead new consumers your way. There are three main types of pre-roll advertising your business can use:
- Skippable video ads: this option follows a pay-per-view model, so you pay when the viewer watches the entire ad, or when they reach 30 seconds. This method gives users the option to watch the video after five seconds.
- Non-skippable video ads: these video ads are 15-20 seconds long and, of course, are unable to be skipped by viewers. This method also follows the pay-per-view option.
- Bumper ads: these are non-skippable and the video is six seconds long, but they follow a pay-per-1000-view model
Pay-Per-Click Ads
PPC, or Pay-Per-Click ads, is a method in which you pay a fee each time your online advertisement is clicked on. The most popular way to use PPC is through search engine advertising. This means we place your ads in a search engine’s (like Google) sponsored links when someone searches a keyword related to your product or service. This is an extremely cost-effective tool because you’re only paying when a user reaches your website from the ad. It’s also measurable and targeted, so you get to choose the demographic that you are trying to reach and you’re able to see what your ROI (return on investment) is.
Social Media Ads
Paying for advertisements on social media is a common and useful tool for your business. The benefits of this over organic social media posting is that if you are trying to market a current special or limited-time product, or even just general advertising, it pushes the advertisement out to more people than it would organically. By using a mix of paid and organic ads, your business is sure to flourish on social media. Popular forms of paid advertising on social media use Facebook and Instagram, but Twitter and LinkedIn are also good options.
Retargeting Ads
This method allows you to show targeted ads to users who have visited your website and haven’t completed a conversion like a contact form, download a file, or purchase an item. Marketers use this type of digital advertising to track codes that show users your business’ advertisement on relevant sites or places they frequently visit.
There are a ton of beneficial ways to use digital advertising for your business’ marketing strategy. If you have questions about these marketing tools or want to learn more, don’t hesitate to contact Paragon Marketing Group. Call us today at (262) 443-9092.
Creative Marketing Ideas For Spring
Is the thought of warmer weather springing up creative thoughts and ideas for your business? Flowers aren’t the only thing that are preparing to bloom this season – your business can, too! As winter comes to a close, we step out of hermit mode and are ready to leap into something exciting. Here are some creative marketing ideas for your business to try out this upcoming spring season.
Be Local
While it’s important to maintain your online presence, it’s equally important to be present in your local community. Check out the calendar for upcoming events that your business can partake in. Even if your business doesn’t have anything to do with a certain event outright, it’s a great way to get your name out there. For example, if your hometown has a farmer’s market coming up, don’t be afraid to ask to set up a table. You can hand out refreshments or have a game of cornhole for people to play while also creating a space to start up a conversation about your products and services. This is a great way to build connections!
Use Unique Holidays To Your Advantage
From National Lumpy Rug Day to National Awkward Moments Day, there are a ton of unconventional holidays that you can use to market your business. Not only can this easily create more content for your business, but it’s a fun and unique way to interact with your customers.
Host A Challenge
Who doesn’t love a little friendly competition? Hosting a challenge is a wonderful way to bring your customers together and to bring in new ones! If you’re a bar or restaurant owner, host a challenge for people to create their own signature dish. If you’re a marketing agency, challenge people to write a blog post every day for two weeks. This way you can push your clients creatively while also getting the chance to know them on a more personal level.
Get Visual
Did you know that visuals increase a viewer’s desire to engage by 80%? Spring is the perfect time to step outside of your comfort zone by trying out bright, new colors and fun animations for your business’ social media content. Use graphics, pictures, and videos to relay important messages to your clients instead of just regular text posts. You can also use graphics in your email marketing and more conventional marketing like flyers and postcards.
These are just a few of many fun and creative marketing ideas to boost your business’ strategy this spring. Don’t be afraid to step outside of the box and try something new. If you aren’t sure where to start with graphic design or need help revamping your social media, contact us today! (262) 443-9092
Why Personalized Marketing Is Important
When trying to grow a business, some think that casting a net to a large audience gives them the highest chance of obtaining new customers, but did you know that 80% of consumers are more likely to buy from a company that provides a customized experience? If you’re looking to attract consumers and expand your business, personalized marketing is the way to go, and here’s why…
What Is Personalized Marketing?
Personalized marketing, or one-on-one marketing, is a strategy targeting individuals based on their past behaviors and interests. For example, when you’re watching a YouTube video or online shopping, you’ll get ads for something you have searched for in the past. You may also get emails from your favorite online shop with the clothing items you left sitting in your cart.
This kind of marketing is done by gathering customer data from survey feedback, loyalty program information, social media and website engagement, and more.
Benefits
Not only is personalization a win for your customers, but it’s a win for your business, too.
Increased Customer Loyalty
People like to feel valued and remembered! By individualizing things like email marketing, your customers are more likely to make another purchase. Did you know that 65% of a company’s business comes from repeat customers? You create more revenue by keeping current customers happy instead of spending money to acquire new customers.
Better Content
This one can often be overlooked, but is extremely important. By knowing what your customers like, you can create content that is catered to them. In other words, you can bring personality to your content while being engaging and relevant.
Better Marketing ROI
Personalized marketing is actually more cost-effective than traditional advertising. Sending a general ad out will not guarantee the majority of the audience will have a use for the service or product, limiting your return. Even if it means sending it to fewer people, you’re more likely to bring in higher revenue with personalized ads. According to this study, personalized marketing can increase sales and deliver up to 8x the ROI (return on investment) on what you spend on marketing.
Examples
There are many ways to practice one-on-one marketing, and some will work better for your business than others! Here are some examples to spark some ideas.
Email Marketing
Not only does email marketing have the greatest reach to customers, but it’s customizable, personable, and measurable. You can use impactful email subject lines, refer to customers by their name, and include content that they might enjoy. The best part is email marketing allows you to see who is opening your emails, what links they’re clicking on within the email, and where they go to when they visit your website.
Customer Surveys
Although you may already have access to customer’s information through Google Analytics, ad campaign reports, social media analytics, and SEO (search engine optimization), you can get even more focused information. Don’t be afraid to send out a survey to your customers to ask how they feel about your current service and what they want to see from you. You can also ask for general questions like their age, gender, and geographical location, to better cater to them.
Loyalty Programs
According to this study, customers who engage in high-performing loyalty programs are twice as likely to increase their frequency of purchases. Your company can provide customers with coupons, special offers, or discounts in exchange for their loyalty to your business.
Retargeting Ads
Unlike regular banner ads, retargeting ads allow your business to show targeted ads to customers who have already visited your website who didn’t complete a conversion like leaving an item in their shopping cart, filling in a contact form, etc. Retargeting ads can increase sales and improve brand awareness when done correctly. Every time customers see an ad with your company’s logo, the more they’ll recognize your company and make a purchase. You can even retarget customers through Google or Facebook by uploading a list of customer emails you want to target.
By prioritizing one-one-one marketing, you’re putting your customers first. Not only will you build a better relationship with your customers, but they’ll want to keep coming back for more because they understand their value as a loyal customer to your company. If you have questions about personalized marketing, or want to up your marketing game, call Paragon Marketing Group. (262) 443-9092
3 Reasons You Should Update Your Video Marketing
When it comes to video marketing, it can be overwhelming to know where to start. There are so many places consumers view video today – billboards, social media, websites, TV, search engines, apps. Plus, people are no longer watching video just on their TVs or computers. Now it’s convenient to watch on smartphones, tablets, and even e-readers. Which is all the more reason it’s important to update your video marketing for your business.
Why Should You Update Your Video Marketing?
Here are three reasons you should update your video marketing now:
1. Your Aesthetics & Content Need A Refresh
Now if your video marketing hasn’t changed since the 1990s, you don’t need us to tell you they desperately need an update. But it’s not the 2000s or even 2010s anymore either, The Internet is constantly changing, and so should your online presence, video included. Are the people, the styles, the objects, or the technology in your videos outdated? A good way to find out is to put yourself in the following fictional scenario: If you were to approach a potential customer in person wearing the same style, showing the same objects, and using the same technology in your videos, would that customer be more focused on your appearance or your message?
Perhaps it’s not the tangible items that need to change in your video marketing. Is data or information in your video current? Today’s consumers are highly intelligent. With new information readily available online, having updated, accurate information in your video marketing is vital if you want customers to take your business seriously.
Source: NG Production Films
2. Your Customer Base Has Expanded
It’s certainly good news when your customer base is expanding. But with growth comes change. Remember when we mentioned there are so many ways for people to consume video today? That means your video marketing net should widen to capture more demographics and types of people. While every business has its target demographic, limiting your video marketing to attract a narrow set of people increases your potential to lose sales and customers.
A large part of online video consumption comes from newer social media platforms. TikTok didn’t exist until 2016. Stories and Reels are newer options to share video on Facebook and Instagram. And let’s not forget about LinkedIn. As of 2019, LinkedIn is the most trusted social platform for credible content. Yet only about 1% of users shared posts then! Consider that a huge opportunity to establish your business as a trusted authority in your industry using video content.
3. Your Videos Are Getting Lost in the Shuffle
Have you heard of the term “ad fatigue”? Elevato describes it as “a phenomenon that occurs when an audience becomes desensitized to an ad set causing ad efficiency to decrease.” In simpler terms, people are tired of seeing ads. This reinforces our earlier point: video is everywhere. But as a business who wants to stand out in the crowd rather than get lost in the shuffle, your video ads need to be different. How? By telling a story. Stop selling! People have been telling stories since the beginning of time. Your video marketing might have current content and subject matter, but if you’re trying to sell rather tell, you probably need to update your videos.
Another element that can impact your videos’ reach relates to branding. Video marketing is a great way to reinforce your brand using your logo, brand colors, and even tone. Does your company have a mission? Make sure every video you put out there reflects it. Does your company sell a humorous product? Or is your company a non-profit with a serious mission? Whatever tone your business adopts, be sure to create video content that aligns with your company’s vision.
Source: The Social Shake-Up
If there’s one takeaway here, it’s that video isn’t going anywhere. Review your video marketing and ask yourself the following questions: Is the subject matter or information out of date? Are your videos failing to capture more demographics? Do your videos reflect your company’s mission and vision? Is your brand obvious in your videos?
If you’re ready to update your video marketing, consider contacting your local marketing agency today.
Why Marketing Your Startup Business Matters
If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve started a business, or maybe you’ve been a small business owner for the last couple years. And you know better than anyone that starting, much less marketing your startup business, is no easy task. You can’t just perform one simple task. Owning a business means wearing a lot of hats, juggling a lot of balls, and maybe coming up with a better metaphor to express the challenges a small business owner faces.
Sometimes the to-do list of a startup business owner is so long, marketing might not seem all that important. With everything else you’re supposed to manage, could marketing your startup really make that much of a difference?
Millions of Small Businesses Are Vying for Consumers’ Attention
As of 2020, there were 31.7 million small businesses in the United States (Over 1 million were startups between 2019 and 2020 alone!) And guess what? Every one of those 31.7 million businesses want a slice of the customer pie. If you don’t want your startup business to get lost in the shuffle of 30 million other businesses, there’s something key you can do to build your brand and reach those potential customers with whom you want to share your message, service, or product. Come on, you know where we’re going with this. Let’s say it together: “Marketing!”
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy
Digital Marketing Is the Primary Mode of Communication between Small Businesses and Their Customers
In a survey of over 1,000 small business owners, results clearly indicated the top two modes of communication between businesses and their customers were email at 71.8% and Facebook at 60.8%. What does that mean? If you want to communicate with your customers, utilizing digital marketing channels could significantly boost the number of potential customers your business could reach. If you’re just getting started, now is the perfect time to start marketing for your startup!
Source: Campaign Monitor
Marketing Your Startup Business Creates Authenticity in a Increasingly Distrusting World
According to a Havas Group report in 2021, almost 70% of consumers do not trust advertisements they see. Even worse? Those same consumers distrust 71% of brands. So where does authenticity fit in? Businesses without an established brand, say little or no social media profiles, lack of a website, minimal or no advertising, no testimonials – nothing to point to your business’s legitimacy means that your business is hard to trust. In other words, how can customers believe your startup business can solve their problem or provide a solution when your marketing is nonexistent? The short answer: building trust with consumers starts with marketing.
Sources: Entrepreneur, MarketingDive, Havas Group
Okay, if you didn’t know before, we’re certain you understand now: marketing is essential for your startup. But let’s face it, it’s really hard to not get overwhelmed by the long marketing to-do lists. There’s web design, and print marketing, and social media, and graphic design, and PPC, and SEO, and wait, what do all these acronyms mean, and how do you learn and execute all these marketing channels AND run your business . . . ?
Whether you’re trying to stand out in a crowded market, unsure of how to connect with your target customers, or want to establish a trusted brand, talk to your local marketing agency about taking your startup marketing to the next level.