Success is not by accident but a carefully crafted journey. I previously wrote about the first 30 days of planning the marketing of your small business or newly established department. In the article last month, I included a number of important items you should pay attention to during the first 30 days.
These can be done in about 60 hours that first month:
A Lead Generation Plan
Identify Buyer Personas of your Customers
Optimize Key Words
Assess Website
ID Key Words and SEO for Google and More
Assess Content
Post on Social Media
Create a Lead Funnel
Prepare eMail Template
Look at Analytics
Set Up LinkedIn Campaign
Prepare Contact Lead CRM System
Qualify and Nurture Leads
Assess Contacts Responding/Clicking
So that's the first 30 days. It's not an all or nothing proposition either. You are free to do some of the above but your future sales goals cry out that you should try to do all of it or at least do a little of each. I recently posted on social media that there are a few things that you can get by with like:
Do a bio on yourself in a friendly written blog
Increase your posting activity on LinkedIn and other social media. Keeping people up to date on your activity, may prompt colleagues to contact you
Get interviewed and then post it
Comment on others social media postings; get involved in the conversation
You can do this or have someone do it for you. It will take an experienced marketing person 60 hours that first month. For less experienced workers, you might double that time because they will be researching the "how-to" while executing.
I recently interviewed a co-founder of a startup and the outcome was productive. She reposted the interview on her LinkedIn personal profile and someone she hadn't spoken with in years saw the interview and reached out to her via the internet. That person happened to see something on her computer and made a choice to reach out with a work request. EUREKA!
Moving on to Continue the 60 Day Plan
Over these next 30 days, you want to lay out your content calendar, continue with the work you started in the first 30 days, like campaigns and website enhancements, along with postings on social media. This next phase is really about fine tuning what you started in phase 1 of your first 30 days and nailing down your content.
Fine Tuning Your Written Materials
Content
A content calendar will make a great deal of sense now because you realize you need content to call attention to your business by blogging, posting, website, and emailing. Think about a few categories of information you want to share: educational, leisure, and business related articles and posts. Get your ideas into some format, preferably a calendar format or use the free version of Buffer that I recommended in my previous edition of this newsletter
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Analytics
You have had a previous 30 days of email and LinkedIn campaigns being sent out to your consumers, if you followed my suggestions or already had something started. If you haven't been looking at the metrics, now is the time to see who are the people clicking into your links placed in the email campaigns; who is missing, and what ideas will generate more content for potential customers you want visiting your website or LinkedIn page.
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Importance of Having an Online Presence
Personal Branding
In today’s digital age, having an online presence is crucial for personal branding. A website allows individuals to showcase their skills, experience, and personality, making it easier for potential clients or employers to find and assess them.
With a well-crafted website, you can establish yourself as an expert in your field, build your professional reputation, and significantly increase your visibility online.
This digital footprint not only highlights your competencies but also sets you apart in a crowded marketplace, making it easier for clients to connect with you
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Visibility and Reach
A website provides a powerful platform to reach a wider audience and enhance your online visibility. By optimizing your website for search engines, you can improve your chances of being discovered by people searching for your services or expertise. Effective SEO strategies can transform your website into a magnet for potential clients, driving traffic and increasing your reach exponentially.
This means that when someone types relevant keywords into a search engine, your website is more likely to appear in the results, leading to new business opportunities, collaborations, and career advancements.
Growth Opportunities
Having a website can unlock new growth opportunities for both businesses and individuals. An online presence allows businesses to reach a broader audience, increase their customer base, and expand their market share.
For individuals, a website serves as a platform to promote their services, attract new clients, and boost their earning potential.
By leveraging the internet, you can tap into a global market, offering your products or services to a diverse and expansive audience, thereby accelerating your growth trajectory.
Credibility and Trust
A professional website is a cornerstone of credibility and trust. It allows businesses and individuals to demonstrate their expertise, showcase their work, and provide valuable information to their audience.
This professional online presence helps build trust with potential clients or customers, increasing the likelihood of converting visitors into loyal clients.
A well-designed website, complete with testimonials, case studies, and detailed service descriptions, can significantly enhance your reputation and establish you as a trustworthy and reliable entity in your field.
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Support for your website
You want to ensure you have someone knowledgeable looking at your website to address what updates are needed on your website to keep it running. It shouldn't take more than 1-2 hours per month to ensure all is in proper form.
Be sure to have a blog page so you can post content. Here's the big deal about content. People like to read educational, leisure, and business stories. The documents you write need key words in the article so that when someone does a search on google using specific words, you want to be sure you are using these words in your content so that it comes up in their search. Of course, there is more to it as you delve deeper, but the best thing you can do is find words that you know your potential customers and competitors use in their conversations. That's the basics!
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Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Now is a good time to explore what tools are out there to help you when writing to ensure key words are being applied to your articles. This is so that you are better positioned on google and so people find your articles. SurferSEO is one such tool that allows you to write and apply key words. It monitors as you write and tells you which words to ensure are included in the article and how many times. I know it's crazy, and doing it can be a bit of a hardship but you want to be in it to win it! Seeing that you meet the requirement with SEO tools helps plenty. You can find that some website developing tools like WordPress or Squarespace helps with this as well. Considering the superbowl ad that Squarespace has this year, they must be doing well by their customers.
Prioritization
Create a prioritization system because there are many thing you could do. There is a good amount of content needed so it is best to consider a decision matrix based on making the best impact.
High impact, low effort: Immediate execution
High impact, high effort: Strategic planning
Low impact, low effort: Potential delegation
Low impact, high effort: Reconsider or eliminate
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Conclusion
By the end of the 60-day plan, you will be marketing your startup or new offering within a well developed content-driven working model that is promoting your business. If you are persistent, you will perfect a routine, find shortcuts, be able to repurpose material and get the marketing and lead generation done.
Remember: Success is not about perfection, but persistent, purposeful action.