We get a lot of digital marketing questions here at Sensei Marketing.
I’ve tried to answer the most frequently asked questions below but beware – there often are no easy answers, never mind right answers.
To truly be able to answer questions to help grow your business, I need to understand your business better.
So (shake shake), all is to be taken with a grain of salt.
Here we go:
What exactly is Digital Marketing as opposed to Regular Marketing?
Digital marketing is pretty much anything that’s online or web-based: PPC, SEO, email, web design, etc. Traditional marketing is still seen as those offline marketing activities: print, direct mail, radio, TV, etc.
The two types are definitely converging, but many agencies may only offer one or the other.
What’s it like working with an Agency?
This is obviously different based on the Agency you’re working with. At a lot of marketing companies you’ll be given an Account Manager who will be your single point of contact.
We’re a little different in that we’re small, so the people who you work with and communicate with will be the same people actually doing the work as well.
What Social Media should I be doing?
This is a biggie. People want to know what the social media secret sauce is. The truth is, I don’t have it, and either do the droves of social media experts, thought leaders, and influencers.
Your social media strategy needs to align with your business strategy, and until I understand that better I can’t tell you how to do social media.
Do you want to focus on customer service? Content marketing? Lead generation? Like any marketing undertaking, your social media goals should align with your business goals.
Do I need SEO?
It depends what “kind” of SEO we’re talking about. As I’ve written about before, traditional SEO (on/off page optimization, linkbuilding, etc.) has evolved to also include SOCO SEO – Social and Content.
The new SEO includes the traditional optimization and linkbuilding tactics, as well as fresh, valuable, and shareable Content, as well as the marketing of your brand and content using Social Media.
Do I think businesses need and benefit from this type of SEO? Yes I do.
I tried Google AdWords but it was a waste of money, could you do better?
This is always a loaded question. To get the best results from PPC/SEM or Google AdWords, you need the 3 “E’s”: Expertise, Experience, Effort.
You need the training and expertise, a certain amount of experience, and a lot of time and effort to be able to produce successful PPC results. Most businesses that fail with PPC usually lack in at least two of these things.
How do you get a lot of Twitter followers?
Again this is something where there is no secret sauce. It’s about writing and curating valuable content, being a strategic follower, and building relationships.
Here’s the outline of my own social media philosophy, and my list of Twitter tips.
What’s the one thing I could do that my competitors probably aren’t doing?
I answered this in a previous blog.
Should I be using Hubspot?
Marketing automation tools like Hubspot are not a panacea. Yes, they can automate email drip campaigns, let you create landing pages, and help track leads and optimize your website.
But they’re not tools that automate your marketing.
You still need people to write and design emails, run split and multivariate tests, and use analytics to make intelligent marketing decisions.
In other words, they’re tools that should complement your marketing team, not the other way around.
How often should I update my website?
For 99% of companies, their website is their top salesperson. It’s where prospects go for more information on your company, to learn more about your products and services, to contact your company, and possibly to make a purchase.
And just like you invest a lot in your top salesperson, you should also invest in keeping your website (and it’s content) in tip-top-highly-converting-shape.
Can I afford a Digital Agency like Sensei Marketing?
Agencies come in all shapes and sizes, and serve clients in all shapes and sizes. Generally speaking, we work with clients who have several thousand dollars in marketing budget per month.
Have any more questions? Tweet us at @robertclarkey