2017 www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 1 we contents... present... the we‘get’digit@l Guide 1. Introduction A jargon-free guide to Social strategy and tools understanding social media and Company personality internet marketing in general Basic mistakes “Price is what you pay…. “You never get a second The business industry value is what you ‘get’” chance to make a first Warren Buffett impression.” 2. Goals and objectives Setting your goals and objectives When your potential customer Measuring and analysing ventures online to find out more about you and your business, it is 3. Coming up with a strategy absolutely critical that what they Situation analysis - where are you now? find provides a lasting impression SWOT analysis - your business and what influences it for the right reasons. Target Audience - who are you trying to reach? Keywords - the questions people want answered That is why online marketing for Value propositions - that little bit extra small business is now critical to attracting profitable customer Sample strategy ‘shopping’ list relationships. 4. The marketing mix Reading this guide will help you Content Marketing understand and make educated Website - is it up to scratch? decisions about your social media Email Marketing activity and digital marketing. eCRM Social Tools We can help you every step of Search Engine Marketing the way and working with us is an Mobile investment, not an expense. Offline promotion techniques www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 2 And who on earth are we? We just ‘get’ it! “I have been working as an “Carol (we’get’digit@l co-founder) “we’get’digit@l are a wonderful and eLearning consultant for the personifies the new business rare breed in the digital marketing we’get’digit@l team for several creed of random, open and space: they know marketing, they months now. The rapid growth of this supportive. She is SO knowledgeable, know design and they know how to We ‘get’ digital because we have been ‘doing’ digital since 1986! small company is due, in part, to the personable, detailed and generous. bring in the revenue. They have a 360 hard work and high energy that Mike and Carol could not have been more degree perspective and are an asset to So… that means that we actually do have the ‘ology, experience and Carol bring. They are providing a much supportive in educating a Marketing any business in a myriad of ways. Oh, passion to help you ‘get’ you digital too! needed service to small businesses Director in ‘what this means for and they are lovely to work with.” wishing to have an effective eCommerce business’ and introducing me to her We have been socially active on the internet since 1996, built many presence on the web. I’m excited most precious network of industry Al Tepper, Head of Digital, EMP PLC relationships online and reaped the benefits of this, both personally and about their plans to develop an online leading experts built up over many professionally. Which is what it’s all about, at the end of the day! Our academy to train-the-trainer in digital years. I look forward to a long term aim is to now help small businesses do the same. marketing. I recommend we’get’digit@l totally trustworthy relationship. Top “Carol is super-woman; a real to any company that is interested in qualities: Personable, Expert, High & wonderful person focussed growing their business using the World Integrity.” on digital world consultancy for Our experience in this digital industry has been nurtured and fed for Wide Web.” businesses. She has an open, random many years now and we have supported and helped many small Mark Jeffery - Director; Origen Private Equity and supportive mindset, is reliable, business professionals find their feet in a very confusing terrain; the Dr. Anthony Basiel, British Council - Group PLC passionate, and efficient and will bust internet. eLearning Consultant, Adobe Enterprises a gut to do what she says.” Not only do we have the experience but this is backed up by the neces- “Carol is a delight to work with Bob Hayward, Managing Director, Be More sary academic qualifications and testimonials. “The we’get’digit@l team understand and offers true value within the Effective Ltd how marketing works from doing online / e-marketing and social So, if you require a truly experienced, fun and passionate team to help it effectively for years. They also media space. Not only is she highly “we’get’digit@l are extremely hard you ‘get’ digital, you are on the right page! understand how social media can be knowledgeable with these areas, she working & diligent in all that they a cost effective tool to integrate into has a proven track record too. On take on, true professionals in their an effective digital marketing strategy a personal level, I’m not sure you’d field. I would recommend them for Call, email, tweet, text us at your convenience and we will respond because that’s what they do themselves. meet a friendlier person whose gift for their tenacity and exceptional high pretty fast… it’s what we do! A powerful proposition in this digital age. providing ‘nice touches’ is second to standards of work.” Highly Recommended.” none.” Here’s what a few other people say about we’get’digit@l… Simon Jeffries, MCSI, Director, European Dave Clarke, CEO, NRG Business Networks Mark Lennox, Founder, Only Marketing Jobs Sales, ABN AMRO www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 3 introduction... T N E M Due to the economic downturn, businesses are turning to financial 2012 to 2017... let’s look at the 5-year picture: efficiency, technology and the Web. However most don’t know how E to harness these channels effectively. Most of the current national Internet users have grown by 82%, or almost 1.7 billion and global economic situations are an opportunity for business people, since January 2012. That translates to almost 1 G million new users each day, or more than 10 new users professionals to help and influence their target market now and in the every second; future. Not only that, A More than 1.3 billion people started using social media N We’ve only been publishing mobile – that’s a rise of 88% in just five years, and equates to more than 8 new users every second; A social media user numbers since M The number of mobile connections in use grew by a January 2015, but users have whopping 2.2 billion, meaning that operators activated a net average of almost 14 new subscriptions every N grown by more than 50% in those second to deliver growth of 37%; O two years alone. More than 864 When we want to buy something or do business with someone today what’s the first thing we usually do? We I million people have started using go and check them out on the Internet. In the future our T online reputation will be vital to our ability to prosper. A social platforms via a mobile device Anyone we connect with is going to do a quick search T on the web about us and/or our company. ‘Online in the past 24 months, at a rate of Reputation Management’ is critical. WGD is U about making sure that anyone with a small business is almost 14 new users every second. able to understand the methods of engagement, creating P a fabulous reputation and then managing that reputation E now and for the future. Source: wearesocial.com R www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 4 SOCIAL STRAGEGY & TOOLS... S P I H According to Scott Klososky who has been building successful What we are trying to do online is create a 1-2-1 relationship. technology companies since he was a teenager: The whole point of digital marketing is to create the tightest relationship S you can with a customer and there are five elements to support N Social technologies are having huge impact on the world and they fall this creation: into three categories. O one... Web properties such as your website as a platform Social Relevancy I two... Social Technology Strategy T When prospective customers search they don’t just want to see your A website any more. They want to see what people are saying about you. three... Mobile Strategy L Social Media These first three are the ‘net’ with which you catch your customers E R LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, SlideShare, Flickr, Twitter, Facebook etc. four... Traffic how do we drive traffic into the net? G Social Networking five... Measurements you have to measure the results always so that you understand what is happening and maximise N Every time you use social media to connect and communicate in some returns. kind of conversation this is social networking. I T A E R C www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 5 COMPANY PERSONALITY... E C I Your company now has a way to express a personality and an opinion. The trick is to make sure that you are creating the right voice. O In the past this voice was a newsletter but now there are so many more Most companies and individuals are not good at doing this. You also channels; have to make sure that you are providing the right content, and that V this content is valuable to your customers. But remember they all facebook have to go somewhere and that is ultimately your website; it is essential T therefore that it conveys the right tone of voice. H twitter G blog I R LinkedIn E YOUR instagram H WEBSITE T YouTube pinterest E T All of these are used to create an organisational voice. google+ A E It is critical as a business that you do this to the extent that it will enable your customers to believe that your ‘voice’ has high R value and they will want to hear your voice. This will inspire them to speak to you or respond to you. So you provide them with the neces- C sary calls to action and links and start engaging. www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 6 BASIC MISTAKES... Tone of voice: People don’t pay attention to the ‘tone’ of their It’s not as simple as it seems. voice. What should it be? Clever, sarcastic, humorous, fun, corporate, etc. You must pay attention to your tone of voice. Whilst it is relatively simple to set up accounts on all the social channels on the internet, it is not so easy to create the right ‘voice’. Content: The recipe for the content mix is typically not good. You The businesses that succeed with social media are the ones who have need to create as much value as possible in the content of what you found an online voice that resonates. They are creative. They tell good write on the Internet, this could include links to third party websites and stories. They listen. They inform. They encourage feedback. You can relevant feeds from trusted sources. have an organisational voice but you must make sure that it is the right S voice. WGD can help you plan and teach you how to create the right E Channel: Choosing the right channels. The right channel will voice for your company. depend on your audience. K A Measurement: It is vital to measure at all times the impact of IMPORTANT NOTE: your activity. It is essential to monitor your activity and have the right T procedures in place. If you don’t keep track of your time and the ROI Before reading on, PLEASE bear in mind that not all of the information S on this time, then you are not able to make educated decisions moving in this guide will relevant to you and your business. Don’t think that it is forward about the right places in which to concentrate your efforts. too much to take on board. I M As you read think about which of the tools will benefit your business. How important is it and how much time you are willing to allocate to it. C Also bear in mind that with Internet marketing the set-up will be much I S harder than the ongoing management. Once you have set everything up it just gets easier and easier, however you do have to have a plan A for management as well. B www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 7 g N n eti U... Small businesses... k O ...and the internet O l Marefit YOU! a n Y ATI DigiWtILL beALL OF ... there are more small businesses than there are large ones! In the Potential buyers can speak to existing buyers UK alone there are nearly 5 million! There is a massive opportunity for Engage with buyers R small businesses to sit alongside the larger ones and actually have as much of a presence as their corporate competitors. Yet small business Engage with other business professionals E professionals are STILL way behind the times. Keep buyers informed ... and so on. N Very few business professionals are using digital channels to reach The communication channels and advantages are endless. E their audience effectively. There is a massive opportunity now to G As an agent ... you can use social media to truly understand be one of the first what is going on out there. You can gain a reputation for really and lead the way ‘knowing your stuff’ about business related topics in your area. D A This will place you at the centre of your universe and the people who Any industry can benefit immensely from engaging effectively with you have influenced will in turn advocate you to their friends and E clients. If you engage properly you currently could increase your family and even strangers. enquiry levels by 200-300% over a year. L It is about sharing your knowledge and helping others so that you “The power of social media networking is until now been E will be recommended whenever your ‘followers’, for example, hear greatly underestimated and it presents superb opportunities about someone looking for a business. It really IS as simple as that. L to help sell your business. Most big businesses have a social media strategy and I would recommend anyone selling a P The problem is ... because we are ‘blinded with technology’ the business on-line to also employ a social media plan.” objectives and even setting them become blurred, distant and P Nick Marr Director of Homes go Fast and The Little House Company. downright lost. Step back, take a deep breath and understand that RI If you are a business owner ... and have customers you can understand! and stakeholders, then where better to build and keep in touch with T your ‘community’ than online? You can create a digital networking WGD will help you understand in the simplest way possible and in easy-to-learn language. environment where owners of those properties can interact. www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 8 coming up with a strategy... When someone says to you in business what “What is your strategy?” what is your first reaction? ? Do you know exactly what you have planned? Do you kind of have a plan or no idea whatsoever? who Typically for most people in small businesses it is the latter. However having some kind of a plan these days is essential. And to have that plan broken down into a strategy – what, who, how and when is key to moving into the digital world. how If you don’t then a lot of time (not to mention money) can be wasted. We are not saying that you have to be rigid and we are not saying that the plan and strategy has to be extensive... however some sort of idea of targets when objectives methods should be understood and decided upon. The following pages will help. www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 9 SITUATION ANALYSIS... SWOT ANALYSIS... G N I G This is exactly what it says it is. Analysing your current situation: Strengths A Where you are now? Weaknesses G Opportunities What you are doing now in your business and is everything you are N doing really working for you? Threats E This doesn’t have to be complicated, but you do have to be honest and focussed on exactly what it is you are doing to attain and retain What are the strengths and weaknesses in your business? E (get and keep!) business. R Your strength may be that you don’t have a lot of staff; however this Understanding the environment you operate in and what may also be your weakness! O influences this is a key part of situation analysis. What are the opportunities out there that you know about and should be F In the digital world it is really important to ‘sense and respond’ reaching for, and are not, for whatever reason? E because of the rapid changes in customer behaviour. What are the threats? Threats may come in many forms. Competitors, B The power of the Internet now enables us to do in depth research and politics, technology even. listen to our customers before we engage with them so that we N truly understand what it is they want. Really research and understand where you are and what is around you that can affect you. Take a step back and at the same time E look deep inside. T S I L www.wegetdigital.co.uk | Follow us: @WeGetDigital 10