Welcome to the digital age where every interaction with fans and potential customers can be tracked! Here are a few best practices we recommend when it comes to executing successful online campaigns so you can get the most out of your digital marketing efforts.

1. Don’t try to talk to “everyone”

Figure out who your target audiences are! Start with the ideal buyer for your products and services - what are their interests? Where do they go when they need information? What questions might they have when they start to research for a service like yours? As an example - marketing to a son or daughter that makes decisions on which retirement community to place their parents is different than how one would market to seniors who make those decisions for themselves.

2. Find the ideal platform

Social media is a great way to engage your ideal customers - but you have to know which one to focus on and how to leverage the different tools and functions each platform has. One of the keys to executing successful social media campaigns is consistency. You will want to plan your resources around being able to manage these platforms over a period of time rather than being active short term but eventually lose the interest of your followers. There are clever ways to target your ideal customers on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google +. Pinterest on the other hand might not be relevant for all businesses, but highly valuable for those that can produce highly visual content.

3. It’s not just about SEO 

We all know that in order to rank well (make it to the first page on Google when certain keywords are used), the practice of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is called for. However, merely buying keywords is not enough. In order to truly rise to the top of the first page, you must produce quality content that is worthy of being ranked. Once you have a few good pieces of content (e.g. blogs, whitepapers, case studies), don’t forget to post on Google +. Google likes Google - it gives those who are posting on Google + better SEO search ranking therefore increasing the visibility of your business.

4. Test and see how your target audience responds to your content

Unlike traditional marketing where you depend on TV and radio sales reps to give you a rate card on CPMs, digital marketing gives you full control. In the past, once an ad spot is ran, you can’t get your marketing dollars back. When it comes to digital marketing, you can choose to pay to promote the content that is already performing well. You can spend a little, but learn a lot about what type of content works well with your target audience.

5. Track your marketing efforts

You’ll want to track how your customers started engaging with you, all the way to when they visit your website or downloaded something that is worthwhile to them. Do you send out an e-newsletter weekly? You’ll want to know the open rate and click rates too. These are your prospects that are trying to learn more about your business. There are many software options that can help you track everything in one place. Hubspot is one of them.

6. Optimization and ROI

Many companies are able to execute some aspect of what is mentioned here, but the final piece of the puzzle is to make sure that you keep track of the final results – turning your marketing dollars and efforts into tangible, measurable customer acquisition and sales. Once the content you have produced starts to do the work for you, have your sales team follow through and reach out to them – find out what their needs are, see if they are ready to buy your products and services. The only way that you benefit from your digital marketing efforts is to have an equally strong sales team to follow up and close the deals.

Final word of caution - digital marketing success doesn’t happen overnight. Driving measurable results using predictive analysis and cutting edge tools keeps everyone on the same page. Make sure you have the right product and services that help you connect the dots. You will need to continue to fine tune various aspects of your marketing efforts to zero in on the right customer, the right message, and the right strategies to close the sale.