Online Marketing for The Small Business Entrepreneur
Recently I had the chance to catch up with Social Media expert and fellow entrepreneur Jared O’Toole of www.Under30CEO.com and multi-media marketing firm Shadow Concepts LLC. Jared shares his insights on how you as a small business entrepreneur can use online marketing to grow your business.
Online marketing is a very unique marketing strategy which requires expertise that most business owners and entrepreneurs simply do not possess. If you want your company to reap maximum rewards from an online marketing and advertising campaign, then it is essential you hire someone who is an expert in this field. Your company needs an online marketing expert for the same reasons that you would hire an accountant, lawyer, web designer or anyone else that possesses specific knowledge or skill set. Because they are the best at what they do and possess knowledge, methods and processes to get the job done in a cost effective manner.
According to O’Toole, many small business entrepreneurs make the mistake of thinking that because they have a Twitter, a You Tube, a Face book and a LinkedIn account they understand and can leverage social media. Due to the ease of entry into these online platforms many novices feel that they can achieve satisfactory results without paying for the advice, counsel, and experience of a professional online marketer. It literally takes five seconds to create a twitter account or publish your first blog post on tumblr. But the critical next step is talking about the right topics in the right context to the right people. You don’t just want conversations, you want conversations that will lead to opportunities and to achieve this, you need not only the right content but also the knowledge of where to play or post it so the right people see it and can respond to it.
Not knowing this basic principle has led many small business entrepreneurs to the wrong conclusion about social media and online marketing. O’Toole says, companies think that it is no problem to hop on these networks, start talking and get attention, and when the attention doesn’t materialize they wrongfully assume social media and online marketing is a big waste of time.
According to O’Toole, the simple solution is to bring in the pros and I couldn’t agree more. I tried to be a do-it-myself online marketer using Google pay-per-click, blogging, Facebook, twitter, and you tube account. What I found is that it takes A LOT of time to manage this marketing method, time that was instead better spent managing, growing and expanding my businesses. The first step is finding a professional company that specializes in online marketing and branding to help you define create and implement the strategies needed to build your online presence. These companies know the ins and outs of the online platforms and the strategies which are best suited to your business and customers base so you implement campaigns to drive results.
Do your research and ask the right questions before you hire a firm, be sure to look at past clients and ask for references and case studies. Also, ask the firm about Return-On-Investment (ROI) and how they plan to measure the campaign and its costs to drive desired results. In addition, interview them several times before you hire them to ensure they know you and understand your business. Once you are comfortable with them, engage them for a short campaign of about 3 months. If you are satisfied with the results, make the expenditure a permanent part of your budget. Online marketing is an important component of your overall branding, marketing and advertising budget and cannot be overlooked regardless of the size of your company. If you’re not online, you are falling behind!
Tags: entrepreneur advice, entrepreneur development, How To, marketing, small business consulting, young entrepreneurs
