Winter has gone and Spring is here, with everyone dreaming about having some drinks in the garden with a BBQ. However, before any of that can happen there is that old tradition…Spring Cleaning. It’s time to do all those tedious tasks that you have been putting off all winter and get everything organised for the Summer ahead.
This goes the same for your marketing, you need to complete a whole review of your marketing strategy to check everything is spic and span before the summer arrives. Creationz Marketing is going to share a few things for you to go away and check before summer comes.
Check your Marketing Audit: This should be done across the whole board – Web and Print. Is your branding consistent across all platforms? Are you actively and regularly using social media? Is your printed marketing still in good condition? These are the sort of questions you need to begin to ask yourself to ensure that your business is ready for a strong summer.
Is social taking up your time? Having social media in your marketing strategy can often feel like you are juggling too many balls at once, and it becomes very hard to stay consistent across the board. If this is the case, there are scheduling tools that are available to you which allow you to schedule a week’s worth of content in just under an hour. Leaving you with plenty of free time to be social, liking, commenting and joining in the conversation.
Take the rubbish out: When building a business, it is common that you will come up with a number of different ideas of how to expand and grow. This often leads to a lot of great things; however, it can also lead to things that really don’t end up working. Start to look at these things and ask yourself is it working? Is it having the desired outcome that you had hoped? If not get rid of it, this can be hard to do as you have spent time on things, but it may be the case that your time could be better spent elsewhere.
Go Shopping: If your marketing strategy is outdated, incomplete or just lacking something intriguing then think about shopping around for some new designers or marketing specialists. Getting new marketing material made on a regular basis is crucial in an effective strategy as you need to stay fresh and new in the eyes of your audience. A marketing specialist can help with integrating a social media strategy, building a new website, creating a business blog, or doing a complete brand rework.
Tidy-up your website: It is no secret that sometimes we often neglect our websites, leaving it at the back of the queue of jobs to do. But if you let much-needed changes fall through the cracks, your website can easily collect dust and damage your brand. With all that has happened in the last year the chances are a lot of things that have changed within your business. It may be something has small as opening hours being different or a complete rebrand. Either way these changes need to be obvious throughout your website.
Organise your inbox: When you are a busy business owner things like emails, paperwork and other documents pile up. It is easy to become disorganised, emails stack up, and before you know if your inbox is a disaster. Use the Spring clean as an opportunity to purge into your inbox. Yes, it is a brain-numbing job and very time-consuming, but you’ll feel a lot more organised once the job is done.
Spring cleaning your marketing and workspace can make you feel refreshed and organized. Not only will your workplace look better, but you might also feel better, too. Creationz are always here to help with any questions or issues you may have! Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team.
It’s no surprise to see why video marketing is so popular these days – Firstly, it’s an extremely easy-to-digest format that gives our eyes a rest from the overabundance of textual posts we see on social media. This would explain why we reportedly watch a billion hours of YouTube a day (https://blog.youtube/press/). In 2020, 92% of marketers say that video is an important part of their marketing strategy. This has grown from 78% in 2015 (Smartinsights.com), showing that the importance of video is only growing and is therefore crucial in any effective marketing plan.
Here we will offer some tips and tricks for marketeers to create and share video, highlighting 5 reasons why video is so crucial.
Why Video?
Video format is much loved by the
majority of audiences as It is engaging and easy to digest, giving a real-life
idea of what is going on. With Marketeers loving it because you can portray
emotion leading to a higher level of interaction and in turn ROI – With
text/image posts it is often extremely hard to trigger any emotion in your
audience, which is why video marketing is fantastic. Video is also very
accessible to anyone with internet access, both to watch and to produce. While
there is certainly a trend towards higher quality video on a professional
level, anyone can hop onto their laptop and create their own video in under an
hour.
5 Stats that prove Marketeers
need Video
Search Engine Optimization
Search engines love video content due to the fact that they view them as high-quality content, using video content through various webpages can do wonders for your visibility on search engines – as long as the video is being optimised properly. This would mean incorporating the correct keywords and a good Meta description.
People
will spend 100 minutes a day watching online videos in 2021
As well as more
brands looking to utilize videos, consumers are now watching more videos than
ever before. It is estimated that the average person will spend 100
minutes every day watching online videos in 2021. This is a 19% increase compared to daily
viewing minutes in 2019, which stood at 84.
Informing and
Educating
97% of Marketeers say that video
content helps to educate customers on products/services
There is so much available choice now for products that customers no longer want to be bombarded with details and facts about the product. They want to know how it will benefit them, and video marketing allows an easy way of providing this to your audience. You can show the product being used by a number of different people. A great example of this was Spotify’s recent video advertisement, it doesn’t detail everything about Spotify and bore their audience. It explains exactly how Spotify personalizes your account for you, showing only the benefits to their audience:
Staying
competitive and relevant
81% of businesses now use video content (HubSpot). Videos are amazing for getting all sorts of messages out there, and if we think in terms of practicality, a short, unique explainer video can do a world of difference when it comes to educating people on the ins and outs of your particular product. By carefully planning out what your video will include you can easily catch and hold the attention of your audience.
Examples of Videos created by Creationz Marketing:
Boosted Engagement
Video generates 1200% more shares than both images and text – You can’t argue with stats like this, if you want engagement, Use video content! I personally feel this is the case, the majority of my time on social media is spent watching videos, especially since the revolution of short videos (Tik Tok, Instagram Reels). Whether that be people cooking, sport, or pretty much anything else, if it can catch my attention in the first 5 seconds then I am hooked.
Tips for creating your video…
There are a few reasons as to why you need to incorporate video content into your marketing plan, however, how do you begin to go about making your video? First of all, you need to figure out what is the correct video length for your platform:
Instagram: 30 seconds
Twitter: 45 seconds
Facebook: 1 minute
YouTube: 2 minutes
From here you need to begin to plan out exactly what it is you want your video to tell and create a storyboard explaining the flow your video will follow. A great piece of software to start with would be Canva, making it extremely easy to create high-quality professional videos, providing you with a number of templates.
Are you marketing your business but not sure of the results you are getting? Are you spending a lot of money but not concentrating on basics? Do you want to get to grips with your marketing but unsure where to start?
If so, we have just the thing to help you. Starting on the 4th February 2021, we are running a 7-Day Marketing Tune-Up Challenge to help businesses get to grips with their marketing efforts. Helping you to get clarity and get results you need. Together, we go through 7 effective ways designed for your business.
Over 7 days, you will receive 7 specific emails that look at different aspects of marketing with tips you can implement easily into your business without breaking the bank.
Join us over 7 days where we will be giving you 7 simple, easy to implement marketing tips that won’t break the bank. Our 7 easy to adopt tips:
* Are simple to implement * Will sharpen your brand * Will help you learn new strategies * Help you step put of our comfort zone – come on join us!
Register Today to start your 7-Day Marketing Tune-up Starting – 4th February 2021
Times are changing and they are changing fast. We cannot all
carry on marketing our businesses in the same way and expect the same results. Covid-19
has made a real difference to how we communicate our messages. Those businesses
that have continued to share social media posts, send email communications,
engage in PR and direct mail campaigns will find it easiest to maintain and
grow their client base.
One contributing factor for this change is loyalty. We live in a 24/7 world where we all want
things at the click of a button and there is often very little loyalty if the
same product/service is available faster & quicker elsewhere. Keeping your
customer base updated and bringing them along with you on the journey will
enhance loyalty and create brand ambassadors.
How we communicate is crucial going forward. Social media is getting busier, email inboxes
are bursting at the seams and more traditional forms of marketing such as direct
mail campaigns are proving popular. Be
aware though, that there are obstacles especially in the B2B sector as a large
amount of businesses are embracing home working so not always in the office to
receive the post.
Our top tips for effective communication
would be:
1: Be Clear
Now more than ever businesses need to be clear about what
they are communicating. With many businesses now either working from home or
changing their offering, it is important that all messages are communicated
clearly by:
Knowing your purpose – brand recognition, sales
& share information etc.
Knowing how you are going to communicate –
social media, email etc.
Being clear on what you want to achieve
2 Know Your Audience
With any marketing communication channel, it is vital that
you understand your audience as this will help determine your tone of voice,
length of communication and graphics required. By knowing your audience, you
can easily segment and send targeted messages to different audiences at the
same time.
People are busy, by being direct you can ensure that your
marketing messages are received by the right person at the right time and
written for the right audience. Remember, the best communication piece talks to
your customer and about them – it is not about you.
Marketing communication is no longer about throwing out lots
of content and hoping something sticks. Be clear on:
Who are you sending the messages to?
How they digest information
Where do they get their information from to make
buying decision – social media, Press etc.
Do they prefer detailed content or short-form
content?
3: Be Human & Authentic
Human and authentic communications will always get a better
response. People buy from people and when social media posts, emails etc are
written so you can visualise the speaker, buy-in is increased.
Over the past six months communication channels have really
become more human as we are helping and supporting each-other and this is vital
when sending marketing communications out.
Other things to consider:
Don’t use jargon
Write as if you are speaking to the reader
Be helpful & supportive
Can you personalise communications?
4: Communication Channels
It is essential businesses look at each channel in a
joined-up manner. Integrated communications will have a better response to
stand alone pieces. Customers will digest information better from a number of
combined sources. Whilst the way communication is delivered varies per channel,
the messaging needs to be-consistent. Have a clear plan of what you are going
to use each channel for and regularly assess if it continues to be right for
your business
5: Be Consistent
The best advice I can pass on is to be consistent. If you
are going to create a communication plan for your business, make sure that you
are sending out messages in a timely and consistent manner. Your customers want
to hear from you and by being consistent, you stay front of mind. If you write
a monthly newsletter, make it land in inboxes at the same time each month.
Consider:
Frequency
Delivery times
Time required to produce the content
Content formats – text, images, videos
5: Monitoring the ROI
Over the next month, take time to actually monitor the
return on investment with social media, email marketing, PR and direct Mail
campaigns etc. You can do this relatively easily by monitoring the engagement
that you get on social media, the open rates that you receive with email
marketing and any results and inquiries from direct Mail & PR. By taking
the time, you can actively see what is working and what isn’t.
It is important to monitor:
How many communications are you sending out?
How many responses / engagements are you getting?
What is your current open rate percentages and
clicks
What sales are generated?
How many enquiries are made?
Finally, now is the perfect time to enhance your marketing communications and try new ways to reach your audience. By being present and keeping in front of your clients, it will be easier to build and develop new audiences. Review your communications today and see how you can adapt and adjust as your business finds in new path.
We are often asked by clients, should we be on Instagram? Or how
can we use it properly for our business?
You first need to establish your target market and whether they
will be on Instagram. Don’t be a marketing magpie and go on Instagram because
everyone else is! It needs to suit you and your business.
We are going to run you through a few tips on how to make the most
out of Instagram:
Hashtags
Hashtags are the perfect way to help grow and be found in a specific area of expertise. On Instagram you can use up to 30 hashtags, this is great as you can pick a variety that will help you reach your target audience.
Make sure you don’t bombard with
lots of hashtags and ensure they are relevant!!
You should aim to make the
hashtags are specific and try not to use popular hashtags as your post is less
likely to be seen.
Examples of hashtags to use:
Location
Business industry
Relevant to subject
post
Create your own
brand hashtags
Product or service
Niche hashtags
Seasonal
Awareness days
Stories
Instagram stories only last 24 hours then they disappear. This is the perfect way to post as much as you want without feeling like you are bombarding your followers with too much content. It is an ideal way to engage with your followers and give them an insight into some behind the scenes of your business.
Top Tip! Make sure you use stickers on Instagram stories for more engagement! We recommend using: Polls, Questions, Countdown, and Quiz. These will all help you interact with your customers and give you an idea of what they like, which you can base your posts around!
Examples of stories to make:
Behind the scenes
Questions
Motivational quotes
Tell a story
Ask for opinions
Before and after
Testimonials
Review products
Instagram Highlights
Instagram highlights are Instagram stories that you can feature on your profile, this is so that they can stay permanently. You can add highlight covers to make it look aesthetically pleasing, this will make a good impression for new followers who are looking at your profile.
You can categorise your highlights, for example naming one as
“Questions” and you can add all the stories you have previously posted on
questions your followers have asked and you have answered. This is really
useful as it is like FAQs, and you are not having to repeat questions.
IGTV
Instagram IGTV’s allows you to create
long videos, this is great as you can go into detail about a particular subject
you are talking about. This is an ideal way of building engagement, as people
tend to like videos more as they give a better insight rather than a
stand-alone picture. You can also go live on Instagram which you can then save
the whole live video onto your IGTV for people to watch at a later date.
Examples of videos you can create:
Question and answer sessions
Give tips and ideas
Behind the scenes
Tutorials
Tell a story
Explainer videos of products etc
Engagement
It is important to engage with your
followers as much as you can. This will not only help others engage with you,
but the Instagram algorithm also detects that you are active on the App and
will then make your posts visible to more people.
Make sure you are liking, commenting, and sharing other content, this will help build your engagement and interaction.
Get in contact with us and we can take a look at your Instagram to find ways to improve – 0115 8 376 260
Does your business use Email Marketing? If not, should it? The
answer is probably yes, as email marketing is regularly cited as one of, if not
the best marketing channel for consistently delivering the highest ROI.
More than half of the world’s population use email worldwide, with
this number set to rise up to more than 4.3 billion people by 2023 (Radicati
Group) – Before we get into how to get the
most out of email marketing, it is important to understand why it is such a
beneficial marketing tool. Email Marketing Is an old yet extremely reliable and
effective form of marketing, it’s a cost-effective solution to reach customers
where they visit every day — their inbox.
Benefits of Email
Marketing
Unrivaled return on investment: In the world of business, results are arguably the only thing that matters. With this being said, the reason Email marketing is highly invested in is because of the fantastic ROI. According to DMA in 2017, the return on investment for every £1 spent was £32.28 (DMA, 2017).
Low costs: The most obvious advantage of using email marketing is the fact it’s one of the lowest costing marketing channels in relation to the ROI. It is worth investing in specialist software that allows you to automate, track, and evaluate the emails that have been sent – other than this subscription fee there are very little costs.
Targeted and Personalized: Many marketers spend large
amounts of expenditure on trying to reach an audience who are interested in
their brand. Email Marketing allows you to go a step further, and only target
subscribers who meet a specific criterion.
Email Marketing tips
Good email marketing means that
you are sending emails to people who want to hear from you – However, often
your emails end up getting lost in an overcrowded inbox or even a customer’s
spam.
Perfect your subject line: Writing an effective subject line is key in ensuring your audience
engage with your email – This can be the difference recipients opening your
email or deleting it. People open emails if they feel there is some form of
benefit in doing so – so make this benefit clear in the title.
Get personal: Personalisation is key in the success of an email campaign – Using
people’s names catches their attention. However, there is more to
personalisation than this. Segmentation is a great way of engaging with a
specific audience, allowing you to send emails depending on someone’s age,
gender, location etc.
Call to action: Aside from an effective subject line, The CTA is the most important part
of the email as this what will get your subscribers to convert. Make the CTA’s
simple and easy to locate.
Growing
your email list
Now you understand how to put together an effective email – You need to understand how to grow your audience and reach a wider population. This is not a simple task and can often be frustrating for a business owner. In order to do this, you need to regularly promote your Newsletter, including all the benefits of being a subscribed member. You need to give individuals a reason to sign up to your newsletter else it will become stale – This can be done by promoting your email sub subscription down a number of different channels on a regular basis.
Once you begin to build your subscription list it is crucial to keep a database with all of your client’s contact information. We have heard a number of horror stories of businesses losing thousands of customers contact details that they have built up over a period of years – This can leave a business in a very difficult position and almost feels like they are starting from scratch.
Conclusion
During these difficult times, it is important for businesses to look for new ways of generating leads – I hope this article sheds some light on the effects email marketing can have. Whilst all the advantages and tips mentioned are well documented and realistically achievable, it’s important to remember to have a clear execution plan in place for your email marketing. Having patience is key – this is not something that will happen overnight!
If you need any help and support during this difficult period, then please get in touch – 0115 8 376 260
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