Many small to medium-sized businesses wonder how they can leverage the power of online marketing to bring in more website traffic and grow their businesses. While there are a number of options available, trying to implement every suggestion you come across can be nearly impossible—especially without a dedicated marketing team.

Quite honestly, not every marketing tactic will be effective for every type of business. But here are six online marketing techniques that can benefit any business.

1. Responsive, Up-To-Date Website Design

Like any business investment, you want the best possible ROI from your website. As technology evolves (which is a constant), it is important to ensure that your website is up with the times in terms of content, design, and responsiveness. Oftentimes, your business website is the first point of contact prospective customers will have with your business. It is quite literally your online business card.

Consider what the visitor who lands on your site experiences. Is the design outdated? Is the site clunky or hard to navigate? Is it slow to load? Is your written content current? Does the user have to pinch and pull to see the information on mobile devices? Does it pale in comparison to competitors’ websites? If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” it’s time for an update.

Online searchers are finicky; if they land on your site and are unimpressed, confused, or frustrated, they will bounce to the next website within seconds, taking their business with them. Make a stellar first impression with an updated, well-designed website that invites visitors to take the next step and become customers.

2. Leverage Email Marketing

Are you capturing customer emails through your website and other online and offline methods? If not, you are missing out on a valuable opportunity to grow your business. Emails can help you stay in touch with potential and current customers who are interested in your products and services. As your list grows, you can segment your lists for even more personalized, targeted messages to your recipients based on their specific interests. There are many email marketing services, like MailChimp and Constant Contact, that can make this process easy. You can also enlist the help of on online marketing firm to implement your marketing strategy. If you have a WordPress website, there are several plugins to help integrate the whole process.

3. Set Up a Blog and Update It Frequently

Blogs have been heavily utilized by many companies in recent years due to the search engine optimization (SEO) benefits they provide as well as the informational benefits for visitors. A blog can be a great equalizer for small businesses trying to compete with larger, more well-funded competitors, helping them show up much higher in search results for a variety of topics than they would have been able to otherwise.

The more frequently fresh posts are added, the more effective the blog in bringing in website traffic. Blog posts should be used to educate, inform, and/or entertain readers while subtly letting readers know about your products/services.

Keep in mind that blog posts are not intended to be overt advertisements for your business. They are intended to provide value to your intended audience. For example, here at OpenVine we offer targeted, effective online marketing and blogging services to small and mid-sized businesses in Foxboro and surrounding areas. While we will mention our services in this post, the goal is to let business owners know about online marketing techniques they can use—whether or not they need our services.

4. Utilize Website Search Engine Optimization

Website SEO is key to showing up higher in search results. There are several components to optimization, which include performing keyword research, updating website metadata, reviewing and updating website written content (keywords, headings, etc.), optimizing image tags, and more. Blogs are also a great way to work in important keyword variations on a regular basis. Search engines love websites that create fresh content on a regular basis, often deeming them more valuable than their counterparts with outdated or infrequently updated content. You can do this on your own for free or enlist the help of an SEO company.

5. Search Engine Marketing

Simply put, SEM (search engine marketing) includes paid advertising on search engines to help you become more visible to potential customers in search results. Methods include PPC (pay-per-click or pay-per-call), CPC (cost-per-click), CPM (cost-per-thousand impressions), and paid search ads. Google AdWords and Bing Ads are the most popular search marketing platforms.

6. Social Media Marketing

You probably already know how big of a deal having a presence on social media is. Many of the clients we work with ask about the best social media platforms for their businesses, how often to post, what to post, and how they can gain more followers and ultimately more customers. The answer will vary based on the type of business, but one thing is for certain—having a social media presence is critical. Organic posts and social media advertising should be a part of your social media marketing strategy. See this great post from Neil Patel for an in-depth social media marketing guide.

Now that you have learned about six ways to up your online marketing game, it’s time to get started to make 2019 your best year yet! If you need help, don’t hesitate to give us a call at 781-850-2525 or contact us online.