I’ve been poking around, looking at different news items on Google and Bing, perusing new Android applications, checking out whether or not people say “Bing It”, and even reading an article about applying Google analytics to your site. It’s all fascinating stuff, and yet I found it a little bit hard to focus on any one item today. We all have those days, so I am not that worried about it. But in my meandering on the internet, I came across a website that focuses on dealing with clutter. It occurs to me that in marketing your business there can be clutter too. A fair bit of it, if you try every new aspect of online marketing you can find. So it is fair to talk about uncluttering your online marketing efforts too.
Some of these tactics are going to seem like such simple ideas, and you will probably think “of course”. That’s fine with me. Remember the last time you walked around all day thinking that you’d forgotten something? When you remembered it, I would bet you had that “of course” moment then too.
First, let’s talk about your audience. Who do you want to sell your goods and services to? If your business is aimed at selling to teenagers, then social media will be your best choice to access them. Do your research and find out where your audience spends their online time. Then market to that area, be it Twitter, Facebook, websites, blogs, or even forums.
Once you’ve found your audience, speak their language. If you are selling golf equipment to the retiree set, it seems unlikely that you’ll find them on Twitter. Nor will you want to use the shorthand that is used by today’s teen set. I can guarantee you that my 67 year old uncle has no idea what my 17 year old cousin is texting on her phone, so slogans and other marketing communications need to be appropriate to your audience. Well written websites, perhaps even with a well written blog that focuses on golf tips, are much more likely to appeal to my retired, golfing uncle. Speak to your audience in terms they understand.
Once you’ve found your audience and are speaking to them in terms that they understand, make a list of topics to cover to invite them in and pique their interest. Think about your online marketing as a trail of breadcrumbs to your business: the topics you cover must be relevant, whether they are covered through a blog, PPC advertising, or social media.
How is thinking about your audience, finding them online, and speaking to them in their language uncluttering your online marketing efforts, you ask. Once you know who you are talking to, how to talk to them, and where to talk to them, you eliminate all distractions and make your efforts simpler.