What’s better than high impact marketing that allows you to stay within budget? When it comes to massively increasing profits in a short time, not much. That’s why, in this post, we’ll reveal eight powerful secrets to help you drastically increase your return on investment. We’ll cover:
What to do to make your ad campaigns more profitable than ever
Why narrow targeting is so important
How to turn near competitors into allies
What retargeting is and why you should learn how to do it
Much more!
Ready? Let’s get started.
Digital Ad Campaign Boosters
#1 Look for Opportunities
To be the best in your industry, you have to separate yourself from the pack. When it comes to marketing, there are a few tactics you can use to do just that. One of these is to keep a keen eye on what your competition is doing. If you’re perceptive, and if you time your campaigns strategically, you can piggyback off of the efforts of others.
Consider computer reseller Computer Exchange. When they needed to boost revenue, they began timing their most aggressive campaigns to coincide with Wal-Mart openings. Wal-Mart is known for its ability to out-compete mom and pop stores. But the retail giant can only lower their prices so much.
Wal-Mart often struggles to compete with specialists. But companies like Computer Exchange can sometimes forge deep relationships with manufacturers, giving them the ability to offer special rates. Further, when Wal-Mart announces a new store opening, Computer Exchange knows two things are happening:
Wal-Mart will engage in local marketing campaigns
Customers, excited about a new Wal-Mart opening in their area, will be receptive to bargains, deals and specials
So what does Computer Exchange do? They out-compete Wal-Mart where they can, on the equipment they know best: computers and computer peripherals. They offer a lower price and higher quality. But note when they’re doing it: when Wal-Mart is spending money to stoke consumer interest. They’re piggybacking off of Wal-Mart’s effort and investment.
Say you know that consumers are looking for a deal. Further assume you’re a leader in your niche. In that case, your campaigns should demonstrate to consumers that:
• You have greater expertise
• You can give them better deals—deals that cater to their true needs
If you can do this, your low-budget campaigns will soar.
#2 Target
For a low-budget campaign to be successful, you must have your targeting down to a science. Virtually all digital marketing platforms offer a suite of robust targeting tools. How to use each platform could be a post on its own, so we’ll just say this: familiarize yourself with the tools each platform provides. More than that, become an expert on how to drill down to your most receptive audience.
Learning this will save you a fortune in the long run.
For a low-budget, high-impact campaign, you need to keep a few things in mind:
• Forget mass market—small, niche markets are essential
• You need to identify and target the customer who is ready to convert
• You must be able to nurture leads that don’t convert right away —capture interest via email list subscriptions, phone consultations or by some other means
A profitable campaign comes down to savvy and competent targeting, period.
#3 Be Newsworthy
Making your limited ad budget go further requires you to make the most of your branding. You spent good money on your logo and other design elements. Now it’s time to reap the reward. There are plenty of good deeds you can do—and don’t worry, no one expects you to be fully altruistic. There’s something in it for you too, and that’s okay. At the end of the day, philanthropy is mutually beneficial.
If you chip in to help build a community center or fund an event, it’s okay to benefit from the media exposure. You’re far from the only company doing it. So it’s okay to get your logo out there. Just be respectful and tactful.
This kind of exposure can be extremely beneficial to you because it makes your brand top of mind—if only for a time. But you can make the most of this brand exposure by advertising more aggressively when you’re in the limelight. Depending on what you sell, snagging that sale may come down to getting the customer to think of you instead of your competitor at just the right moment.
#4 Form a Joint Venture
If your marketing budget leaves a lot to be desired, partner up. Unless you’re a mega corporation, you should always be on the lookout for joint ventures. After all, all businesses have peers. There may be companies in your industry that you aren’t in direct competition with. Say your specialty is high quality wooden baseball bats. You sell other things, but your bats are your bread and butter. Next, assume there’s another company that specializes in high-quality baseballs.
The two of you could strike up a deal, essentially pooling your ad revenue. You jointly advertise both baseballs and bats. Think about it: both of your products will appeal to the same type of customer, right? Sometimes a shopper may buy a bat, and other times they might buy a ball. But both of you are benefiting from the ad spend. Overall, you’re reaching more prospects than you would otherwise.
Of course, you may need to build a new online storefront that features both of your products. But that’s fine. This joint venture could boost your sales significantly, so the upfront investment of time and resources is worth it.
#5 Make the Most of Referrals
Digital marketing is powerful in and of itself. But don’t neglect referral marketing. Referral marketing, in conjunction with a robust digital marketing campaign, can double or even triple your profits. At its simplest, referral marketing involves leveraging your existing customer base to get new sales. If you’ve heard the term ‘brand ambassador,’ you probably know what we’re talking about. For those who haven’t, here’s a definition:
Brand ambassador: an enthusiastic, happy customer who is glad to spread the word about your product or service.
You can find brand ambassadors on social media by using a service like Google Alerts—free—or Mention—not free. Mention is more robust, but Google Alerts will suffice if you’re just getting started. Set up an alert for your brand and start listening. You’ll soon identify your most avid fans. These are the people who—with no prompting from you—rave about your product on social media.
You can reach out to these folks. Ask for a testimonial. If they’re a celebrity or other public figure, you may even want to approach them for an endorsement arrangement. Be cognizant of local and national laws, though. If they’re creating a sponsored video, for instance, they probably need to disclose the monetary exchange at the start of the video.
You can time these endorsements or testimonials to coincide with your digital marketing campaigns to make them even more powerful. Celebrity endorsement can cost a pretty penny. But depending on the keyword you’re competing for, it can still cost less than digital marketing over time. And the benefits will be long lasting. Plus, you can get a testimonial from a non-celebrity brand ambassador for free or for the cost of some extra stock. But if money or stock changes hands, make sure you disclose that somewhere on your website.
#6 Create High Quality Content
Don’t let your ad campaigns do all the work. Time your campaigns so that they coincide with the release of high quality materials. For instance, you may create:
High-impact blog posts
White papers
eBooks
Case studies
If you’re using blog content to keep people coming back to your site, make sure that your site menu has a “Blog” button or similar. You want customers to know that you have a blog, even if they’re landing on a sales page. But say you’re leading with an offer like a free eBook, case study or white paper. What do you do then? When a lead clicks through to your sales page, set things up so that they’ll see your offer too.
They might not convert—you already knew that was a possibility. But at least now you have a chance to get their email. They become a lead that you can nurture. So, basically, your ad budget is now doing two jobs.
#7 Create Videos
YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world, only behind Google itself. But Facebook is catching up. The Facebook platform claims that it receives over 4-billion video views per day. You can leverage this by creating high-quality, informative videos. Each video you create serves as valuable digital surface area, exposing leads to your brand. On both YouTube and Facebook, you can host live events for your fans and customers, educating them about your product or service.
But, in general, a less direct approach is called for. If you sell lawn mowers, don’t just talk about why your mowers are better. Make the focus of the video on how to cut grass efficiently and neatly. Get it? Tutorials. Be useful.
This will pay dividends in the future. If you help someone today, they will remember you. And they’ll remember your brand tomorrow—when they see your digital ad.
#8 Embrace Retargeting
Making the most of your digital ad budget isn’t just about targeting. It’s not just about convincing people to visit your site. At the end of the day, what matters most is your conversion rate. One tactic that can easily boost your conversion rate is retargeting. Here is a quick definition:
Retargeting is the practice of re-engaging with leads who visited your site but who didn’t buy anything.
The reality is, over 90 percent of people who visit your site for the first time won’t buy anything. But what if you could reach them again later, after they’ve been exposed to your brand and product? After all, they may well have been interested. But, for whatever reason, they didn’t buy right then. If you can reach them when they’re more receptive, you may well get the sale.
While retargeting is a bit technical, it’s a skill that’s well worth learning. It can help you increase your conversion rate, but it can also help you build a receptive audience. Retargeting is an essential component of the thrifty advertiser’s toolkit.
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