America’s 28 million+ small businesses account for 54% of all U.S. sales. That’s quite a figure. And while we’re all aware that digital presence is crucial for a business of any size in today’s market, many businesses do not take full advantage of basic digital marketing strategies that successfully drive traffic.

For small businesses and enterprises, agile marketing strategies are not only critical to success but survival. According to Fundera.com, the “About two-thirds of business survive 2 years in business, half of all businesses will survive 5 years, and one-third will survive 10. The longer a company has been in business, the more likely it is to stay in business—it’s those first few years that are the hardest.”

So how does a small business distinguish itself from competitors and carve out a foothold in the marketplace? One low cost way to leverage your resources and achieve success is to address your digital marketing strategy. In this blog, we’ll highlight a few simple digital marketing tips that you can implement, whether you’re a small business or entrepreneur, to make your voice heard above the crowd.

The Mobile-Centric Market

Over the past decade, we’ve seen a great migration of user traffic shift from desktop to mobile device platforms. There are currently over 3 billion smartphone users globally, and according to Tech Crunch, that market is expected to increase to 6.1 billion users by 2020.

To take your business or service to the next level, consider building a mobile app. This may sound like a daunting feat, but there are many effective and inexpensive app builders on the market today that take the engineering complication out of the equation. Check out Small Business Trend’s list of affordable DIY app builders here – getting started is easier than you think.

Benefits to having a mobile app for your business include: improved visibility and brand awareness, boosted sales with in-app purchases via services like Apple Pay and Google Wallet, and better communication with customers.

To add even more value for customers, Build Fire recommends implementing a loyalty program within your app that allows customers to earn points as they interact with your business. This strategy entices customers to re-visit your site more often and increases conversion. Customers redeem points for great deals on your products or services, and you build a loyal following – it’s a win-win.

Blogs

Blogging offers small businesses a unique platform to share ideas, engage with customers, and advertise expertise. If you have not yet begun blogging, start now. It’s a great way to be seen and will enhance your brand, help increase traffic and site visits, and keep your website from getting stale. A few things to keep in mind about blogging:

• Be sure your information is powerful, relevant, and most of all – VALUABLE. Many companies focus on blogs as a means of improving SEO efforts and let their content and value fall by the way-side. Find ways to be creative, stay relevant, and add valuable information and insights to your blogging efforts.
• Consistency is KEY.
• The primary aim of your blog should be to share expertise or entertain, not to promote or sell. Be sure to offer your readers something that will benefit them, preferably with insights from your line of business.
• On the heels of the last point, DO utilize Call-to-Actions in your blog to drive more potential customers to your website, subscription list, etc. Use CTAs to offer additional content, engage and get people to subscribe to your newsletter.

For more in-depth ways to build an effective blog, download our e-book here.

Video Content

Interactive video is the new content marketing must-have. According to Ad Week , 60% of consumers prefer to watch content rather than read it. As all social channels have assimilated video-sharing functionality, it’s never been more important to build a video content strategy to advertise your business. Here are some tips:

• Videos keep visitors on your website longer, so be sure to highlight video content on your site or social engagements. In fact, retail sites withvideo increase conversion by 30%, according to the L2 Specialty Retail Report.
• Make creative, visually interesting videos that will pique visitors’ interest. Making quality, creative videos is no longer expensive and time-consuming. Check out Buffer’s article that highlights the 6 easiest video-editing tools for small business marketers

Should you have any questions, or would like more information about marketing your small business, please reach out!