No matter the business, the internet plays a crucial role in growth plans, brand awareness, and delivering the perfect digital strategy.
Without insight into how to become extraordinary online, businesses will struggle to stand out from the crowd and waste investment targeting an existing audience that is ever-evolving. Most industries have seen a change in consumer behaviour over the past two years which means that businesses need to firm up their marketing strategies to remain competitive.
Dom Mernock, director at Engage, explains what brands need to know to become extraordinary online and achieve success:
User behaviour
50% of searches are now zero-click1, meaning customers no longer have to click anywhere thanks to rich results in search engine results pages (SERP) of business listings. Ranking highly is crucial if businesses are to compete with and beat the competition.
Google’s ‘Knowledge Panel’2 has become an increasingly popular feature since its launch in 2019, and it’s become much more than an information tab on people, institutions and businesses. Optimising this feature alongside Google Business Listing will enable businesses to more easily stand out from the crowd.
Investing in search engine optimisation (SEO) is a significant asset in enabling a business to be put in front of target customers, and ensure that they are making the most of the surge in zero-click searches.
Google My Business
Listings on Google My Business help brands to stand out further. A website isn’t required to list on the platform, giving small, new and local businesses the opportunity to take advantage and get in front of new customers. Local listings help drive more traffic to websites through online leads.
Evolving an approach to social media
When considering how to optimise a business’ social media platforms, a variety of tools are crucial to support effective reporting, scheduling, and targeting. With over 55% of consumers learning about new brands on social3, the opportunities for a business to harness this and reap the rewards are endless.
Social media offers huge potential to grow customer engagement which is a primary goal for many businesses, and can play a role in positively influencing consumer behaviour.
What is live content?
While many brands don’t harness live content and see it as scary, it’s a part of most people’s everyday lives and should become integrated into monthly social strategies. Live content can include anything from Instagram stories and TikTok lives, to YouTube streaming and LinkedIn live.
Consumers view live content as authentic, real and unfiltered, all of which are crucial in influencing customer purchasing decisions. It’s important however to make sure that if a business is considering live content, the right platform and tone of voice is used.
The more visible a business is through a variety of strategies, platforms and tools, the more extraordinary its online presence will become.
