There’s no escaping the fact the mountain is fairly big for start ups in terms of visibility. You have your killer identity and differentiating proposition (you’re welcome), but now it’s time to be seen…
There’s no escaping the fact that as a start-up business you’re bound to be something of a little fish in visibility terms. So, now you’re up and running and you have your killer identity and differentiating proposition in place (you’re welcome) – now it’s time to make sure your message is seen and heard…
To do that, you need to find the digital marketing mix that maximises your return on investment – and that’s easier said than done.
It’s not easy choosing when, with whom and how to invest your marketing budget – so here is an overview of your main options.
Paid Organic search (SEO).
The obvious advantage here is the prospect of driving traffic to your website at relatively little or no cost – but unless your product or brand launch is part of an existing site with domain authority it’s going to take quite some time before you get traction.
Paid search (Google AdWords).
Highly effective, when managed professionally AdWords can deliver an incredible ROI.
Remarketing.
This is usually much more affordable. You can use reminder ads as a very cost-effective way to encourage people to return to your site, thereby boosting conversion.
Organic social.
For the majority of start-ups, for whom cash is a scarce commodity, organic social media work is a core strategy – and, with the requisite intelligently directed effort, it is undoubtedly an effective means of building community and gaining advocacy at minimal expense.
Paid social.
This is not dissimilar to similar AdWords – but may well prove less daunting in cost terms. In any event, re-targeting through social ads is known to deliver a relatively high ROI.
Public Relations.
Good old-fashioned PR isn’t to be recommended for the cash-strapped start-up if you’re thinking of actually retaining an agency. On the other hand, if you have the media contacts and know how to run an outreach programm,e running your own campaign can be an effective, low-cost strategy.
Affiliate marketing.
Affiliate marketing can be a powerful tool – but may not be very helpful for start-ups or new product launches because affiliates are primarily interested in the number of clicks out from their sites and their earnings per click. For that reason they are only interested in tried, trusted and well-established bands that they can count on to drive volume consistently.
Of course, there’s no one ‘correct’ formula. There are as many variations on this theme as there are different kinds of start-up but, one way or another, everyone needs to find their own, finely tuned ideal mix. And there we can help with consultancy to help you define the right strategy for your business. Our digital marketing service mix (we call this Augment♯) is second to none. We have delivered incredible results for multiple companies, driving traffic, fuelling sales and fuelling growth. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
