Biggest Bonehead Mistakes in Digital Marketing
We can’t take it anymore. After more than 15 years of helping clients with their digital marketing, we’ve seen some pretty bad mistakes. We’re writing this blog post to help end the madness.
Don’t get us wrong. Our intention here is not to shame anybody. We get it. This stuff is like rocket science or maybe even kryptonite to some people. They’re experts in what they do but clueless in their online marketing. It’s ok. We’re here to help.
To be clear, when we say “mistakes,” we’re talking about one thing- wasting money. Given how hard 2020 has been on small businesses (by that we mean, ALL businesses!), it’s more important than ever to be efficient with our digital marketing channels and our marketing dollars.
We’ve compiled a list of the most common digital marketing mistakes we see consistently:
Websites that Drive Away Business
We’ve seen more than our fair share of terrible websites. Since a well-designed website is crucial to online success, it’s more than necessary to pay close attention to how our websites look and perform. However, this is easier said than done.
In fact, creating a junky website and completely ignoring web design is much easier than building an excellent one that converts and drives engagement. Lacking high-quality content is a fantastic way to keep sales away, as you’re offering nothing of real value to the potential customers that land there.
In many cases, the bad websites we see are very slow to load, which can be due to various factors, including large image files or excessive javascript use. Lack of website organization, including missing contact information, will stop conversions in their tracks and make that business look and feel less than trustworthy.
A poorly performing website may have pieces that are non-responsive, such as pages and links that don’t work. Many of the sites we review for potential customers have no call to action (CTA- what do you want the browser to do? Tell ’em!) or there is a CTA but it’s hard to find.
Whatever the core issue may be, companies need to get their web designers to fix these issues as soon as possible, as even the tiniest annoyance will cause visitors to bounce off of your site and onto a competitors’ very quickly. Always keep business websites minimal, aesthetically pleasing, and easy to understand the business products or services.
Doing so will decrease the number of visitors that leave your site upon arrival, therefore establishing a better reputation on Google. Overall, your website is the digital front door for your business, so it’s imperative that it’s a true reflection of your company.
Bad Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Lousy search engine tactics are notorious for killing website traffic and ruining a digital marketing strategy. With so many agencies claiming expert knowledge in the field of SEO, it’s difficult to know who to trust with the component of digital marketing that can make or break your strategy.
A reputable agency will always have proof of the work they’ve done in the past and the data to back it up. Also, they’ll never encourage you to use terrible SEO methods, such as:
● Lack of in-depth competitor and keyword research and utilizing one keyword per website page over and over again.
● Expecting a considerable boost in traffic from short, low-quality blog posts
● Not providing Google with the fresh content it requires to rank a page successfully
● Prioritizing quantity of content over quality because quality always comes first
● Failure to watch out for duplicate content.
These problems are not the end all be all of SEO, but they’re significant contributors to an ongoing issue of ill-advised search engine optimization tactics.
There are plenty of SEO companies that will dazzle you with technical jargon that sounds super important, but in reality, the things they say they’ll do are only a fraction of what it takes to move your site up in the search results.
Mistakes With Google Ads
Mistakes with Google Ads can be deadly for both your business and your wallet. Many digital marketing firms lack the know-how to properly implement Google Ads for their clients, resulting in a digital marketing strategy and advertising disaster.
We see a lot of business owners who try to run their Google Ads campaign themselves. In fact, Google makes this very tempting with their $100 credit to get started. The problem is that if you don’t know what you’re doing, you might as well go toss that $100 out into the street.
Using the wrong keyword matches and poorly written ads will cause any ad campaign to suffer greatly. There are so many aspects to executing a successful Google Ad campaign, from negative keywords to not knowing your customer’s lifetime value. It’s challenging to handle when you’re not employing a team of marketers that understand the process inside and out.
Far and away, the biggest mistake we see when someone’s running their own Google Ads campaign is that they point all their ads to the home page on their website. For example, a home renovation company that offers several different services described on their home page. It’s a mistake to run all your ads to this page because if your kitchen renovation ads point to a page that also talks about bathroom renovations, window repair, and painting, this waters down the effectiveness of your ad campaign aimed at kitchen renovations.
This is only one way a business owner can turn a potentially effective marketing tool into a money pit.
Social Media Marketing Mistakes
In the world of social media marketing, posting multiple times a day is not necessarily a way to gain visibility or brand awareness. Yes, it’s true; the success of social media marketing doesn’t exist solely on posting.
Engagement is a massive component of social media marketing and should be closely monitored by you or your marketing team. Engaging content is essential because your followers won’t interact with you without it, resulting in less visibility on your social channels.
Replying to comments, asking your social community to engage under a GIF or survey question, and getting personal by posting photos and videos of yourself and your team are essential components of a social media marketing strategy.
Social media mistakes are common, such as running a poorly targeted Facebook Ads campaign, not pointing your ads to a dedicated landing page, or posting far too many times in one day. However, when these mistakes happen consistently, you’ll have a social platform disaster on your hands, with little to no organic or paid reach.
Refusing to be Better at Blogging
Whether you’re willing to embrace it or not, blogging can be a really important part of a digital marketing success story. Blogging regularly allows websites to refresh content consistently with keyword-rich content that can set you up for a nice climb in search engine ranks.
On the other hand, when you blog sporadically or pump out irrelevant content that isn’t helpful to the user, you’ll find yourself stagnant in rankings and website traffic. Blogging presents a beautiful chance to show your audience, existing clients, and potential buyers what you have to offer, showcasing knowledge in your niche and building trust. Utilize it to the best of your ability.
Not At Least Entertaining The Idea Of Email Marketing
Look, we get it. Being good at digital marketing involves keeping a lot of bowling pins in the air. We see a lot of businesses in different industries that already have a good following, but they’re not utilizing email marketing.
If your business has a following (check your social media metrics) and you have a high potential for reselling or upselling your customers, then you’ll most likely find that doing email marketing will directly help you hit your marketing goals as well as improve your bottom line.
These days, we all get a lot of emails, but if you’re already a fan of the business, these are emails you may be more inclined to open. The more emails you get opened, the more likely you are to get the user to follow through with the call to action. It’s as simple as that.
Misunderstanding Ad Metrics and Analytics
If you aren’t sure of your return on investment (ROI) or your defined audience, we recommend that you don’t run a paid ad until you complete that research. Wasting a fair amount of money on an incorrectly targeted ad campaign is far too common.
PPC ad sets, such as those found on Google and Facebook, can be advantageous when organized and executed correctly. An expert digital marketer will spot a bad ad campaign from miles away, and they’ll be able to rectify it for you, hopefully before you’ve wasted too much money.
Fix Your Digital Marketing Mistakes with Make It Loud
Make It Loud has been in the business of determining digital marketing strategy mistakes (and fixing them!) for over 15 years. We help companies to establish and improve their online presence through specifically tailored digital marketing strategies and so much more.
We know that bad digital marketing moves happen to good people, and we’ll never pass judgment. At Make It Loud, we only consider ourselves successful when our clients are.
If your digital marketing plan isn’t working for you, or you’re looking to put a brand new plan into action to take your business to the next level, you’re in the right place. Call us today to get started, and be done with digital marketing mishaps forever.
