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5-Step Guide to Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses

Social media marketing for small businesses can be a tricky thing. For a start, you may not have the dedicated departments of the big brands. If you’re the sole voice of your business’s social media presence, then it can be very difficult to work out a strategy that is both efficient and cost-effective. At times, you might be tempted to think the whole thing is pointless. That couldn’t be further from the truth though; social media is a vital tool in boosting your brand’s optics, increasing acquisition and getting your name out there.

While you might not be able to match the might of powerhouse marketing departments, there are several things you can do to strengthen your current strategy. With that in mind, here is Social Nucleus’ 5-step guide to social media marketing for small businesses.

 

Different Methods for Different Platforms

Let’s start with the basics; don’t put out the same type of content on different platforms. For example, Facebook is a great way of connecting with prospective customers more colloquially. Here, those that have liked your page are looking for product updates, promotions or even just a witty post!

However, if you’re making a post for LinkedIn, then the audience is going to be very different. LinkedIn is the ‘professional’ social media, those using it are often looking to make business connections or find work. Here, you might find avenues for B2B marketing or raise engagement through posts that give a deeper insight into your own business.

You have to consider the constraints of certain platforms as well. While Twitter may afford a lot of versatility in terms of the content you can put out, you only have 280 characters to deliver it effectively. Posts will have to be short and snappy, but you may find it difficult to convey your message with such limited space.

Then you have the more visual platforms, like Instagram and YouTube. Here you’ll have to navigate the difficult realms of photo and video content, which require completely different skillsets. The production value and consistency of posts will determine your success. While you can get away with unstructured posting on Facebook and Twitter, you’ll need a carefully planned routine for these platforms. If your followers are used to seeing a couple of posts per day, plus stories, and you suddenly stop, this is going to negatively affect your engagement.

This might all seem like a lot to take in, but it is only a very brief outline of what you need to do for different platforms. The reality is that it takes a lot of work and time to craft engaging content that leads to conversions, especially on such a wide birth of social channels.  

 

Tracking and Optimisation

This isn’t exclusive to social media marketing, but it is an important point nonetheless. When running any campaign, you need to ensure you are constantly monitoring its effectiveness. There are a variety of metrics to consider like reach, click-through rates and bounce rates.

If an aspect of your campaign is underperforming, then it’s time to review what is and isn’t working and optimise. You may only need to make a few tweaks, but the results could be seismic. Constant analysis and action are needed if you want to consistently hit your engagement and conversion targets.

 

Scout the Opposition

If you’re struggling to come up with ideas, then there is no shame in looking at your competitor’s strategy. In fact, this can be immensely beneficial and is a widely used practice across digital marketing.

A good way to do this is to identify two or three brands you consider to be your top competition and examine the type of content they’re putting out. You need to look for reoccurring themes in the language used and the way the messaging is delivered. For example, if all your copy is presented in block paragraphs, but the competition is using bullet points or listicles to break up the information, this could be an indicator that you need to switch up your style.

Similarly, you’ll be able to see specific keywords or phrases they are using which could spark inspiration for your own messaging. It’s not about copying, or even emulating their strategy, but if your biggest competitors are all using the same language in the same way, then that is something you need to consider.

 

Social Media Management Tools

One thing that will make your job infinitely easier is a social media management application, such as TweetDeck and Hootsuite. Instead of manually creating each post when you need it, these types of software will allow you to schedule whole campaigns well in advance.

They also let you manage every page or brand you’re overseeing without having to log in or out to switch. Using these won’t make or break your strategy, the onus is still on you to create engaging content after all, but they will prove greatly efficient.  

These tools go back to our earlier point of analysing and optimising your content. Some applications will allow you to precisely track your engagement and conversion rates, as well as a slew of other metrics. These are invaluable in identifying campaigns that are running well and those that are underperforming.

 

Know your Audience

This might seem a little basic, but you would be surprised how many brands use generic messaging. While targeting a broad audience with your ad copy and content can produce results, creating specialised sets for certain crowds and angles is absolutely essential. 

Before the start of any campaign, whether it’s paid ads or trying to drive traffic organically, you need to identify potential audiences to target. A good way to do this is to imagine a customer that would be drawn to your product and ask yourself a few questions; where are they from, how old are they, etc. This is a creative exercise that can help visualise the type of person your messaging needs to appeal to.

 

Call the experts!

Just because you don’t have the resources for a dedicated department, that doesn’t mean you can’t enlist professional help when looking for social media marketing for small businesses. At Social Nucleus, we offer a variety of services that can bring out the best of your brand on any social platform. We will craft an effective launch strategy for your ad campaigns based on analytics and information provided by you. On top of that, we’ll work within your budget and regularly update you with key information for your campaigns, where you can improve and recommendations for scaling. Get in touch with us today and take your digital presence to the next level.

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Why your business needs to be paying attention to LTV: CAC ratio

If you want to secure your brand’s healthy growth and profitability in 2022 and beyond, the LTV : CAC ratio is an essential metric to track. It compares your customer Lifetime Value (LTV) and Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), showing you how much your customers are worth versus how much you’re spending to gain more. 

Hence it allows you to plan your spending and strategies across your sales, marketing and customer service teams, to ensure the long-term health and success of your business.

In other words, the LTV : CAC ratio is a KPI you need to be paying attention to in 2022.

In this article, we’ll be going through what this metric means, how it’s calculated and why it’s important to monitor this ratio as your business grows.

 

 

What is CAC?

CAC, or Customer Acquisition Cost, is the total cost needed to attain a new customer, over a specific time period.

It includes your marketing spend (e.g. ad spend and creative costs), the overhead used when drawing in new leads and converting these into paying customers, plus salaries and commissions. 

Once you’ve calculated the amount spent on bringing in new customers, versus the number of customers you’ve actually attained, the CAC is a valuable way to measure your business’s profitability. 

You’ll be able to find out the efficiency of your efforts and spending across your sales and marketing processes, and how you can improve on this and reduce your CAC.

 

How to calculate your CAC

First decide on the time period you wish to analyse (the month, quarter, or year). Within this scope, add your total marketing, and divide this by the number of new customers you’ve acquired.

This will give you the estimated cost of attaining a new customer.

For example, if your business spends £100k on marketing, and acquires 500 new customers, your CAC will be £200. As 100/500 = 200.

In other words, the estimated amount you’ll need to attain each new customer would be £320.

 

What is your customer LTV?

 

 

Your LTV, or Lifetime Value, is the expected revenue that a customer brings during their relationship with your business. 

It allows you to predict how much revenue you may expect to generate from an average customer, once they make their first purchase from you.

By paying attention to this metric, you’ll be able to assess how you can improve on this, and nurture your customer relations to ensure customers return to purchase again and again.

 

How to calculate your LTV

By following this step-by-step process, you’ll be able to calculate your average customer Lifetime Value.

1 – Calculate your average purchase value (divide total revenue within a specific time period by the total number of purchases).

2 – Calculate your average purchase frequency (divide the total number of purchases by the number of unique customers that have converted).

3 – Multiply these two values together to find your average customer value.

4 – Then calculate your average customer lifespan by averaging out the number of years customers continue to purchase from your business.

5 – Finally, multiply your average customer value by your average customer lifespan to get your customer lifetime value (LTV).

The next step is combining these two values to find and analyse your LTV : CAC ratio.

 

The LTV : CAC ratio

 

 

Divide down your calculated LTV and CAC to a simple ratio (x : x). For example, if your LTV is £900 and your CAC is £300, your ratio divides down to its simplest form of 3:1.

If your LTV : CAC ratio gravitates closely around 3:1, this indicates a business with a healthy growth potential. Aim for this approximate benchmark as a sign of business success.

 

But what if each value is higher/lower than this benchmark?

If your ratio gravitates around the 1:1 mark, it may seem as if you’re breaking even. However, it’s likely that you’ll be losing money per acquisition as additional costs may not be included in your calculations (such as shipping costs and taxes).

If your CAC is higher than LTV (e.g. giving a ratio of 1:1.5), you’re spending more to attain new customers than you’ll ever make back from them. This means you’ll be significantly dipping into your potential profits.

If your LTV gives you a higher ratio value than 3:1 (e.g. 5:1), this indicates a growth opportunity. It could mean you could be spending more on your marketing and sales efforts to attract new leads and customers.

 

Why is this ratio important to use right now?

As can be seen above, once you’ve calculated your LTV : CAC ratio, you’re able to evaluate how to improve your internal processes, and consequently improve your business’s growth potential and profitability on a long term basis.

By incorporating this metric into your analysis and reporting, you’ll be able to secure your business’s healthy long-term growth and success.

The LTV : CAC ratio is also a reliable way to indicate your business’s long-term health to current and potential investors.

 

How you can improve your LTV : CAC ratio

Here are a few examples of ways you can achieve a LTV : CAC ratio that gravitates more closely around the 3:1 benchmark:

 

1 – Avoid relying solely on paid ads – as they drive acquisition costs up considerably, so make an unsustainable sole focus when looking at long-term growth.

 

2 – Invest in your CRO (conversion rate optimisation, or the process of converting visitors to leads, and leads to converting customers). For example, look into optimising your site and checkout process for online conversions, and spruce up your copy and content to engage customers and push them further along the customer journey.

 

3 – Give value to your current customers. By listening to their suggestions in customer feedback and reviews, and nurturing your customer relations with rewards and loyalty programmes, you’ll encourage further conversions.

 

4 – Implement a customer referral programme. Referred customers will already be familiar with your brand and product line (lowering your CAC over time), and referring customers are more likely to make repeat purchases with referral rewards (increasing overall LTV).

 

5 – Utilise CRM platforms to optimise your sales funnel. CRM tools will facilitate the process of nurturing leads into paying customers, giving your sales team the time to grow their databases, and consequently increase the number of generated sales.

 

6 – Focus on retention with your email/SMS marketing. Through these channels, you’re reaching more engaged customers with a potential for many repeat purchases (both via campaigns and post-purchase automations).

 

 

By ensuring your marketing, sales and customer service teams are focussing on improving your LTV : CAC ratio, your business can collectively move towards sustainable long-term growth. 

With more loyal customers, creative marketing strategies and productive sales processes, aligned towards the common goal of increasing your LTV with the lowest spend possible, your business can only go from strength to strength.

So ensure the calculation of your LTV : CAC ratio is high on your priority list, so you can best understand how to optimise your strategies and get your business to the next level 🚀

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3 Ways To Optimise Your Website’s Conversion Rate

No matter the efficacy of your paid social ads or email marketing campaigns, your website is the most important tool to turn interests into conversions for your business. 

That’s why it’s incredibly important to ensure that your website’s conversion rate is fully optimised. Whether your customer knows your brand from your organic social media presence, or has come across your website and brand for the first time, your website needs to provide a smooth and simple process from your customer visiting the landing page to completing their purchase.

Here are 3 ways you can boost your website conversions – all proven to optimise conversion rate.

  1. Add a pop up to your landing page

Having a pop up form on your landing page is a great way to push visitors to make a purchase, by offering exclusive sign up discounts they can use on their first order. 

Along with increasing your conversion rate, this is a great way to capture people’s emails, mobile numbers or any other personal information you need. You can then use these for email and/or SMS marketing campaigns to increase AOV and engagement, and keep customers returning to purchase from you.

 

^ A website design and layout that is user-friendly and easily navigable is so important for pushing visitors further down the customer journey, towards conversion.

 

  1. Show Customer Reviews and Social Proof

Showing customers reviews and social proof can act as a key element in increasing your conversion rate. 

Customers are now becoming more and more reliant on hearing what other people think of brands and products before purchasing. This is even more important if you are trying to acquire new customers who may have never heard of you before – you can quickly boost brand trust with a high quality review that directly addresses common pain points.

 

  1. Keep Pages Easy To Navigate 

When a potential customer first lands on your website they should not feel overwhelmed by a busy website with a lot going on at once.

The landing page needs to be clear, simple and easy to navigate through. To minimise this you should always question what is going on your site and if it is needed and/or valuable to visitors.

This is just as important with product pages, especially if this is where you will be sending traffic from paid advertising.

When a customer lands on a product page they should easily and quickly be able to determine your product, its benefits, key information, price and even social proof/customer reviews with as little scrolling as possible. 

This can also be known as digital real estate on your page – optimising the given space correctly can have a drastic impact on conversion rates. Always think of minimising the amount of scrolling a potential customer has to do to find out everything about your product.

 

So, there you have it. A quick guide on 3 ways you can effectively improve your website’s conversion rate to maximise profits. 

If you need any further advice on how to improve your conversion rate or how to build an effective website, get in touch with our experts today 🚀

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How to keep up with the world of social media

Social media is constantly changing- and it can be hard to keep up. So how can you stay on top of the constant changes and keep your brand ahead of the game on your organic socials?

Allow us to help you with that… 🚀

Here’s 3 ways to keep up with ongoing social media changes, updates and trends. By incorporating these into your marketing strategy, you’ll ensure you stay ahead of the game and respond quickly to platform changes and current trends.

 

1. Use hashtags

Follow social media-related hashtags on Twitter to see the latest news for different platforms (eg #socialmedia, #instagram, #tiktok etc). Twitter is a great place to find quick updates, tips and tricks for achieving success on your Instagram page or TikTok content.

 

 

2. Inbox those insights

Subscribe to marketing newsletters for all the latest updates and conversations happening in real time : eg. Mashable, DTC, Marketing Week, Social Media Today, Later – the list goes on.

They’ll get sent straight to your inbox, and you can designate time each week to go through them and keep up to date.

 

 

3. Be alerted on trends

Set up daily Google Alerts for key topics and trends so you’ll be notified when they’re mentioned in the news and online conversations.

These can be social media-related, as well as linked to your brand’s industry and customer interests.

Set them to once a week so your inbox isn’t overloaded! You can also select the content type and region to narrow down your alerts.

 

 

That’s all folks – we hope these 3 quick tips help you fire up your social media strategy.

If you’re not sure where to start – or your organic socials need an extra helping hand – we’re here to help. Get in touch with our team today to talk strategy and goals 🚀

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Social Media Updates: October 2022

Autumn is officially here! And a new season calls for many changes to our favourite social media platforms. 

 Check out this month’s breakdown of what happened in September and what to expect in the the month of October on all relevant social media platforms. 

Instagram  

Instagram has remained relatively silent update-wise since its infamous Tiktok-style update back in the summer, which ultimately resulted in the app shifting back to its original layout due to the backlash. However, this has not stopped Instagram from focusing on video-based content in other avenues…

In a recent announcement, any videos uploaded/recorded via stories will no longer be split into 15-second segments and you will be able to record up to 60 seconds of content before the video is broken up. 

Instagram Stories update

“Instagram’s been testing the update with selected users over the past year, as part of its broader process to integrate its video options, in line with the short-form video shift and general engagement trends.” (Source: Social Media today).

 

Tiktok

Tiktok has launched a new feature called Tiktok Now, which seems to be inspired by the

rising star Bereal. As featured in one of our previous blog posts – 5 Up & Coming Social Media Platforms, Bereal has seen a huge surge in popularity during 2022, being the self-proclaimed ‘authentic’ social media. 

 And if we’ve learnt one thing this year, 2022 is seemingly the year of social media copycats…

 

TikTok Now

 

“TikTok Now invites you and your friends to capture what you’re doing at the moment using your device’s front and back camera,” the company’s blog reads. “You’ll receive a daily prompt to capture a 10-second video or a static photo to easily share what you’re up to.” (source: Social Media Today) 

 

Competitor apps, Snapchat and Instagram have also attempted to replicate the front and back camera which Bereal is renowned for, with rumours that Instagram is looking to create a ‘timer-specific’ feature itself. 

 

Facebook/Meta 

Facebook is testing out a new post option which would enable you to restrict access to your post to subscribers only for an initial period after publishing – be that 24 hours, 48 hours, or a week.

Facebook subscribers only posts

 

 

“Some users now have access to an ‘Early Access for Subscribers’ toggle in their post settings, which enables you to limit access to that post for a chosen period of time.” (source: Social Media Today). 

 This is being tested in efforts to increase the appeal for creators on the platform and give the spotlight to emerging stars looking to build a community via Meta. 

 

Twitter 

After years of waiting, the infamous update everyone’s been waiting for is finally in live testing. 

Twitter has confirmed that it has entered the first testing stage for its tweet editing feature. So far, the feature involves users receiving a notification stating that they will only have 30 minutes to amend their tweet once it is made live – with an extra icon added to any edited tweets. 

 

Tweet editing

 

Users will be able to view the original tweet (even once edited) by clicking on the edit icon – a similar process to Facebook & Instagram comments. 

 

Edited tweets

 

The topic of Twitter introducing an edit button has been a huge talk of debate for over 5 years, with many deeming the feature ‘dangerous’ and fearing being used in instances of hate speech and trolling – whereas many simply want a quick and easy way to amend their embarrassing spelling mistakes… 

 

And there you have it! What are your thoughts on these latest features and updates? 

Here at Social Nucleus, we have an expert team of dedicated Account Managers and Creative Executives who thrive in making your business’s social media presence as successful as possible, no matter the platform. Book a call with us today and find out more 🚀

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Tone of Voice in Brand Communications

When it comes to marketing communications, your brand’s tone of voice is one of the most important aspects to consider. It’s not just a tool used to appeal to potential customers. It’s an integral part of your business that conveys your values and makes your brand stand out to everyone from prospective partners to the rival brands you’re competing against.

In this blog, we’ll cover what a brand’s voice is and the reasons why establishing a strong one is so vital.

What is a Brand’s Tone of Voice?

Before we look at why this is such an important part of your marketing, let’s delve into what a tone of voice actually is. Put simply, your TOV is the way in which your brand conveys itself to the world, both written and spoken. It’s not necessarily about what you say, but more about how you say it and the impression this will have on your audience. To craft an effective, engaging tone of voice, you need to know who your audience is and what they want to see in a brand.

For example, a B2B brand operating in the engineering sector will target fellow professionals who know what they’re talking about. Colourful language, colloquialisms and other techniques you see in broader marketing won’t be applicable here. Instead, a mature, technical tone of voice is required, one that speaks the same language as those who are reading.

This encompasses everything you put out, both spoken, written and even visual content. Whether it’s Facebook ad copy or internal presentations, consistency is key. Your voice needs to be distinctive and present in order to increase brand establishment. Trying to be as broad as possible and change the tone of your marketing for different audiences could be a hindrance and set your brand development back significantly.

Why is Brand Tone of Voice so Important?

Personification

Imagine for a moment that the audience isn’t reading your copy on a phone or laptop, but that they are instead listening to a person. If there is no recognisable personality or consistency to what they are saying, do you think your audience is likely to trust them or take on the message being conveyed? No.

When you have a strong, recognisable voice, your audience will build a character and view messaging as a conversation, rather than a piece of standard advertising.

In short, it makes your brand more personable. People don’t want to feel like they’re just getting information relayed to them or, on the other end of the spectrum, that they’re being fed lots of unnecessary filler. By creating a distinctive tone of voice, you’re making it easier for them to relate to your brand and ultimately see themselves become a part of it.

Reliability

We have already touched on the idea of consistency. When building a tone of voice, you have the chance to bring stability to your brand’s messaging. If your audience sees conflicting messaging, then they will view your brand as fractured and lacking any identity.

However, if consumers can see a clear ‘theme’ in your messaging, then this will reassure them that you know what you’re talking about. The importance of consistency in the type of content, ad copy and the way it is delivered cannot be overstated.

Authority

The tone of voice doesn’t just help to make you appear reliable in the eyes of potential customers, it can also make you seem more authoritative. However, this requires both personality and deep knowledge of the subject or industry you’re working in.

When we talk about authority, this doesn’t necessarily mean bombarding your audience with a lot of jargon and technical talk. Instead, it’s about being confident in your messaging and having the intuition to know when and when not to use specific terminology.

Originality

This is quite basic, but it is still a hugely important part to consider. When you have a good tone of voice, it sets your brand apart from the rest. As we’ve already mentioned, it’s a great tool to help craft a unique identity, making both copy ad and content instantly recognisable as belonging to your brand.

This can be incredibly valuable, as once you have set a tone that connects with your consumer base, it means they’ll remember your brand. You won’t just be a random company in the field, instead, you’ll be a name they link to your industry. The important thing to remember is that, while you can of course take inspiration from competitors, you shouldn’t try to emulate them. You need to craft a truly unique voice that represents your brand.

Communication

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, tone of voice can massively improve your relationship with the audience and how you communicate to them. An effective tone of voice can cut through the endless sea of online content available, clearly conveying your message in a way other brands can’t.

It can also help focus your campaigns and marketing angles. Instead of coming up with loads of content and copy to test that might not produce results, you can follow a theme and slightly adjust what’s working. Don’t be afraid to turn away from the broad appeal, some of the most successful campaigns work because they operate in a niche.

Build a Better Voice with Social Nucleus

Knowing that tone of voice is important and being able to effectively craft one are two very different things. If you’re struggling to convey your brand in the best way through messaging, why not get help from the experts. At Social Nucleus, we work to establish a consistent tone of voice from the get-go that can be used in all aspects of your campaigns, from ad copy to email marketing and beyond. If you’d like to take your advertising to the next level, get in touch and start connecting with your audience now.

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Your Ultimate Q4 Checklist

It goes without saying, Q4 is the busiest time of the year for many businesses and the build-up can undoubtedly be overwhelming, especially when you’re unsure where to start or what to focus on. 

But with all the pressure put to the side, Q4 is the best time to see a significant increase in overall brand revenue and finish the year off on a positive note! 

To help you prepare your business for the quarter ahead, we’ve compiled the ultimate checklist so your brand can put its best foot forward for this final quarter.  

Define Goals 

It’s time to think SMART: 

  •  Specific- Set goals specific to what you want your brand to accomplish during Q4, and clearly lay these out using organisational tools. 
  • Measure – Are you able to measure your goals? Ensure you have appropriate tracking and events set up in advance. 
  • Attainable – Are you being realistic with your goals and targets? Take time to investigate budgets, resources and prioritise quality over quantity. 
  • Relevant – Are your specific goals relevant to your business (and competitors!) 
  • Time bound – It goes without saying, start planning ASAP! Ensure all targets, goals and content is prepared in advance, therefore you can execute all ideas to the highest standard and keep things running smoothly over the busy quarter. 

 

Website Audit

Ensuring your website is at its peak performance is always vital, however, it’s particularly important when going into Q4. It’s recommended to have your website audited at least twice a year or on a quarterly basis. With the increase in store traffic, having a site that runs at a high speed with effective branding, imagery and copy will guarantee an increase in sales. 

Tip: when onboarding with Social Nucleus, you will have an in-depth website audit performed by your dedicated Account Manager.

 

Email 

It’s time for a glow up…with your email marketing. Having consistent and well communicated email flows prepped prior to Q4 could be vital for retargeting potential customers. We recommend creating a series of automated email flows triggered by the most common actions taken by your audience. 

  • Welcome flow
  • Abandoned cart 
  • Thank you/post-purchase flow 
  • Instructional 
  • Product review 
  • Personalised flows (i.e birthday or anniversary) 

Tip: Creating a simple pop up on your site to encourage signups is a great way to grow your mailing list.

 

Social Media 

Keep the same level of consistency on your site and email campaigns throughout your social media platforms, to build hype around product discounts and anticipated sales. 

 This may call for an increase in overall social presence on your brand’s social platforms, for example creating original and trendy content that both advertises your promotions/deals and appeals to your current target audience. 

 Tip: Take extra time to create content that will increase user engagement during this preparation, as this will organically grow your social presence and appeal to a wider audience (as well as the algorithm!).

Plan for Q1 

Planning for Q1? An obscene thought to many, but consistency is key in the world of digital marketing and keeping the same level of organisation and preparation will allow a smooth transition into the new year – set goals and keep your brand to the same standard.

 

And there you have it! We hope our checklist has helped make the Q4 planning process a little easier, so you can unleash your business’ full potential for this final quarter. 

 Looking to level up your quarterly planning? Book a call with Social Nucleus today – we’re ready to take your digital marketing to the next level for this quarter and beyond 🚀

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Why your business needs a marketing growth partner this Black Friday

Read on to find out how a marketing growth partner could help your brand reach new heights this Q4.

 

 

The busiest time of the marketing calendar year is coming up – the run up to Black Friday and Cyber Monday. There’s a whole host of marketing activities to do to ensure this period is a successful one for your business.

If you’re unsure of where to start, it’s worth investing in a team of marketing experts to get your brand out there, ready for Black Friday. 

Sometimes a helping hand can work wonders for your online reach and brand awareness, especially if you need time to clue up on the world of social media marketing, paid social advertising, or email marketing, before you can get stuck in to strategy and content creation.

It’s more important than ever to establish an online presence for your brand, to get your message out there and reach your target audience. And there’s experts out there who can jump straight onboard and help you achieve your goals.

Like us, for example (!).

 

What’s a growth partner?

Unlike an agency, we don’t consider ourselves an ‘external source’ for marketing services. We’re a dedicated partner to your brand, working with you, not external to you, to achieve success.

By collaborating with you and your goals, we’ll draw from our experience of scaling brands to help you grow and achieve your vision. Our success truly is your success – that’s what a partnership with us means.

We’re here to work together, as an extension of your business, to strive for your growth. We constantly innovate, testing new ideas and optimising the tests that work.

 

Call us your fully-functioning marketing department. We completely integrate with the way your business works, instead of operating from the sidelines.

You can leave it to us to fire up your marketing strategy, clued up on all the industry knowledge and expertise that will help you get the results you’re looking for.

 

 

How we can help

Let’s break down the variety of services you might consider for Black Friday :

 

Paid Social Ads –

Reach new and retargeted audiences and optimise your success on the daily. By the time Black Friday rolls around, we’ll have a good idea of the type of copy and content that stops scrolls and gets clicks.

 

Paid Google Ads –

Build your brand awareness and boost website traffic with paid search. Make it easier for your customers to find your brand when they search for the products you sell.

 

Email Marketing

Nurture a loyal customer base with email campaigns that engage, reward and bring value. Make sure your customers remember your offers and discounts when Black Friday arrives.

 

Social Media Marketing –

Take your social media output to the next level with content that gets you noticed and trusted- from Instagram to TikTok. Build your brand awareness and engage your audience with dynamic video, imagery and graphics that creatively capitalise on trends. 

 

Brand Management –

Elevate your brand identity and build your customer base with a recognisable tone of voice, visual branding and messaging across your marketing channels. As it’s not just about short-term efforts to get conversions, but long-term trust-building.

 

How does a growth partnership work?

When you get started on your onboarding, we’ll get stuck into getting to know your brand, inside out. We’re talking competitor research, TOV research, and full audits across your ad accounts and content output. 

We’ll get to know your brand culture, what’s important to you, and what you’re determined to achieve in both the near and distant future. Then you can be sure your new growth partner is fully onboard with your brand and can create the kind of content you’d love to see.

In the weeks leading up to Black Friday, we’ll be testing what works best, so we’re ready to build on this when it counts the most.

 

What are my next steps?

Why not get in touch and find out more about how we can help your brand this quarter? 

We’re an innovative, creative and ambitious growth partner, ready to help you scale up 🚀

Book a call with our friendly team today to ask any questions and discover more about our services, onboarding process and growth mindset.

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Ace your Black Friday Facebook Ad campaigns

Want to start prepping for Black Friday, but unsure where to start or what’s best to focus on? 

 

As we all know, Black Friday is the biggest time of the year for businesses and with this comes a lot of prepping and strategic planning to get the most out of it. In this article we will help clear up a few important focusses pre-Black Friday.

 

Pre Black Friday build up – Building up your traffic

 

Black Friday sales and traffic won’t appear out of nowhere, which is why building up your re-engagement and retargeting audiences is so important pre-Black Friday (the earlier you start, the better). 

 

These specific audiences are already warmed up to your brand and products, therefore come Black Friday when presented with your best promotions these specific audiences are much more likely to convert, in comparison to an audience that has never seen your products before. 

So, what are re-engagement and retargeting audiences?

 

Re-engagement audiences are people who interacted with your brand through watching or engaging with your brand’s social media content, profiles or ads, but haven’t visited your site. 

 

Retargeting audiences are people who have visited/interacted with your website. 

 

In addition to these audiences, you should also be building an email list. This can be done by offering your website visitors a newsletter, ebook, webinar, discount or something else of value in exchange for their email address.

 

An email list is another excellent way to present your Black Friday promotions to customers who are engaged with your brand, making them a warm prospect for conversion. This is also a different approach, as some potential customers may be more receptive with email marketing compared to Facebook advertising.

 

Know who to target during Black Friday

 

After building up your traffic before Black Friday, you may be thinking ‘who should see my ads on Black Friday itself?’ As mentioned above we recommend running ads prior to building up warm audiences to retarget, however there is more. 

 

Alongside this, it’s a good idea to optimise Facebook’s lookalike audiences, which, in short, takes data from Facebook to create the best possible audiences you are trying to create. For example you can create a lookalike audience for:

 

– Your buyers from the previous Black Friday

– Purchasers from the last 30, 60, 90 or 180 days

– Ad engagers

– Social media engagement from the last 30, 60, 90 or 180 days

– Website visitors from the last 30, 60, 90 or 180 days

Facebook will then take existing data from customers who have taken the action you want, in order to find more people who may be similar to them, based on Facebook data. 

 

To further optimise your audiences, you could narrow down these lookalike audiences with interests (depending how big your lookalike audiences are). For example if you were selling running trainers and wanted to build out a lookalike audience of people who have visited your website in the last 180 days, you may want to add an additional audience of people who are interested in ‘running’ or ‘Nike’ (or another running/fitness brand). We would usually only recommend adding one additional audience so that you can work out which interest/audience is performing best and why. If you add to many additional interests you will struggle to narrow down which is working.

Additionally you could also use the existing results you have from the ads you’ve run prior to Black Friday to determine which ads to run over the upcoming Black Friday weekend. If they’ve been profitable, you may wish to increase the budgets for this specific time to get the best results.

 

Make your creatives stand out

 

When data is scarce, time is limited and cost for ads are high, your creatives will be your best shot at efficiently converting your audiences on Black Friday. 

 

Your creatives don’t just act as the main scroll stopper- they’re a way of telling your brand’s story and the way of visualising the solution you can provide to your customers. Promoting how your brand solves your customers’ problems instead of being solely product focussed is a good way to attract them.

During Black Friday, you’ll be competing with other brands for attention, so you want to stand out by being the best solution people are looking for. Just remember: be clear, get to the point fast, and offer your Black Friday deals.

Aside from painting your brand as the solution, it will also help to inform consumers about free shipping, discounts, and any other promotions you are running. So make sure your free shipping offers and discounts are visible to make your products more attractive at first glance.

Creatives aren’t all about crystal clear images, they’re about the message they deliver to people.

 

Reform your formats

 

During the build up to Black Friday is the perfect time to test & reform your formats &  come up with creative ways to get potential customers’ attention. When it comes to ad formats, you can experiment and test new, scroll-stopping ads. If you have always stuck to using single images as your Facebook ads, it may be time to experiment with other methods.

 

– Video ads: Did you know 85% of social media users want to see more video content from brands? That’s no wonder, especially when you look at the drastic rise of TikTok, it’s not hard to see the way social media consumers are preferring to see their content and this is the same when it comes to advertising to, as we want our creatives to fit right in with the customers feed.

 

– Carousel ads: Allow you to have multiple images per ad, allowing you to showcase more products and/or go into further detail about the products you are selling, while expressing your brand across multiple images. 

 

– Dynamic Product Ads: These particular ads allow you to show your desired website visitors the exact products they viewed or added to cart. Therefore this particular ad can be a reminder for those warmer audiences who have shown interest but haven’t quite purchased yet.

 

Tip: Every format and placement has its size and design requirements, so make sure your ads comply with these & also double check the ads are formatted correctly before publishing.

We hope this helps you kickstart your Black Friday marketing strategy and preparation before the big day! 

However, if you still feel a bit lost or you think you need additional help with Black Friday advertising this year then you are in the right place! 

Our team of marketing experts have experienced many Black Fridays and understand what’s needed to have the most successful Black Friday possible.

Book a call with us today and lets help skyrocket your Black Friday! 🚀

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How to Create Email Campaigns that Convert (A Beginner’s Guide)

Want to start creating engaging email campaigns, but not sure where to start? You’ve come to the right place 🙌

In this article, we’ll show you how to create email campaigns that stand out in your audience’s inboxes – and ultimately, get clicks and conversions.

In the run up to Black Friday, email marketing is an important channel to be investing time in to elevate your sales.

No matter the email marketing platform you use, professionally-created email campaigns are a great way to creatively advertise your products with an audience that’s already invested in your business, and nurture strong customer relationships with a clear brand identity.

 

How can you ensure your emails stand out from the rest?

 

Building a strong campaign

So, what are the key elements you need to be paying attention to?

 

1. Subject line (/preview line)

This is the first thing your audience will see from your campaign, and it’s vital you ensure it entices your audience to click on the email and view it- so make it count!

 

Here’s some examples of email subject lines – which ones stand out from the rest?

 

Consider what would attract your audience’s attention as they scroll through their inbox and see your brand’s email. Have you got any promotions running? If so, include how much your products currently cost (for a limited time only!), or how much they could save.

Alternatively, use a powerful CTA to compel your audience to click – this could evoke a sense of ‘fear of missing out’ if they don’t click, eg:

Subject lines that create a sudden surge of interest, but don’t disclose all information unless the recipient clicks to read it, is a great way to raise your open rate.

The use of emoji is up to you and your brand guidelines – but if you’re going to use them, stick to one or two. Their bright colours often help to direct the eyes to your subject line, over other emails in the inbox.

 

2. Copy

Your email’s copy is the perfect place to communicate your brand’s personality and encourage conversions in a creative way.

Keep copy punchy and easy to read, to communicate your message in an engaging way. 

 

An example of simple, punchy copy from H&M’s email marketing – smoothly leading to a CTA.

 

Bear in mind that most recipients will be checking their inboxes on their phones – ensure you get to the point in a few lines to sustain their interest.

Draw attention to any offers or discounts with bold text that the audience will see in an instant. 

Include link buttons with CTAs to take them to relevant product page- these can appear more than once if your email is longer, to ensure your audience always has an opportunity to click and visit your site.

 

3. Imagery and graphics

Great, memorable emails include attractive graphics with eye-catching headlines, that show off featured products in their best light. 

 

Even just a simple image and headline, like Schuh’s here, is a great way to communicate your brand identity and create an engaging send.

 

Aim to keep your recipients scrolling through your email without getting disengaged and clicking away. This might mean summing up copy in an easily-digestible infographic if you wish to communicate more information (eg a list of USPs).

Your audiences are unlikely to stick around and read large chunks of text. Break them up with professional imagery, text-based graphics and links, to keep your campaign engaging.

If you’ve got a larger product offering, it might be worth creating a product catalogue at the end of each send – so recipients can easily see your new/bestselling product lines. 

 

Here’s an example of a simple product catalogue by Monki, which allows recipients to browse a portion of the product offering before clicking to view the site.

 

To make your sends more dynamic, consider creating GIFs that flicks between images, or simple animated graphics featuring moving objects. 

These may take more time to create, but they could be a great way to elevate your campaigns and engage your audience.

 

Now we’ve gone through the essential elements you need for a good campaign – how can you get started on your email planning?

 

It’s definitely advisable to plan your email calendar in advance- for example, planning the month ahead each month, or even the next few months.

 

Campaign planning

Now Black Friday’s coming up, it’s more important than ever to plan ahead to achieve a higher volume of sales. Email marketing is one key factor in the effort to engage customers and boost your conversions.

Decide how many campaigns you’d like to send out each week, and what you’ll include in each of them. If you’re building a business, we’d suggest at least 2 a week to gain an inbox presence. 

 

As part of the planning process, visualise what you want your emails’ layouts to look like, and what content you’d like to include.

 

We’d advise splitting your sends between sales-focussed campaigns and community-building campaigns. 

With the latter, prepare short blog-style articles that would interest your audience – whether that’s telling your brand story, discussing a subject of interest to your niche, or giving product-based advice. 

This is a great way to add value to your subscribers’ experience with your brand – making them more likely to purchase from you down the line.

For the remainder of your sends, focus on your products’ USPs (unique selling points) and features, and utilise persuasive, creative language to drive clicks and conversions on your site.

 

But when should you send emails for the highest click and conversion rates? Let’s find out…

 

 

Optimising your campaigns

By scheduling sends in advance, you can ensure you send out emails when your audience is most likely to open them, and buy from you. 

Consider your target audience’s lifestyles and habits – when are they going to be checking their inboxes, their phones, or working on their laptop? 

Target their lunch break, commute and after-work leisure time during the working week. Evenings are a particularly golden time for online purchases; your audience is often scrolling through their phone and catching up with their notifications after a busy day. 

 

 

With blog-style campaigns, consider when recipients will more likely commit to reading your content. Perhaps steer clear from later on in the evening, to avoid tired brains that don’t wish to commit to a longer read!

As you begin sending out campaigns, you can start paying attention to the analytics- when are more customers opening, clicking, converting from your campaigns? 

Send campaigns again at high-performing times for your audience, and test new times to see what the stats are like. 

 

Keep an eye on your CVR (conversation rate), open rate, click rate and recipient activity (What are they clicking on? What are they responding well to?)

 

 

We hope this helps as you begin your email marketing journey! 💪

 

However, if you’re needing expert help to get your email campaigns off the ground, you’ve come to the right place 🙌

Our team of marketing experts know their way around the entire process of making a high performing send, no matter the platform. 

We can help elevate your email content calendar to the next level, engaging your audiences and driving your sales.

 

Book a call in with us now, to discuss your strategy and goals – so we can get cracking on your content calendar ready for Black Friday 🚀

You’ll also be able to find out more about the other marketing services we offer, and how we could be the perfect growth partner for your brand.